GREEN BAY, Wis. — Today, as President Trump makes his first visit to Wisconsin since the beginning of the pandemic, Opportunity Wisconsin released its first television ad aimed at bringing attention to one of the biggest concerns facing Badger State residents: how to get back to work without risking their lives. The ad will run online and tonight on Fox News during the cable network’s town hall with President Trump in Green Bay.

 

The 30-second ad features Green Bay resident and former JBS meat processing plant worker, Jarrett Brown. In the ad, Brown shares that President Trump’s April 29th executive order compelling meat packing plants, like JBS Packerland, to reopen put the lives of frontline workers like him at risk.

 

WATCH THE FULL OPPORTUNITY WISCONSIN AD HERE.

 

“People are afraid to come into work at these plants,” says Brown in the ad. “If President Trump cares about frontline workers, why are we forced to put our lives at risk while big corporations get richer?”

 

Last month, Opportunity Wisconsin held a virtual event with Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich and a former OSHA official to bring attention to the damage President Trump’s order inflicted on the state’s meatpacking workers and facilities, which had already been linked to hundreds of COVID-19 cases.

 

“This president gave meatpacking conglomerates legal carte blanche in the middle of a pandemic and it’s reprehensible and indefensible. It’s reckless and it’s dangerous and it speaks to this president’s complete and total inability to relate to or care about regular people here in Green Bay and the state of Wisconsin and across the United States,” said Mayor Genrich during the May 2nd virtual event.

 

In addition to the ad, today Opportunity Wisconsin also unveiled a petition directed at Fox News, demanding they hold the president accountable during today’s town hall and ask him about his response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The petition, authored by members of the Opportunity Wisconsin steering committee and signed by residents from across the state, begins, “Right now, Wisconsinites are facing unprecedented unemployment, wage loss, sickness, and uncertainty. Statewide, nearly 1 in 7 Wisconsin adults have filed for unemployment, 25,331 people are battling coronavirus, 750 people have lost their battle to coronavirus, and countless more of us are clinging to today, unsure of what tomorrow will bring.”

 

Full text of the Opportunity Wisconsin petition released today:

 

Right now, Wisconsinites are facing unprecedented unemployment, wage loss, sickness, and uncertainty. Statewide, nearly 1 in 7 Wisconsin adults have filed for unemployment, 25,331 people are battling coronavirus, 750 people have lost their battle to coronavirus, and countless more of us are clinging to today, unsure of what tomorrow will bring.

 

Meanwhile, President Trump is holding indoor rallies, bailing out corporations, and attempting to roll back crucial public health measures like coronavirus testing. Wisconsinites and the American people overall are hurting because of the President’s failed policies.

 

On June 25, President Trump will hold a town hall on Fox News. The fate of our nation depends on the people and the press holding the President accountable for his failure to put the American people first. On behalf of working Wisconsinites, we demand Fox News moderators ask Trump the following questions during the June 25 town hall with the President:

 

  1. It’s been 116 days since President Trump said we’d soon have zero COVID-19 cases in the U.S. We now have 2.3 million cases and more than 122,000 deaths nationwide. Here in Wisconsin, we have still yet to reach a peak in cases even as our state reopens, and deaths continue to rise. In Green Bay alone, outbreaks at meatpacking plants have caused thousands of cases in less than two weeks. We need guidance, but we’ve heard nothing. What plans does the President have, if any, to make sure our businesses can open safely, without risking our lives?

 

  1. The federal government’s response to this pandemic has left us teetering on the edge of an economic cliff. We’ve already seen treasured businesses close here in Green Bay, like The Green Bay Jersey Store and The Marq Banquet. If vital aid is set to expire over the next few months with no real plan in place for economic recovery, the remaining businesses that keep our state running will be gone for good. What will the President do to make sure that our economy won’t be crippled for generations to come?

 

  1. 626,697 Wisconsinites have filed for unemployment since March 15, and nationally, the number of claims is close to 46 million. What is the President doing to promote job growth and help these unemployed workers afford their basic needs, without sacrificing public health?

 

  1. Just a few days ago, a new study found that Wisconsin ranks last among all 50 states for racial equity. This not only supports but also sheds further light on what is motivating the Black Lives Matter Movement, and reiterates the extreme racial economic inequalities we see across the country and especially in our state. Here in Green Bay, Wisconsinites came together for a historic march to try to address these issues. How is the President planning to combat the systems of economic inequality that led to this abysmal record?

 

President Trump must actually answer these questions — no jokes, no dismissals, no lies. Wisconsinites deserve to know if the President is fighting for us, or just himself.

 

Signed,

 

Jim Jordan – Green Bay

Retired, Shopko

Member of the Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

 

Selika Ducksworth-Lawton – Eau Claire

History Professor, University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire

Member of the Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

 

Mark Westphal – Menasha

President, Fox Valley Area Labor Council AFL-CIO

Member of the Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

 

Melissa Bucholz – Milwaukee

Owner/Manager, Odd Duck & Little Duck Kitchen; Executive DIrector, PRAWN

Member of the Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

 

Dr. Rachel Hughes – Madison

Emergency Physician, Dane and Iowa Counties

Member of the Opportunity Wisconsin Steering Committee

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