The Wisconsin Idea
The Wisconsin Idea is an independent reporting project of People’s Action Institute, Citizen Action of Wisconsin and In These Times. The Wisconsin Idea takes a closer look at the state of Wisconsin, featuring in-depth reporting on the issues facing the state’s rural communities.
Latest Stories
"We Do This For The Water": Indigenous Organizers Defend Menominee River
Indigenous water protectors confront massive mining companies, building community on the way.
Carol Amour
Wisconsin’s Incarcerated Wait for Vaccines
Incarcerated people and their advocates criticize state agencies for lag in administering vaccines.
Arvind Dilawar
Suppressed Wages and Rural Decline Meet in Mellen, Wisconsin
In the small town, lumber workers say that low wages are pushing young people out of the profession.
Joanna Thompson
"It's a Nightmare": Inside America's Rural Housing Crisis
Across Wisconsin, low-income people are struggling to find quality, affordable housing.
Jack Kelly
In Dairy Country, a Network of Hmong and Latino Workers Fight Covid-19
Dairy production in Wisconsin relies on immigrant labor, a contradiction in a state that has seen the rise of nativist, anti-immigrant politics.
Esther Honig
“In for a Fight": Rural Wisconsinites Resist Influx of Industrial Hog Facilities
Despite local efforts to block new Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), corporate agriculture interests are legislating and intimidating their way out of accountability.
Simon Davis-Cohen
What a Right Wing Militant in Wisconsin County Politics Reveals about Extremism
A staunchly conservative county official from Green Bay doubles as a right wing militia member.
John McCracken
Left Out: Struggling Dairy Farmers Ineligible for Second Round of PPP
A criteria change for second draw loans has disqualified most dairy producers from receiving relief.
Jack Kelly