Introducing Milwaukee County First

A new and necessary network of organizations and individuals has formed to stop the decline of Milwaukee County. They aim to restore Milwaukee County assets and services to their former first class status. This new organization is appropriately called Milwaukee County First. It is exciting to see people aggressively organize around such an important issue. It is not only important to our local community but also to our entire state. It is additionally exciting to see the great people that are involved with this effort. They are dedicated and passionate in their support for Milwaukee County and in making it their first priority.

Here is a self description that Milwaukee County First gives in their introductory press release:

Milwaukee County First is a grassroots network of organizations and individuals from all walks of life, united to amplify their voices in the cause of stopping the decline of Milwaukee County, restoring its assets and services to their former first class status, and keeping Milwaukee County a place where people will want to work, to play, and to live.

Milwaukee County is a shadow of what it once was.  Its parks, once a necklace of jewels, are now unkempt and overgrown.  Its transit system, once a yardstick for the nation, is now fighting for its very survival.  The social services and safety net that Milwaukee County once provided has been scaled down so much that the State of Wisconsin had to intervene to protect the most vulnerable of the county's citizens.  Its infrastructure is crumbling and years behind in necessary repairs.

The causes of this decline in Milwaukee County's status are many, from the dire economic times we are in, to local leaders, past and present, who have put their self-interests before those of the people they serve.  It is time, if not beyond time, for civic leaders to once again put the interests of Milwaukee County first.  It is time to make Milwaukee County a first-class economic and social region for the State of Wisconsin and the entire Midwest. This is why residents from throughout Milwaukee County have come together to form Milwaukee County First.