MKE Roots: How Do We Tell The Story of Our Milwaukee

MKE Roots is a program run through Marquette University’s Center for Urban Research, Teaching and Outreach. We promote place-based, inquiry-centered approach to teaching the history and civic engagement of Milwaukee’s communities. MKE Roots aims to transform how Milwaukee’s students see themselves within the civic landscape of our city – as change agents, community
contributors, & citizens who matter.

This year MKE Roots has been working with a group of girls from St. Joan Antida High School during their Empower Hour to help them discover their city in a new way. They have learned about key powerful civil rights movements like the Open Housing Marches, the repossession of the McKinley Coast Guard Station and the UWM Champan Hall takeover. They have gone on tours to various locations throughout Milwaukee that hold historical and cultural significant. Students have shared with us the city through their own lens. The exhibit today is just that, Milwaukee through the lens of its youth.

We asked the students our guiding question “How should we tell the story of OUR Milwaukee?” and these projects are their answers. Students had the option to show us their visions of current or historical Milwaukee through photo essays or research projects; or they could reimagine Milwaukee and create something they believe would represent the history and culture of their city. These creative projects took the form of monuments or murals the students created themselves and would like to see put up in our city somewhere.

As you browse the student projects we encourage you to think about how the vision of these young people could impact our city as a whole. How might we be more proactive about engaging students in solving the problems our city faces? How could the experiences of young people shape how we tell the story of OUR Milwaukee?