Fitchburg, Wisc Alder Caught Red-handed in Non-profit Budgeting Scheme

In early October 2017 in Fitchburg, Wisconsin
ald Julia Arata-Fratta used her position on the
Common Council to target a non-profit
in an unprecedented attack. Now,
Arata-Fratta-linked non-profits are cashing
in on the scheme she crafted, (Madison365).

Once-promising pol drinks in toxic politics of Fitchburg, Wisconsin

In October 2017 ald Julia Arata-Fratta secretly worked for a punitive IRS audit of a popular Dane County non-profit

In 2016 and 2017 Arata-Fratta worked successfully to defund the same non-profit from Fitchburg's annual budget

Now, several Arata-Fratta-linked non-profits have applied for City-allocated money under the new Arata-Fratta funding scheme run through the City authority that Arata-Fratta now chairs

Updated - Fitchburg, Wisconsin—Alder Julia Arata-Fratta has consolidated her political relationship with Republican Party interests, and the results are fetid, stinking of corruption.

Since 2016, Arata-Fratta worked to zero out City money earmarked for the non-profit Badger Prairie Needs Network and the Boys and Girls Club of Dane County.

Now as chair of the Community Economic Development Authority (CEDA), Arata-Fratta is administering non-profit monies, including an allocation to a group on which she currently serves as a member of the board of directors, (Madison 365), and two other groups linked to Arata-Fratta.

Arata-Fratta crafted an amendment supporting the 2018 mayoral budget successfully zeroing out non-profit funding from the Fitchburg budget, and transforming the funding process of the Fitchburg Community and Economic Development Authority (CEDA), under which Arata-Fratta-linked non-profits look to benefit with $10,000s in grants.

In her reelection campaign last spring, Arata-Fratta told the Fitchburg Star in March 2017 that non-profit "funding should be given through a grant process application through a merit score, not an earmark in the city’s budget," without mentioning conflict-of-interest concerns about non-profits linked to her seeking to obtain money in the new grant process she authored. One merit point is having worked with Arata-Fratta, also known as a public integrity problem.

After cultivating and consolidating political and financial relationship with insurance, real estate and municipal police interests, Arata-Fratta has recently become more aggressive working for Republican interests, reaching out to City employees last month to target a non-profit held in disfavor by Arata-Fratta.

In early October 2017, Arata-Fratta used her position as Fitchburg alder to target the non-profit Boys and Girls Club of Dane County in a secret and unprecedented attack.

As reported in (Madison365):

On October 3 2017, Arata-Fratta 'used her private Gmail account to direct City Manager Patrick Marsh to inquire with the IRS and Fitchburg City Attorney Mark Sewell and Asst City Att Valerie Zisman to work to revoke the tax exempt status of Boys and Girls Club of Dane County. Reads the email in part: "Non for profit (sic) cannot do political activities otherwise the IRS can revoke the tax exempt status,' Arata-Fratta wrote to Marsh. Check with Valerie [Zisman] or Mark [Sewell] and send an inquiry to IRS.'

No word on the status of Arata-Fratta's audacious move to this point.

Arata-Fratta's funding scheme, if successful, will direct $10,000s in public money to non-profits linked to her professionally.

Arata-Fratta described her profession on her 2017 campaign aldermanic website as composed of "17 years of experience as a consultant and educator," ... on entities including "non-profit" operations.

The conflicts of interest surrounding Arata-Fratta have not drawn any Council criticism.

Nothing to see here

Arata-Fratta denies any knowledge of, and collusion with non-profits seeking public grants from the Fitchburg Community and Economic Development Authority (CEDA), to which she was first appointed in 2014. She told Madison365, she is "appalled" by criticism she is scamming Fitchburg.

An updated Fitchburg Community and Economic Development Authority (CEDA) grant website is dated Aug. 18, 2017, some four weeks before Mayor Jason Gonzalez posted his proposed (Sept 22) 2018 budget, (Facebook) calling for removal of City funding from the same non-profit which Aratta-Fratta sought to effectively destroy by having its tax-deductible status decertified.

Non-profits linked to Julia Arata-Fratta seeking money from the Fitchburg Community and Economic Development Authority (CEDA) include:

Madison Region Economic Partnership - Arata-Fratta presently serves as a member of the board of directors.

