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Today we highlight our own coverage of Wisconsin’s escalating evictions crisis during the pandemic, particularly for Black residents in Milwaukee.
Gov. Tony Evers was among the first governors to lift a state moratorium on evictions during the coronavirus pandemic, and his $25 million statewide emergency rental assistance program is failing to meet the demands of thousands in need.
Milwaukee landlords filed more than 1,400 evictions in June and 1,300 in July, both higher than pre-pandemic averages, according to our story by Allison Dikanovic and Clara Neupert of Wisconsin Watch and Princess Safiya Byers of Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service. More than two-thirds of the filings hit Black-majority neighborhoods.
Neupert and Dikanovic also offer a guide on how to navigate state and local rental assistance programs
Top Stories
‘Nowhere to go’: Wisconsin renters face evictions as emergency aid falls short — Wisconsin Watch/Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
How to navigate the Wisconsin Rental Assistance Program and other resources for renters — Wisconsin Watch/Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
North central, Fox Valley regions see most COVID-19 hospitalizations since pandemic began — WPR
UW campuses forge ahead in reopening this fall despite growing COVID-19 concerns — Wisconsin State Journal
UW-Madison faculty help nation, state plan COVID-19 vaccine allocation — Wisconsin State Journal
Brown County coronavirus: Prison cases surge to 185; death toll hits 57 — Green Bay Press Gazette
Dane County deputy who died of COVID-19 tested positive ‘several weeks ago,’ hospitalized soon after — Wisconsin State Journal
What are we missing? And how are you coping? Help us provide critical information and accountability by filling out this form or emailing us at tips@wisconsinwatch.org.
Quotable
“Some residents actually started crying, you know some don’t even have family, so that’s really sad. So now it’s like they’re receiving mail, I think it’s such a new thing. They’re treasuring it.”
Lisa Gering, marketing director for Our House Senior Living in Portage, which has launched a pen pal program for residents at a time when visits are restricted due to the coronavirus, as quoted by the Portage Daily Register
Data to note
A Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis of U.S. Census Bureau survey data illustrates the widespread economic and food security crisis during the pandemic.
An estimated 246,000 to 336,000 Wisconsin children live in households that are behind in rent or their mortgage and/or did not get enough to eat from June 18 to July 21, according to the analysis released this month.
An estimated 18.4 million to 19.4 million children nationally fit that criteria, according to the analysis.
Here are the latest visualizations of COVID-19 cases and deaths from our partners at WisContext.
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People helping others and showing resilience during this time of anxiety. Send suggestions by tagging us on social media — @wisconsinwatch — or emailing us: tips@wisconsinwatch.org.
‘Our animals were missing people’: Ronda Schwetz on sustaining the zoo amid COVID-19 — The Cap Times
Verona company offers antimicrobial solution for playgrounds — Wisconsin State Journal
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The nonprofit Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism (wisconsinwatch.org) collaborates with Wisconsin Public Radio, PBS Wisconsin, other news media and the UW-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication. All works created, published, posted or disseminated by the Center do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of UW-Madison or any of its affiliates.
