53206

Andre Lee Ellis is the founder of the Andre Lee Ellis Theater Company, We Got This Community Garden, and his latest endeavor, The Cage.  

Meg and Alex sit down with Andre and discuss urban agriculture, theater production, and a vision for what our inner city spaces could be. 

Meg and Alex are back one more time to recap the summer with We Got This. The two talk about what they learned from their first summer working with the program and throw out some ideas around what might be coming next. 

The summer is coming to end which means that We Got This wrapped up its final week. Meg and Alex breakdown an exciting season finale for We Got This and talk about projecting ourselves outside of our current circumstances. 

Meg and Alex are back and pose the question, are we doing a good job of taking care of the poor. Then the two discuss the concept of being neighborly and how challenging that can be in spaces where poverty is the dominant narrative. Afterward, the two talk about the Borchert Field Market event and Week 10 at We Got This. 

This week Meg and Alex give a garden update for week 8 at We Got This and talk about how inequities are perpetuated when we fail to create environments where everyone is afforded similar opportunities regardless of socio-economic status. 

Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. - MLK

On this week's episode of the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex throw out the idea that some of the conditions facing 53206 and inner city spaces across the country have a much greater impact to the surrounding areas than maybe we think. Then the two give an update on week 8 of the We Got This summer program.

Giving someone a little margin in their budget can make a world of difference to someone living in poverty. The challenge is finding ways to create that margin with whatever resources are already in your possession and in a way that is natural and easy. This week, Meg and Alex talk about ways to orient yourself to find those opportunities more regularly. Then the two give an update for week 6 at We Got This. 

Margin is luxury not all of us have. When faced with a major life change, like moving, not having something many of us take for granted, like a vehicle, can cause a family to fall further behind. This week Alex and Meg talk about moving without a car and give an update on week 5 at We Got This. 

Can what happens to one house drastically impact a neighborhood? What if the same thing happens to another house and then another? This week on the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex discuss what happened to Tiffany, how she ended up giving away her house, and what the net result has been for the neighborhood years later. Then the two give an update on week 4 at We Got This. 

This week, Meg and Alex talk about the cultural narrative around dumping trash in alleys and how when we assume a place is one way, our collective actions tend to perpetuate or maintain the status quo. Then the two recap the third week of the We Got This Summer Program and share some exciting updates in the neighborhood. 

On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex give an update from We Got This and talk about illegal dumping in the city. 

The summer program at We Got This has officially kicked off and Meg and Alex give an update on how the first week went. Then the two talk about little league baseball and recovering from small traumatic events.

Milwaukee historian Reggie Jackson from Nurturing Diversity Partners joins the 53206 Cast to share his wealth of knowledge about the history of some of the dynamics at play within Milwaukee's central city. The group discusses how segregation is measured, some of the history behind highway locations, and the ever present and looming topic of gentrification. 

This week Alex and Meg are joined by Ajamou Butler and Jessica Butler from Heal The Hood to talk about their upcoming event on May 28th in Milwaukee. The group discusses the origination of Heal The Hood and talk about ways to join in the movement around healing our inner city spaces. 

Meg and Alex are back in the studio sharing their most controversial take to date. The two discuss the idea that it's harder to grow up in 53206 than it is where they are from. While that might be a bit of a stretch to think of that as controversial today, that hasn't always been the case and how recognizing and acknowledging the challenges young people face in 53206 is a step in the right for long term social change. 

The thing about the inner city is that most people don't want it to stay how it is. People living in the suburbs don't love the negative outcomes they see on the news and those living here would prefer a decrease in acts of violence or crime in general. Luckily the solution is the same for both groups - be the change they want to see in the world. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex dive into what it would look like to be the change and encourage listeners to take action within their own spheres of influence. 

A curious part of living in the inner city is how close together hope and despair can be. A beautifully maintained house can be situated between two run-down abandoned buildings. Something exciting can be quickly interrupted by an act of violence and positive change can be overshadowed in an instant. On this weeks episode of the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex dive into that phenomenon and give some thoughts on how we can push for hope rather than despair. 

The future of the inner city is many times siloed into going down two potential paths, continued denigration or gentrification. While a third option might not be readily available, Meg and Alex try to give shape to what that might look like as they think about the future of 53206.

When a person has little to no frame of reference around how someone else might experience life, it can be difficult to empathize. That difficulty shouldn't be a reason to not engage in that work. Meg and Alex tackle this topic and more on the latest episode of the 53206 Cast. 

The 53206 Cast welcomes back Ashley Frahm to the podcast. Ashley talks about a recent shooting that took place outside of Rufus King High School within eyesight of her house. She shares how she approached processing the event with her children and gives some insight on some of the trickle down effects of gun violence.