Listening In columnist George Vukelich lends an ear to Steve Braunginn: "We want all people to have the right to housing - safe housing," explains the co-chair of the Rainbow Coalition in Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District. "That attempts to address one of the worst tragedies facing our country today: homelessness. Second of all, we're talking about dealing with the issue of poverty in all its facets. Part of that is single-parent households, headed by women. Forty percent of our children in America now live in poverty. Right here in our own community of Madison, we're suffering a great deal of trauma even though it's hidden away in various pockets of our city.... These families need child care and appropriate medical insurance.... We are talking about quality education, not only for children of color, but for all children in our city.... The Reagan administration made it acceptable to be racist. This administration made it acceptable to blame the poor for being poor. This administration, indeed, created a racist climate in the country. But now, that climate is changing." Braunginn goes on to serve as president and CEO for the Urban League of Greater Madison. Now retired, he is co-host with Jane Reynolds of WORT-FM's "Strictly Jazz Sounds," and devotes his creative impulses to poetry, photography, multimedia collaborations with other local artists and to freelance writing for Isthmus, Jazz Improv Magazine and other publications.
Stop blaming the poor
From the Isthmus archives, Jan. 29, 1988