53206 Cast
157 episodes - English - Latest episode: 1 day ago -53206, located in the inner city of Milwaukee, is the poorest zip code in the state of Wisconsin. 99.2% of residents are non-white and the median household income is $24,000. Meg and Alex talk about what they have learned over the last 15 years from living in a place that is very different than the suburbs they grew up in. Each episode typically covers thoughts on education, social justice, and the normalization of inequities they see on a daily basis.
Join Meg & Alex as we rethink our inner cities together
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Episodes
Episode 55: Is Living In A Poor Neighborhood Really A Bad Thing?
August 30, 2021 00:33 - 26 minutes - 19.3 MBOn this episode of the 53206 cast, the two continue the conversation around poverty and give some context around debunking the idea that living in poor neighborhood is a bad thing. Meg and Alex also share some exciting news about the 53206 podcasting community - www.podmke.com.
Episode 54: A Thesis for Inner City Change
August 22, 2021 21:25 - 37 minutes - 26.8 MBMeg and Alex use the design thinking process to lay out what they think are three themes for social change and offer suggestions for how to engage with that change.
Episode 53: Something Great About Living In The Inner City
July 26, 2021 19:00 - 24 minutes - 18.7 MBThere's a ton of pain and tragedy in the inner city, but part of rethinking these spaces is seeing the positives of life here. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex talk through one positive aspect of living in the poorest zip code in Wisconsin.
Episode 52: Stealing Cars
July 07, 2021 13:44 - 26 minutes - 19.8 MBWhen a child commits a crime, it's easy to blame the kid. It's easy to blame the parent. But that doesn't lead anywhere productive, because nothing ever changes. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex give a different take in an attempt to create actual change.
Episode 51: Little League
June 17, 2021 17:08 - 27 minutes - 19.7 MBMeg and Alex are back for season 2 of the 53206 Cast. On this episode, the duo breaks down some wild events they witnessed during their son's little league baseball game. From drug use to car crashes, the inner city never fails to provide interesting interesting life experiences.
Episode 50: Opportunity Cost
April 12, 2021 10:06 - 24 minutes - 18.7 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room talking about a practical application of empathy and how you can harness the power of empathy to better understand the inner city.
Episode 49: How Do You Show You Aren't OK With Poverty?
March 29, 2021 18:22 - 20 minutes - 15.7 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room finishing up their two part series on poverty and the idea that someone can or cannot be ok with poverty existing in our inner cities. The two talk through their own growth in understanding the effects of poverty and talk through some of the various levels of understanding around poverty.
Episode 48: Three Ways Of Understanding The Effects Of Poverty
March 21, 2021 16:59 - 23 minutes - 17.3 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex talk about different levels of understanding when it comes to processing through the effects of poverty on an individual. We can understand that poverty is bad (surface). We can internalize the what the effects of poverty have on an individual to the point that our mindsets are changed (deep) and we can allow this understanding to move us to change (transfer).
Episode 47: A Roadmap For Social Change
March 14, 2021 17:39 - 34 minutes - 26.3 MBFor 15 years Alex and Meg have lived in the 53206 zip code - the poorest zip code in Wisconsin. Naively, the thought they were moving in to change the world. Predictably, that didn't happen, but the desire to create lasting change in their neighborhood never left the two. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex share what they they have learned about creating social change and offer three areas to focus on.
Episode 46: How To Be A White Savior
March 07, 2021 18:22 - 24 minutes - 18.9 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex get a little controversial and talk about white saviors or, more specifically, how they interpret and interact with the idea that someone could be a white savior.
Episode 45: Disruption
March 01, 2021 12:30 - 22 minutes - 16.6 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room talking about creating change through system disruptions and how that might actually play out.
Episode 44: Getting Educated
February 22, 2021 00:58 - 22 minutes - 17 MBSchool, everyone has to go, but not everyone has the same results when they are done. On this episode of the 53206 Cast Alex and Meg talk about education, specifically whats working, what isn't, and what the point of all of it is.
Episode 43: Decrease Comfort To Increase Purpose
February 13, 2021 14:48 - 25 minutes - 19.1 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex talk about passing our girl scout cookies and how something simple in one area becomes complicated in the inner city. Then the two make the correlation between decreasing personal comfort and increasing purpose and share how that can be done in an intentional way to increase diversity in inner city spaces.
