Thursday, May 23, 2024
5:00 pm to 8:30 pm
Dinner and Business Meeting
Alioto's
3401 N Mayfair Rd
Wauwatosa, WI
Learn more and register by clicking the link below.
| | Learn how to have a conversation, not a debate, when supporting reproductive healthcare and rights – OR ANY contentious subject. Attend our Milwaukee event (now open to the public!) led by Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin. This 2-hour, evidence-based workshop will give you confidence and skills to have difficult conversations with relatives, friends and neighbors. Skills learned are transferable to many subjects!
Register today for either the virtual or in-person workshop with the links below.
|  | Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition: Statement on Voting Rights of Wisconsin Care Facility Residents
In Wisconsin, approximately 17,500 individuals reside in nursing homes; thousands more reside in adult family homes (AFHs), community-based residential facilities (CBRFs), and residential care apartment complexes (RCACs). The voting rights of these residents are no different than any other Wisconsinite: every person eligible to vote in Wisconsin, regardless of their living situation, maintains that eligibility unless a court determines they are not legally competent and removes their right to vote.
The reasons people live in care facilities are varied. Regardless of the reason for or length of stay in a care facility, the voting rights of these residents are retained unless a court determines otherwise.
Affirming and supporting the voting rights of care facility residents is a priority for the Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition, and we welcome the opportunity to provide education and support to individuals, families, communities, and organizations – including care facilities – across the state regarding these issues.
|  |  | | Thank you to VOTE411 Volunteers
The Spring 2024 Election Voter Guide at VOTE411.org published online by the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County was a success due to amazing volunteers. Last week we thanked some of the Community Volunteers, the important link to the municipal clerks and school boards for information on open positions, candidate filings, and candidate contact information.
Sarajane Kennedy was the overall team leader since VOTE411 started and before that when it was Candidate Answers. She worked tirelessly on the big picture and on the details as well as dealing with questions from the candidates. Sarajane was the face of VOTE411 for LWVMC and will be missed. She also coordinated the Milwaukee Community Volunteers while Ellen Trytek coordinated the Waukesha Community Volunteers. Watch for a full listing of Community Volunteers next week.
Mary Ellen Spicuzza, Sue Leister, Peter Neuwald, and Ellen Trytek did the tech work and Mary Sue Kristiansen led the Questions Subcommittee creating the questions local candidates are asked to answer in the Voter Guide. Judit Schugurensky and Diane Steigerwald translated the candidate questions into Spanish. Mary Voelker tested candidate correspondence and wrote articles for the weekly Update and the Voter. Anita Gulotta-Connelly led the campaign to encourage participation both for candidates to answer the League’s questions and to mobilize our membership for contacting voters to increase utilization of VOTE411 before going to the polls.
Incredible work! An immense thank you to all.
|  | CLICK ON THE FLYER ABOVE IF YOU'D LIKE TO DOWNLOAD AND PRINT IT OUT.
| Community Outreach Needs Volunteers for Voter Registration Events
The Community Outreach Team provides voter information and registration services at community partners' events throughout primarily Milwaukee County. Our partners are social service agencies, advocacy organizations, churches, etc. mainly in the underrepresented Black and Asian-American communities.
Based on our experience in 2022, I would anticipate that we will receive many requests for assistance with exponential growth as the year progresses. If you are interested in providing this invaluable service to our community, please complete the form below indicating your availability.
|  | Friday, April 26 at 10 a.m.
April is a book club meeting and we will be discussing: “Obreros Unidos: The Roots and Legacy of the Farmworkers Movement” by Jesus Salas. Everyone is welcome to attend even if you haven’t had a chance to read the book!
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Back in March, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin held Part 1 of its series on contamination by PFAS (per and polyfluoroalkyl substances) in Wisconsin. That webinar engaged speakers to explain where these ubiquitous contaminants come from, what it can do inside the human body, and the personal protections we can all take to limit our exposures.
Now in Part 2, What To Do About PFAS, on May 9th at 6:30 pm, we will address the bigger picture of what we can do about PFAS. Topics will include:
- Lived experiences with PFAS contamination of soil and water
- Limitations and costs of current remediation options
- Innovative remediation methods under investigation
- Political controversies and legislative proposals
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|  | EASY WALKS AND PADDLES
View the livestream of an informative and inspirational discussion about accessible walks and paddles in the Milwaukee area.
