The community of Milwaukee spoke. Neighbors, business owners, folks of all race, ideology, and identity, spoke as one voice. But city, and state officials had another plan and heard only their own voices. The vision they shared for the RNC in Milwaukee was one of bliss and progress—but it couldn’t be further from the truth. For too long, elected officials have had money prioritized over the lives and wellbeing of the community. Decisions made purely from a financial standpoint with no consideration for the very foundation of our city, its people. It appears despite a new administration, the legacy of poor decision making persists.

The Republican party has welcomed with open arms groups that actively message anti-black, antisemitic, queerphobic and other harmful rhetoric. The allowance of the RNC into the city of Milwaukee in 2024 will make us feel unsafe and unwelcome in our own communities. We have read and heard firsthand the opinions of Republicans around the state in regard to Milwaukee. They have used coded language and dog whistles to paint Milwaukee in a bad light. We are calling for our elected officials to begin to take into account what is best not only from a financial standpoint, but the view of what is best for all of Milwaukee residents and communities.

The tourism boost officials claim is not the type of tourism we should want to see. There is no justifiable motivation or reason for elected officials to allow our city to be used as a talking point or pawn in a political strategy by people who do not care about Milwaukee. We will continue to stand with grassroots partners—Voces De La Frontera Action, labor partners—SEIU and others, to uplift the needs and priorities of our communities and peoples.

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