Latino Chamber of Commerce - Arata-Fratta served as treasurer, president, resigning her position months before she first introduced an amendment to defund non-profits in 2016

Latino Academy of Workforce Development - Arata-Fratta hyped her partnership with the Latino Academy in a 2011 profile in the Wisconsin State Journal, saying "We are partnering with other organizations. For example, the new Latino Academy of Workforce Development tries to train Latino people in a skill."

After two years of pushing for a new grant application process for non-profits, Julia Arata-Fratta has found out new applicants for her crafted money-delivery scheme are the same groups for whom she has worked and with whom she has partnered.

This discovery may have pleased Julia Arata-Fratta.

Out in the Cold—Fitchburg Kicks Black Children out of Shelter, Wisconsin Winter Looms

Beautiful children in Fitchburg Wisconsin
are relegated to picnic tables by City officials.
Those who dare care for minority children
are targeted by the Fitchburg Common Council
and white City Hall bureaucrats.

Fuck you, Fitchburg—An editorial

Update: Group is now meeting at an area church, Facebook reports. Good hope; one feels confident cops will not invade, harass, fine or kill there.
--
Fitchburg, Wisconsin—Fitchburg is a suburb just south of Madison run by white people, for white people, wrestling with the Black Problem.

It's August 2014 and a Fitchburg cop pulls outside of the polling place in district one with red and white lights flashing, creating a barrier between the polling place and King James Way, the black sector of the Jamestown neighborhood named after a 17th century Virginia slave colony.

I'm working as a poll worker and I point out the cop car outside the polling place: "Good," says the new chief election inspector, a white racist named Dale Zahorik.

Zahorik hates black people. Do you think communities of interest who don't trust cops should have to encounter a cop car with lights flashing as a condition of voting? I ask.

Zahorik evades the question, and I call up the City Clerk's office, and its reaction, from one Patti Anderson, vacillates between feigned indifference and hostility toward me challenging why I am questioning the presence of the cop.

The cop is but one example of white hostility towards black folks here. There's Zahorik's refusing to put out a polling place sign out on Election Day, April 2016, short-staffing the ballots table, open antagonism towards black voters, intimidation, stuffing the roster of polling workers with white racists, Ron Johnson and Pat McCutcheon for example, several instances of voter obstruction I have witnessed, challenged and documented between 2007 and 2016, most recently in a related civil case in Fitchburg Municipal Court where I testified under oath a detailed chronicling of the placing of the White Power Caucus in Fitchburg aldermanic district one polling place.

Zahorik and the City Clerk's attitude exemplify the white consensus towards black residents from City Hall. Blacks are not wanted here and they should leave.

Sometimes though, pictures tell a clearer story.

Wanda Smith runs an informal, after-school club to help out children with homework, structure, comfort, encouragement, a little something to eat, and a general peace-and-love gathering to help children not-quite-yet-traumatized by living in Fitchburg.

Fitchburg knows how to handle Wanda Smith.

For working with minority children, Smith has been unremittingly harassed by City Hall and the Common Council. In a piece that is shaking the conscience of Dane County Wisconsin, Nicholas Garton reports, "Fitchburg alder Dorothy Krause wanted to use police records and licensing requirements to shut down the after-school homework club run by longtime community volunteer Wanda Smith, who she considers 'not someone who should be in charge of groups of children,' according to emails obtained by Madison365."

This is pure character assassination and harassment of a peace-loving citizen.

There's a small, unoccupied park shelter off King James Way in Fitchburg in the black sector. Smith meets with the children near there.

Writes Amelia Royko Maurer in Facebook last night:

Wanda Smith has to conduct her after school program outside if they want to be near their homes, which they do because it builds a sense of place and community and saves on transportation costs. The city of Fitchburg won’t let them use the unoccupied park shelter without paying an unaffordable amount. [Alders] Dorothy Krause, Jason Gonzalez, Tony Hartmann, [and former Mayor] Shawn Pfaff, if you’re looking for criminal behavior, look no further than yourself and colleagues. This is unconscionable and your collective regrets and care are proven hollow by your willingness to let this continue.

