Meth Use On The Rise In Northern And Western Wisconsin, Wisconsin Life, A Historic Wisconsin Olympian, Gentrification Of Barbershops

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• Meth Use Increases In Northern And Western Wisconsin

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  On Tuesday night local officials held a town hall meeting in Chippewa Falls on methamphetamine, also known as meth, use. The drug is an illegal, addictive stimulant that can be smoked or taken in pill form. Meth was so popular in 2005 that lawmakers created legislation limiting the sale of cold and allergy products containing pseudoephedrine, an ingredient used to make meth. While the law severely limited local production of meth, the drug never completely went away…and in the last couple years meth use has been on the rise again. We talk to the director of Chippewa County Department of Human Services about the rise of meth use in northern and western Wisconsin.

• Looking Back At A Wisconsin Olympic Legend

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  Ralph Metcalfe was a legendary Olympic runner, who made history as an African-American running in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. A Marquette University historian tells the story of Metcalfe’s years in Wisconsin.

• Wisconsin's Olympic Legend Ralph Metcalfe Once Beat Jesse Owens

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  Track and field events are in full swing in the Summer Olympics in Brazil and a former University of Wisconsin-Madison athlete, Evan Jager, won the silver medal Wednesday in the 3000-meter steeplechase — a seven-and-a-half lap obstacle race.

  Jager is not the first Wisconsin athlete to make a splash in Olympic track and field events. Back in the 1930s, Ralph Metcalfe, a student athlete at Marquette University, won four Olympic medals and was regarded as the world’s fastest man in 1934 and 1935.

  James Marten, chair of history at Marquette University, said Metcalfe arrived on campus as a scholarship athlete in 1930 and graduated in 1936.

  “(Metcalfe) ran against the best sprinters in the country in both the 100- and 200-meter and relays, and won a number of events in national competitions,” Marten said.

  Throughout his time at Marquette, Metcalfe competed and won medals in both the 1932 and 1936 Olympic Games, making history as one of the early African-American athletes. He won gold in the 4×100-meter relay and also placed second in the 100-meter dash in both games.

  There’s a now famous photo of Jesse Owens crossing the finish line during a 100-meter race at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, Germany. The second-place finisher off to the left of the image is Metcalfe, his USA teammate. But Owens didn’t always beat Metcalfe.

  “One of my favorite pictures that I have from Marquette’s archives is one of (Metcalfe) actually beating Jesse Owens in a track meet held in the old track over on the west side of Milwaukee,” Marten said.

  After the Olympics and his time at Marquette, Metcalfe went on to serve in the military in World War II, and then into a life of public service, ultimately serving in Congress. Marten said that even if Metcalfe had never been a star sprinter, he’d still be remembered today.

  “Certainly he’s remembered around here,” Marten said. “I think that’s the important thing. Partly for his athleticism, he’s also well known as a politician in Chicago after his athletic career. He was an alderman and a longtime congressman, and quite active in the civil rights movement and the Black Caucus.”

  Marten added Marquette continues to honor Metcalfe with an annual lecture series featuring visiting scholars that speak on issues of race. Each lecturer walks away with a framed photograph of Metcalfe beating Owens.

• The Decline Of The Barbershop, And The Rise Of The Men's Salon

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  The classic barbershop holds a special place in American memory, but between 1992 and 2012, the number of barbershops in the U.S. fell by about 23 percent. A sociologist tells us about some of the race and class dynamics in the changing men’s grooming industry and the rise of the men’s salon.