Wisconsin State Rep. Shelia Stubbs (D-Madison) is once again calling on lawmakers to take immediate action on a crisis she says has been ignored for far too long: the disproportionate rates of violence against Black women and girls in the state.
Despite introducing legislation for the third consecutive session, the proposed task force on missing and murdered Black women and girls has yet to be approved—leaving families without answers and communities without needed protections.
The 17-member task force, first proposed in 2021, would investigate systemic causes behind the violence, strengthen data collection, and recommend policies aimed at prevention and justice. A final report would be due by 2027. Stubbs has argued that Wisconsin cannot continue to delay when the state’s rate of murdered Black women is the highest in the nation, according to national data.
“This is my third time trying to get a critical piece of legislation passed into law,” Stubbs said at a press conference. “It is not fair to these victims and their families that they have to continue to wait for this Legislature to do something.”
The urgency was underscored by the presence of Sheena Scarborough, whose 19-year-old daughter, Sade Robinson, was murdered in 2024. Scarborough, who founded the Sade’s Voice Foundation in her daughter’s honor, said families like hers are still struggling daily with trauma.
“The task force is definitely needed,” she said.
Attorney General Josh Kaul has also thrown his support behind the initiative, urging lawmakers to commit both the resources and political will necessary to make the task force effective.
“This is a really significant issue that takes the investment of time and resources,” Kaul said. “I want to see this done properly and right, and that’s what this bill would do.”
Advocates argue that each delay sends a painful message: that the safety of Black women and girls is not treated as a priority. Studies show the crisis is not only real but worsening; five Black women and girls were killed per day in the U.S. in 2020, with Wisconsin’s rate leading the nation.
Stubbs and supporters insist that creating the task force is not just about compiling statistics but about valuing lives, confronting systemic failures, and ensuring meaningful protections.
With another legislative session underway, they say the time for excuses has long passed.
