When Johnquell, an African American teen, suffers a
serious accident in the home of his white neighbor, Mrs. Czernicki, his
community must find ways to bridge divisions between black and white,
gay and straight, old and young. Set in one of the nation’s most highly
segregated cities—Milwaukee, Wisconsin—Meet Me Halfway tells stories of
connections in a community with a tumultuous and divided past. In nine
stories told from diverse perspectives, Jennifer Morales captures a Rust
Belt city’s struggle to establish a common ground and a collective
vision of the future.
As an activist mother in the thick of
Milwaukee politics, Morales developed a keen ear and a tender heart for
the kids who have inherited the city’s
troubled racial legacy. With a critical eye on promises unfulfilled,
Meet Me Halfway raises questions about the notion of a “postracial”
society and, with humor and compassion, lifts up the day-to-day work
needed to get there.
Jennifer Morales lived for more than
twenty years in Milwaukee, where she raised children and served on the
Milwaukee Board of School Directors—the first Latino/a elected to it.
She earned her MFA from Antioch University–Los Angeles. She now lives in
Viroqua, Wisconsin, and is a board member of the Council for Wisconsin
Writers and the Driftless Writing Center.
