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Sometimes you have to climb down your own family tree to confront the kind of policing that is turning so many stomachs tonight.
That's me in a lovely christening gown and that is my Grandpa Frank between shifts as the leader of Milwaukee PD's notorious Tactical Squad in 1968.
That's me in a lovely christening gown and that is my Grandpa Frank between shifts as the leader of Milwaukee PD's notorious Tactical Squad in 1968.
As a kid I knew him as a scary-gruff-but-lovable, first-generation John Wayne. Hero cop with a wall full of commendations and President of the Eagles Club
As a grown-up reporter I learned that the The Eagles Club was whites-only and his stories and souvenirs had another side.
As a grown-up reporter I learned that the The Eagles Club was whites-only and his stories and souvenirs had another side.
This was an ad taken out in the local alternative newspaper (which also printed the home addresses of hundreds of Milwaukee cops) after his violent crackdowns on protestors for "curfew violations."
Some of his men carried sawed-off pool cues as clubs.
Some of his men carried sawed-off pool cues as clubs.
He also kept a flip-book of mugshots filled mostly with pictures of young black men.
As a kid, these were the villains of his stories.
As a grownup, I had to find them.
As a kid, these were the villains of his stories.
As a grownup, I had to find them.
With the help of the NAACP, I tracked down Prentice McKinney. His on-camera rants alongside radical priest Father Groppi earned him the label "Milwaukee's Angriest Young Negro"
"You recognize that face?" I asked as we sat over Grandpa's poster.
"Oh, yeah," he said. "Asshole."
"You recognize that face?" I asked as we sat over Grandpa's poster.
"Oh, yeah," he said. "Asshole."
"And his men?"
"The Tach Squad was Assholes Incorporated," he said. "You got to understand. These were men that made us fear for our lives."
"The Tach Squad was Assholes Incorporated," he said. "You got to understand. These were men that made us fear for our lives."
And then the conversation really got interesting.
Here's the interactive version of my deep dive into how neighbors become strangers in moments like these.
Turns out we all have to dig into uncomfortable places if we're ever going to break the cycle. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2017/06/travel/states-of-change/
Here's the interactive version of my deep dive into how neighbors become strangers in moments like these.
Turns out we all have to dig into uncomfortable places if we're ever going to break the cycle. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2017/06/travel/states-of-change/
This is the full documentary, complete with Grandpa Frank's defenders and Prentice in all his glory. https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2017/06/01/bill-weir-states-of-change-homecoming-cnngo-orig.cnn/video/playlists/pluto-tv-long-form-content/
