News and Commentary
This page displays timely announcements, news reports, and articles written by MOSES members previously published in our newsletters, yearbook, or venues. The main display shows all items with the most recent first. You can select particular topics, working groups, or types of information to see the articles of one type, with the most recent first. Also see the Publications & Resources page for links to whole newsletters and yearbooks as well as other resources for research.
“The Kernel of Truth”
“The Kernel of Truth” By Katie Mulligan Exuberant audiences cheered the premiere performances of “The Kernel of Truth” at the Overture Center on Father's Day weekend. Billed as a story of redemption from behind bars, the play presents the stories of men imprisoned in a county jail and shows how they come to understand the complexities of the criminal justice system and eventually realize their own power in building new lives and transforming their communities. Each man steps...
Who Is Corey Marionneaux and Why Do I Keep Seeing His Name?
Who Is Corey Marionneaux and Why Do I Keep Seeing His Name? By Sherry Reames If MOSES members haven’t yet heard about Corey Marionneaux and his ambitious projects, trust me – this is a young community leader to watch. Marionneaux is founder and CEO of Black Men Coalition of Dane County, a nonprofit established in 2020 “to foster and develop a safe and inclusive environment for Black men and other vulnerable populations in Dane County through community involvement, mentorship, education, and...
Lunch and Learn Fundraiser Celebrates Madison’s New SAFE House
Lunch and Learn Fundraiser Celebrates Madison’s New SAFE House By Katie Mulligan On May 15, MOSES members and others gathered for a “Lunch and Learn” fundraiser at Lake Edge Lutheran Church in Monona. We were there to hear EXPO member Deliliah McKinney speak about the special problems of women who spend time in prison, what they need to succeed after release, and how she obtained a grant for a SAFE House that helps them move toward new lives. “I am in awe of her,” said MOSES organizer James...
What’s the Significance of “23”?
What’s the Significance of “23”? By Pamela Gates On the 23rd of every month, MOSES and EXPO members plan to gather from 12 to 12:30 pm on the State Street steps of the Capitol to draw attention to the fact that hundreds of people are being subjected to solitary confinement in Wisconsin’s prisons, and to demand that the state put an end this practice. The 23rd was chosen because people in solitary spend 23 hours alone in their cells every day. They spend the other hour someplace else,...
Organizer’s Corner
Organizer’s Corner: Greetings, Everyone! From Community Organizer, James Morgan It is my sincere hope that as I share with you in this moment, that you’ll gain a greater appreciation for having had, at one time or another, an experience of making “it” make sense. The “It” I am referring to has no boundaries, when it comes to how we may act, or our reaction to the situations and circumstances before us. It can and often does involve personal and collective decision-making in our...
Justice System Reform Initiative (JSRI) Activities and Concerns
Justice System Reform Initiative (JSRI) Activities and Concerns By Tom and Jan Gilbert, Mary Anglim, and Kathy Luker Dane County has not been actively pursuing reform initiatives that are of interest to us in the past year. This is part of the ebb and flow of county government, but here are some of the reasons for the inactivity: • County Executive Parisi’s announcement in October 2023 that he would retire had an impact on everything in county government. His retirement took effect on...
MMSD Takes Important Steps for Student Literacy
MMSD Takes Important Steps for Student Literacy By Barbie Jackson and Shel Gross, Racial Justice for All Children Task Force (RJAC) Education Advocacy Group The Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD)’s proposed budget for 2024-’25 contains a very significant statement: In MMSD, we believe reading is a moral imperative for all students. Rooted in our commitment to ensuring all students graduate ready for college, careers, and the community, all students in MMSD will receive high-quality,...
Organizer’s Corner
Greetings, MOSES! From Community Organizer James Morgan Many of my recent experiences in the larger community have caused me to reflect on organizational capacity, recruitment, and leadership. Our goals and mission to establish a platform for collective power-building dictates that, as your organizer, I must reflect on MOSES and its capacity to build externally, as well as internally. Most recently, when I was talking with someone from another organization, our conversation focused on power...
MOSES Reaches In to Visit Black Churches
MOSES Reaches In to Visit Black Churches By Saundra Brown, President of MOSES MOSES’s mission statement calls us to build collective power. This guiding principle, which comes directly from our national and statewide organizations, Gamaliel and WISDOM, is based on an understanding that we cannot achieve success without a broad, collaborative base. To achieve our goals, we must build collective power. This requires us to develop organized people and organized money. We cannot close the gaps of...
What’s Happening to Parole in Wisconsin?
What’s Happening to Parole in Wisconsin? By Sherry Reames The figures on the Parole Commission website show a huge recent drop in the number of paroles being granted. Between 2019 and 2022, an average of 167 individuals a year were released on parole. In 2023 the number plummeted to 37 (or 40, if we count those whose cases were heard in 2023 and added on the website in January and February 2024). The number so far in 2024 (as of April 20) is just one. That is a shocking development,...