Soon, the kids are going to get cold. But besides the weather, they have to cope with Fitchburg City Hall and the Fitchburg cops who relegate the kids to a picnic table.

Below are recent shots of these human children.

Fuck you, Fitchburg.

To Wanda Smith and those children blessed by her love, this is for you:

"Thousands of unknown men and women in Europe resisted the occupation of the Nazis and many died, but all added to the ultimate strength and freedom of their countries. It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."
Robert F. Kennedy
University of Cape Town, South Africa
"Day of Affirmation" Speech June 6th, 1966 

Woman Wanted in Fitchburg, Wisconsin for Corrupting Children

Wanda Smith of Fitchburg, Wisconsin is
targeted by City officials for being
black and speaking out against racism.
Smith is pictured above at a press
conference at Fitchburg City Hall in
October at which community activists
protested the defunding of non-profits
by the Fitchburg Common Council.
The Council is attempting to create a
slush fund for non-profit interests aligned
with Ald. Julia Arata-Fratta, a major force
behind the move to defund.

Fitchburg, Wisconsin—Political fall-out is coming after an investigative report this weekend revealed a Fitchburg Alder engaged in a character assassination campaign against her former constituent, attempting to enlist City officials in smearing the name of a well-known community volunteer and critic of racism, one Wanda Smith.

Reports Nicolas Garton in Madison365:

Fitchburg alder Dorothy Krause wanted to use police records and licensing requirements to shut down the after-school homework club run by longtime community volunteer Wanda Smith, who she considers 'not someone who should be in charge of groups of children,' according to emails obtained by Madison365.

An open records request into internal communications between Fitchburg Common Council members revealed that Krause sought potentially damaging and explosive information about the fitness of Smith to supervise the club.

In an October 9 email to City Manager Patrick Marsh, Krause wrote,'From what I’ve witnessed firsthand at the fire station, at city hall, and online, among others, she is not someone that should be in charge of groups of children.'

Wanda Smith engaged in First Amendment-protected activity critical of Fitchburg City Hall and the Fitchburg Common Council.

Krause's move is another act of political retaliation in a City known for its toxic racism and corrupt politics.

Former Fitchburg mayors, Steve Arnold and Jay Allen, are silent about the character assassination attempt.

Arnold and Jay Allen, a former supporter of the rightwing extremist congressional candidate, Ron Greer, are attempting to discourage support for Smith on social media.

Wanda Smith remains adamant.

"I will not be silenced, and I will not be moved," said the uppity, black woman reached this morning.

Fitchburg, Wisc Alders Up Attack on Non-Profit Supporters, Launched Character Assassination Move Against Black Citizen, Report Shows

Fitchburg Wisconsin City Hall and Common Council alders
really do not like black people. Above is a press conference at
City Hall in October 2017 conducted by scary, blackish people
objecting to a scheme by the Fitchburg Common Council and
Mayor to defund non-profits too cozy with urban types. Black
people congregating in Fitchburg, Wisconsin have long caused
consternation and anxiety among whites here who see danger
and a threat to public safety when they gather.

Fitchburg, Wisconsin Officials Keep up Battle Against Citizen Critics; Includes Unprecedented Character Assassination Campaign Plot Hatched by Common Council Alders

Fitchburg, Wisconsin—Ald. Julia Arata-Fratta amped-up a crusade against the Boys and Girls Club of Dane County by calling for the Fitchburg City Manager and City Attorney's office to investigate and ultimately seek revocation of the popular non-profit's 501(c)(3) status under Internal Revenue Code regulations, a news report reveals, (Garton, Madison 365).

The move by a Republican-leaning alder is part of a long effort by Fitchburg City Hall staff and the Common Council against minorities and those working for minority citizens.

Boys and Girls Club of Dane County is a non-profit, tax-exempt, non-stock entity assisting all children in Dane County and a move on the Common Council this autumn to defund Boys and Girls Club and another non-profit has highlighted the long hostility of Fitchburg City Hall against minority citizens.

Writes Nicholas Garton in Madison365:

On October 3, the same day the (proposed recall the Common Council idea) was announced, Alder Julia Arata-Fratta, a close ally of [Mayor Jason] Gonzalez, used her private Gmail account to direct City Manager Patrick Marsh to inquire with the IRS, according to emails obtained by Madison365.

