#BringBackOurGirls: Common Council passes resolution condemning abduction

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The Milwaukee Common Council on Tuesday, May 13th voted unanimously to condemn the abduction of hundreds of Nigerian school girls by a terrorist group. Every member of the council also took the additional step of signing onto the resolution as a co-sponsor.

Wearing a Gele (a traditional African head wrap) as a show of unity and support for the girls and their families, the measure’s primary sponsor Alderwoman Milele A. Coggs told council members it was their duty to speak up against the injustice and violence of the kidnapping.

The school girls were reportedly abducted on the night of April 14, as armed militants stormed the Government Girls Secondary School located in the northeastern province of Borno, Nigeria.

“Last night I tucked my five-year-old daughter into bed and read her a bedtime story, and I expect to do the same tonight,” Alderwoman Coggs said. “I would hope that if anything this horrible happened to her, that others would care enough to raise their voices and do everything in their power to ensure her safe return.”

The measure also calls for action by United States and international officials to work with the Federal Republic of Nigeria to secure the immediate, safe release of the abducted girls. Alderwoman Coggs thanked her colleagues on the Common Council for their support of the measure.