Segregated Milwaukee

Three maps of Milwaukee, showing the white and black populations, as well as the three major racial groups together.

A dot density map of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, showing white, black, and Latinx residents in the Bucks’ colors. A 2018 Brookings study showed Milwaukee as having the highest black-white segregation among large American cities.

In a March interview in The Guardian, Bucks’ guard Malcolm Brogdon spoke about his experience of living in such a segregated city. The NBA team has a very public recent history confronting racism.

In 2015, center John Henson had the police called on him while attempting to buy a watch at a suburban jewelry store. Bucks president Peter Feigin called the city “the most segregated and racist place” a year later, and the organization has been outspoken in support of its players and in working on issues of racial inequity.

In early 2018, rookie Sterling Brown was apprehended for a parking violation in a Walgreens lot. “Nearly a dozen officers responded and Brown was taken to the ground and tasered in the back.” The Bucks supported Brown in his filing of a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city and its police department.

High resolution image of map

Data: American Community Survey 2017 5-Year Estimate