Non for profit (sic) cannot do political activities otherwise the IRS can revoke the tax exempt status,' Arata-Fratta wrote to Marsh. Check with Valerie or Mark and send an inquiry to IRS.'

Marsh forwarded the question to City Attorney Mark Sewell and Assistant City Attorney Valerie Zisman, telling Arata-Fratta they would 'provide next steps.'

The City of Fitchburg with Sewell and Zisman's active participation has also worked recently against voting rights in Fitchburg aldermanic district one, as chronicled at Mal Contends.

Garton's investigative reporting in Madison365 has also uncovered a political plot by Fitchburg Alder Dorothy Krause, another Common Council member working against funding non-profits, that proposes to enlist City officials in a character assassination project against Wanda Smith, a former aldermanic candidate who works to help black families through informal homework clubs, recreational outings and community events.

Smith is a critic of the racism of the white-dominated Fitchburg City Hall and Common Council and has frequently engaged in First Amendment-protected political activity against racism in Fitchburg on social media and at her attendance at Fitchburg Common Council meetings.

Reports Garton:

Fitchburg alder Dorothy Krause wanted to use police records and licensing requirements to shut down the after-school homework club run by longtime community volunteer Wanda Smith, who she considers 'not someone who should be in charge of groups of children,' according to emails obtained by Madison365.

An open records request into internal communications between Fitchburg Common Council members revealed that Krause sought potentially damaging and explosive information about the fitness of Smith to supervise the club.

In an October 9 email to City Manager Patrick Marsh, Krause wrote,'From what I’ve witnessed firsthand at the fire station, at city hall, and online, among others, she is not someone that should be in charge of groups of children.'

Krause wrote that she had sought police records about how many times officers have responded to the residence or adjoining residences of Wanda Smith, who previously ran for a seat on the council and has publicly supported a recall of Mayor Jason Gonzalez.

Online court records indicate no criminal convictions against Smith. One charge against Smith was dismissed in 1999, court records show.

In the email, Krause also asked whether the city could require a homework club like Smith’s to obtain a daycare license. She also inquired as to whether children could be removed from a Common Council meeting 'if and when bullying and abusive language is used.'

Marsh responded that he didn’t think the City could require such a license, or ask that children be removed from the Council chamber.

Smith spoke forcefully in October at the Fitchburg Common Council’s budget hearing about Gonzalez’s decision to remove more than $100,000 in the 2018 budget to support local nonprofit organizations that provide services to Fitchburg residents, and how the removal of non-profit funds would impact children of color in the King James Way area and Fitchburg at large. Smith was rebuked by Marsh for personally attacking council members Dorothy Krause and Anne Scott by name during the hearing. 

As a long-time Fitchburg resident, Mal Contends can confirm the toxic, racist climate in Fitchburg, and the past efforts of City Hall officials to use the municipal government as a legal tool against political opponents, including Alder Dorothy Krause in 2011-12.

Said Smith:

'For them, (the Common Council and City Hall staff] to try to lower my reputation is a total disgrace. All I’m trying to do is serve these kids. I didn’t even know that they could go this low. I’m appalled right now. My track record when it comes to kids is proven. They went this low over 50 grand?' she said, referring to the amount cut from the budget that would fund the Boys and Girls Club. 'They don’t like the fact that I came to City Hall and I stood up to them to their faces. I cannot believe this. Dorothy Krause is supposed to be supporting the children in this community.'

Fitchburg resident Monica Howard has worked with Wanda Smith for many years and is described by supporters of Smith as "deeply offended" by Fitchburg officials' work against this Smith.

Writes Howard on Facebook:

I have worked with Wanda for over 10 years. She has been amazing not only with my own daughter but several other children. She is passionate about children’s rights and advocacy for advancement. Her passion is mistaken for hostility and that’s not the case. She is dedicated to the success of youth and this is highly unnecessary. Why all of the sudden is a homework club a problem. It hasn’t been all this time. This is where the City needs to separate their personal feelings and allow a great program to continue.

Contacted this weekend by phone, Smith said she is contemplating legal action against the City of Fitchburg for defamation.