Missing Black women, girls; WI lawmaker works on making task force

MILWAUKEE - One Wisconsin representative is shining a light on the state's high rate of missing and killed Black women and girls.

Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison) spent the last two years fighting for this task force.

The recent killing of 19-year-old Sade Robinson is only adding fuel to her fire.

SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News

"My heart, my heart hurts for her family," Stubs said. "We have to do something now."

Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison)

Milwaukee police say Robinson was killed and dismembered earlier this month after a first date with 33-year-old Maxwell Anderson, who is now charged with her homicide.

But violence against African American women is an ongoing issue in the state that Stubbs said needs to be addressed now.

"How many more Black women or girls have to be sacrificed in this state before we do something?" Stubbs asked.

Data from the CDC shows in 2020, Wisconsin had the highest homicide rate for Black women in the country. That rate doubled from 2019 to 2020.

"There’s a resource issue and we need to handle it," Stubbs said.

These numbers and issues prompted Stubbs to propose a bill two years ago that would create a task force for missing and killed Black women.

"Allowing legislators, law enforcement, experts in gender violence, survivors, others to serve," Stubbs said.

The proposal failed.

FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX6 News app for iOS or Android.

So she reintroduced it this session, fueled by the case of missing Racine woman Lasheky Hill.

But Sen. Duey Stroebel (R–Cedarburg) never scheduled it for a public hearing in his Government Operations Committee.

He sent us this statement saying, in part:

"While I believe the authors of this bill are well-intentioned, I personally have reservations about creating a state government task force that focuses on only one facet of a much broader societal problem."

Stroebel ultimately released the proposal, which ended up getting bipartisan support in another committee, but it never made it to the full Senate floor.

Stubbs said the fight is far from over.

"I am not, and you can take this one to the bank, going to stop until something is done across the state for Black women and girls," Stubbs said.

Stubbs said she is planning on reintroducing the bill in the next session. She said she has also reached out to the governor and plans to speak with the attorney general to find some way to make the task force happen.