Episode 42: What's Really Going On When People Argue On Facebook About Race
January 31, 2021 21:34 - 33 minutes - 25.8 MBOn a Sunday morning while trying to avoid a pile of leftover work tasks from the week, Alex stumbled upon an argument on Facebook. The argument more or less divided people into two camps: personal responsibility and communal responsibility. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Alex and Meg talk about a third approach, one that integrates the other to and creates plans for actual change.
Episode 41: Trash and Violence
January 29, 2021 13:05 - 22 minutes - 16.3 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex share some of their thoughts on whose responsibility it is for some of the injustices happening in their neighborhood.
Episode 40: Armchairs Hanging Out Of Car Trunks
January 23, 2021 22:51 - 19 minutes - 13.1 MBA lot of crazy things happen in the inner city. On this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex share some of the recent oddities they have come across in their neighborhood.
Episode 39: A Couple Of Thoughts On MLK Day
January 17, 2021 18:00 - 24 minutes - 17.8 MBMeg and Alex are back talking about a couple of quotes from Martin Luther King Jr. and some of the parallels from the early 1960's and life in a poor almost all black neighborhood today. While a lot has changed in the last almost 60 years, there are still steps needed to put things back to how they should be.
Episode 38: Taking Your Baby To A Drug Deal
January 14, 2021 00:00 - 26 minutes - 19.5 MBMeg and Alex sit down and share a big announcement on this episode of the 53206 Cast. Plus the duo talk through an interesting multi-generational drug deal and how the cycle of poverty is many times perpetuated through educational structures.
Episode 37: The Gift Drive
January 10, 2021 15:55 - 22 minutes - 17.1 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex talk about a couple of observations from the recent holiday gift drive at the community garden.
Episode 36: Anxiety And The Inner City
December 17, 2020 19:14 - 21 minutes - 15.8 MBMeg and Alex spend some time talking about one of the unintended consequences of living in the inner city, anxiety. A low grade anxiety tends to hover around the their neighborhood and the two try to put some words around what they and a lot of other residents of their neighborhood regularly feel.
Episode 35: Airport Hotels and Garlic Bread Factories
December 10, 2020 23:32 - 22 minutes - 32.3 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room talking about the flow of money in and out of a neighborhood and how small business investment, both by business owners and patrons from outside of the immediate area can make tangible positive changes in a community.
Episode 34: My Friends Don't Go There
December 08, 2020 00:30 - 26 minutes - 39 MBOn this episode of the 53206 Cast Meg and Alex continue talking through Reddit comments around the question - what is the public perception around 53206 or inner cities in general? The duo tackles the concept of avoiding certain areas and the cyclically detrimental effects that can have on a neighborhood.
Episode 33: Why Are The Only White People That Come Into Our Neighborhood Here To Buy Drugs?
December 02, 2020 23:49 - 23 minutes - 33.5 MBMeg and Alex continue their series around public perceptions of their neighborhood. On this episode, they respond to the idea that drug houses exist and the struggle around getting help removing them.
Episode 32: My Neighborhood Is Violent and Crime Ridden?
November 30, 2020 22:06 - 27 minutes - 19.3 MBMeg and Alex are back starting a new series around how perceptions about the inner city rarely match reality. In this episode the duo takes in the idea that 53206 and inner cities in general are violent, crime ridden places.
Episode 31: A Couple Of Thoughts On The Passing Of Lucille Bridges
November 22, 2020 19:45 - 21 minutes - 16.5 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room reflecting on the recent passing of Lucille Bridges. 60 years ago Lucille brought her daughter Ruby to school. While that is normal for us today, it was anything but that in Louisiana in 1960.
Episode 30: What's The Most Surprising Thing About Living Here?
November 14, 2020 20:58 - 27 minutes - 39.8 MBIn this episode of the 53206 cast, Meg asks Alex what the most surprising thing about living in the inner city is.
Episode 29: Why Are Our Kids 23% More Likely To Graduate High School Than Our Neighbors?