LWVMC members, Karen and Jennifer Lemke, authors of Easy Walks and Paddles in Milwaukee, share the inside scoop on more than 50 accessible trails and waterways in the Milwaukee area, as well as information about public restrooms, benches, nearby eateries, environmental issues, and fascinating tidbits about Milwaukee’s ethnic and cultural history. The Sisters Lemke are in conversation with LWVMC member, Dorothy Dean, founder and executive director of Disability Justice. Easy Walks and Paddles in Milwaukee provides important accessibility information for Milwaukee’s beautiful and abundant green spaces so that more people with disabilities, seniors, and families with children can enjoy these easy-access spaces.
|  | Ballot Bulletin - Election Results are Triple Checked
Time for another Ballot Bulletin where we highlight various election security topics so we are all better informed about the processes in place to ensure our elections are fair, accessible, and secure. This week let's dive into the certification process of election results.
In Wisconsin, our commitment to fair and transparent elections is unwavering. And while the polls may close at 8 p.m. on Election Day, official results take time to compile. On election night, counties collect returns from their municipalities, and post the unofficial results on their websites. It’s important for voters to know that any election results reported on election night are unofficial until the results are triple checked.
After the polls close, election officials go through a rigorous process to triple check the results at the municipal, county, and state levels. Every vote cast is meticulously counted, verified, and audited not once, not twice, but three times to ensure the utmost accuracy and reliability of the results! It is normal for unofficial election results to change slightly as election officials conduct canvasses to ensure an accurate vote total while completing the certification process.
Election results become official after the chair of the Wisconsin Elections Commission certifies the results. The canvass and certification of election results can take over 30 days to complete after the election.
While everyone is eager to know the results of an election as soon as possible, we need to remember to be patient and give our election officials time to count every vote. Our democracy is worth the wait!
Read the Ballot Bulletins series HERE. |  |
Prepare yourself to help people register to vote!
May 18, Saturday | 9:30 am- 11:00 am
League Offices Summit Place Conference Room 2135
6737 W. Washington St.
Learn how to register people to vote using MyVote.wi.gov. Learn what is acceptable photo ID for voting in Wisconsin and how to acquire it. Registration required.
Questions regarding this announcement? Please email e.aelion@lwvmilwaukee.org
Register here: My Vote Training Sign Up | Fund Development - We need you! Coffee for Our Cause | |
Coffee for Our Cause has been a huge fundraiser and promotes our brand of empowering voters and defending democracy.
Without a new leader, Coffee for Our Cause will not continue. This would be a huge loss in revenue for the League. Mary Sussman, who created this fund-raiser and has been its leader, is stepping down this year. The project timeframe is from July through November. A one-year commitment is requested for this worthy project that is satisfying to work on. A team is in place, procedures are up-to-date, and coaching will be available. Please contact Mary Sussman to express interest or get additional information: susscommunications@att.net
Let’s not let this successful fundraiser lapse!! Think about making it fun with a leader and a co-leader.
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Tickets Now on Sale for the 2024 LWVWI Annual Meeting in Green Bay, WI!
This year's theme is Tipping Points & Shared Purposes - Challenges of 2024 & Beyond: What We Need to do This Year to Move Through Them Together. Issues we face today affect us in more ways than the obvious. How do we encourage everyone to come together again in our hyper-polarized world? From civics education to artificial intelligence to fair redistricting and beyond, we explore how to find balance before reaching the tipping points.
FORMAT: Hybrid (in-person and virtual options)
DATE: May 31 - June 1, 2024
LOCATION: Oneida Hotel and Conference Center, Green Bay, WI
For additional information on theme, lodging, parking, & material, visit the LWVWI Annual Meeting Hub.
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|  | POW-litical Comics
MOWA’s DTN Gallery at St. Kate Arts Hotel
139 E. Kilbourn Ave., Milwaukee
Now through July 22
Free and Open to the Public
The Museum of Wisconsin Art presents a timely exhibition of political cartoons that reflect the 2024 presidential election and the contemporary moment in US politics. American political cartoons have a long and illustrious history that originated with Thomas Jefferson in the late eighteenth century. Cartoonists from every era since have used humor to comment on events and influence public opinion from Civil War caricatures of Abraham Lincoln to the corrupt Tweed Ring of New York City in the 1870s to the free love activism of the 1960s. And, who could forget Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton, whose storied lives unfolded as bumbling, witless caricatures in nearly every American newspaper? Today’s political stew is no different, and, as is often said, sometimes you just gotta laugh |  |  | Accessing Members-Only Website Portal
The LWVMC website has information and resources that are available only to LWVMC members. To access the membership directory or members-only resources and volunteer opportunities, click on the button below. Contact Mary Ellen Spicuzza at me.spicuzza@lwvmilwaukee.org with any questions. | Support Local Democracy. Support Your League.
Your support is critical to help our nonpartisan grassroots organization reach voters play a critical role in democracy. It would not be possible to empower voters and defend democracy without your support.
Thank you! LWVMC
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