November 06, 2020 17:55 - 36 minutes - 26 MBMeg and Alex talk shop, whatever that means, around education, specifically inequities in educational outcomes. The couple dives into some of the causes of a student not graduating high school to give a little insight on one of the more alarming statistics around education - the fact that the graduation rate in Wisconsin for African American students in the last year was 71% while white students graduated much more predictably, to the tune of 94%.
Episode 28: Tim, Stop Asking To Buy My House
November 02, 2020 21:27 - 42 minutes - 32.3 MBIn this episode of the 53206 Cast, Meg and Alex talk housing and the weird dynamic in the inner city where you might live next to a house that can't be given away, yet there is always someone trying to buy your house.
Episode 27: That's A Lot Of Mail
October 28, 2020 23:16 - 33 minutes - 25.8 MBMeg and Alex continue their Sunday morning conversation and talk politics, well sort of. The two discuss some fears they have about the upcoming election, but attempt to do so as neutrally as possible to not take away from the the larger narrative around racial reconciliation.
Episode 26: 1,000 Boxes Of Food
October 26, 2020 23:46 - 36 minutes - 29.4 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room to talk about a powerful experience they had recently at the We Got This garden. A semi truck dropped off 1,000 boxes of food which was given out to families in need in about 3 hours. The two talk about what happened and how seeing so much need makes them rethink how much is really enough.
Episode 25: 4 Murders in 9 Blocks
October 19, 2020 20:37 - 38 minutes - 29 MBMeg and Alex sit down to talk about a startling realization that in the course of 9 blocks, one could walk or drive from the location of a recent murder, past two other murder scenes, past their own house and arrive at the location of the fourth murder all of which took place over the last 6 months.
Episode 24: Gunshots or Fireworks
October 16, 2020 11:22 - 35 minutes - 26.6 MBHearing gunshots in the 53206 zip code isn't something all that uncommon. Hearing 50 of them at 8 o'clock on a Wednesday night is. Meg and Alex sit down in the sitting room to talk about hearing that many gunshots on an otherwise beautiful night.
Episode 23: The Most Segregated City In America
October 13, 2020 01:01 - 42 minutes - 29.8 MBMeg and Alex answer a listener question about what happens when they return home to the inner city. Then Meg tells a crazy story about police chases and watching someone get before the duo starts to explain the statistics behind Milwaukee being considered one of, if not, the most segregated city in America. Cited content: http://www.censusscope.org/us/m5080/chart_exposure.html https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2018/12/17/black-white-segregation-edges-downward-since-2000-censu...
Episode 22: Getting Sent Home Again
October 05, 2020 20:15 - 35 minutes - 27.6 MBMeg and Alex pick up where the conversation in episode 21 left off around suspension rates in Wisconsin schools. The two give some thoughts around whether this is an individual problem, a school problem, or a system problem. Statistics mentioned in this episode: Wisconsin school enrollment: White: 588,000 Black: 77,000 Economically Disadvantaged: 362,000 Not Economically Disadvantaged: 493,000 Number of suspensions: White: 24,000 Black: 32,000 Economically Disadvantaged:...
Episode 21: Getting Sent Home
October 02, 2020 20:58 - 37 minutes - 28.5 MBMeg and Alex answer a couple of listener questions regarding Meg's business. Then the duo talk about what has changed in the 53206 zip code since George Floyd's murder and talk through one of the symptoms of systemic racism.
Episode 20: We Will Not Die Young
September 29, 2020 17:36 - 33 minutes - 23.2 MBMeg and Alex finish up their Sunday Morning conversation around two quotes: 1. Equity is about reducing the predictability of who succeeds and who fails. and 2. The neighborhood gave up on me so I gave up on myself. The We Got This Garden was mentioned a couple of times and is linked here.
Episode 19: Using Design Thinking To Curb The Effects Of Systemic Racism
September 27, 2020 22:51 - 38 minutes - 29.8 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room to talk about the design thinking process and how to take all of the information learned while empathizing with our neighbors and use it to begin to define one of many problems that exist in 53206 - educational outcomes. Show Notes: Measuring Success - Riding from North Division to Fox Point Interviewing 1000 Failures 6 Anti-Karen Attitudes for The Next Time You Want to Get a Pizza
Episode 18: Whatever Happened To Predictability?
September 24, 2020 14:33 - 29 minutes - 21.5 MBMeg and Alex are back and talking about some of positive aspects of living in a place that can be highly unpredictable.
Episode 17: A Gallon Of Mouse Turds
September 20, 2020 21:56 - 44 minutes - 34.6 MBMeg and Alex talk about the eye opening and heart breaking experience of walking through their first rental property.
Episode 16: Travel Advice For Your Next Trip To The Inner City
September 18, 2020 10:36 - 32 minutes - 25.4 MBMeg and Alex share some tips and tricks for your next visit to the inner city.
Episode 15: Gentrify This
September 15, 2020 22:45 - 38 minutes - 29.1 MBMeg and Alex are back in the sitting room talking about the only negative pushback they have ever gotten about living in the inner city. Gentrification is a big concern in urban planning circles and the duo has some thoughts about the potential for gentrifying the 53206 zip code.
Episode 14: Our Car Got Stolen
September 12, 2020 16:01 - 31 minutes - 23.3 MBMeg and Alex share some big news about Ms. Maggie's house and give another example of why life is more exciting if you have an alley.
Episode 13: Aren't You Afraid Of Getting Shot? - Part 3
September 09, 2020 12:15 - 31 minutes - 24 MBMeg and Alex finish up their three part series on potential responses to the notion that they live in a bad neighborhood. In the conclusion the two talk about "bad" as wrong or not right and that maybe the bad actually means injustice is being perpetuated.
Episode 12: Aren't You Afraid Of Getting Shot? - Part 2
September 04, 2020 21:47 - 31 minutes - 23.5 MBHistorically, 53206 has gotten a bit of a bad rap. In part 1, Meg and Alex talked about how their neighborhood not only isn't that bad, but actually really great. That was the first of three rebuttals the two have to offer when someone thinks of where they live as a bad neighborhood. In part 2, the duo gives the second rebuttal - maybe bad actually means something different.
Episode 12: Aren't You Afraid Of Getting Shot - Part 2
September 04, 2020 21:47 - 31 minutes - 23.5 MBHistorically, 53206 has gotten a bit of a bad rap. In part 1, Meg and Alex talked about how their neighborhood not only isn't that bad, but actually really great. That was the first of three rebuttals the two have to offer when someone thinks of where they live as a bad neighborhood. In part 2, the duo gives the second rebuttal - maybe bad actually means something different.
Episode 11: Aren't You Afraid of Getting Shot? - Part 1
September 01, 2020 23:37 - 35 minutes - 25.5 MBMeg and Alex talk about about the first of three rebuttals to someone thinking their neighborhood is "bad" - defending it. 53206 doesn't have a lot of cheerleaders and the two have a conversation around what they have seen and why their neighborhood not only isn't bad, but is actually really good.
Episode 11: Aren't You Afraid Of Getting Shot? - Part 1
September 01, 2020 23:37 - 35 minutes - 25.5 MBMeg and Alex talk about about the first of three rebuttals to someone thinking their neighborhood is "bad" - defending it. 53206 doesn't have a lot of cheerleaders and the two have a conversation around what they have seen and why their neighborhood not only isn't bad, but is actually really good.
Episode 10: A Cry For Help
August 30, 2020 15:07 - 35 minutes - 26.3 MBWhen we are around someone doing something wild or dangerous, a typical response is to be angry or afraid. Meg and Alex talk about crazy driving in the inner city of Milwaukee and offer another way of looking it - as a cry for help.
Episode 9: Talking To A 9 Year Old About Police Brutality
August 27, 2020 20:55 - 33 minutes - 23.6 MBMeg and Alex talk about some of the conversations they have had with their 7 and 9 year old children. Disclaimer: This isn't a how to talk to your kids about police brutality podcast. It's more of a what did we talk to our kids about police brutality podcast.
Episode 8: The Wheel Fell Off
August 24, 2020 17:00 - 36 minutes - 25.7 MBA rather unfortunate automotive predicament leads Alex and Meg into a discussion on how the same situation can be an inconvenience for one person and a life changing event for another.