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A minimum wage protest in Milwaukee led to the arrest of a U.S. congresswoman Thursday afternoon. U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore placed herself in the thick of fast-food workers and their protest to take it to a higher level.VIDEO: U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore arrested in minimum wage protest"These workers have accepted personal responsibility. They work, but they're still poor. They still can't feed their kids. They can't pay their rent, and quite frankly, it's deleterious to our economy," Moore said. In a series of protests, demonstrators have targeted multinational fast-food companies, saying they fail to share record profits with their lower-skilled workers. VIDEO: Gwen Moore detained at protestMoore was detained by police at a rally near a McDonald's at Miller Park Way and National Avenue in West Milwaukee at noon.Police arrested Moore and others for disorderly conduct for blocking the heavily traveled Miller Park Way. A sheriff's van transported her the West Milwaukee Police Department for booking.Police released her with a $691 ticket. Moore believes interrupting traffic and business was worth the awareness raised for struggling workers."There is an egregious flaw in our economy where there is 900 percent as much pay for corporate CEOs as minimum wage workers," Moore told WISN 12 News reporter Colleen Henry after her release from custody. "I'm taking the advice of colleagues like John Lewis who said 'You really do have to put yourself in the way.' You have to put your body in the way, your freedom in the way, your comfort in the way in order to articulate this issue."Moore said she doesn't believe she should have been ticketed for exercising her right to free speech, but she said she's got no beef with the police, who she said treated her and other protesters respectfully. Protesters WISN 12 News talked with said it was all worth it."You can expect fast food, retail and home care workers to be demanding $15 an hour and the right to form a union. It's a movement they been taking hold of for over a year, but today they're saying enough is enough. They are worth more, and they are willing to do what ever it takes in order to get what they deserve," said Jennifer Epps-Addison of Wisconsin Jobs Now.Miller Park Way was blocked in both directions from National to Greenfield avenues but was reopened to traffic at 1:40 p.m.The group left the McDonald's at 1:20 p.m. WISN 12 News reporter Mike Anderson said the group was marching toward the West Milwaukee Police Department, which was about six blocks away."I don't think there should be a mandated minimum wage. I think it should be market-driven," said Leon's Frozen Custard owner Ron Schneider.VIDEO: Owner of Leon's Frozen Custard claims protesters are misguidedSchneider has owned the custard store on Milwaukee's South side since the early 1960s. He said a minimum wage requirement won't work."Minimum wage, historically, raising it, has never done what they said it would do. It always results in job loss, and wages are simply a function of business anyway. It's the cost of doing business much like buying an ingredient or some other product," Schneider said.Workers from McDonald's, Taco Bell, Wendy's and other fast-food chains were expected to participate and organizers said there will be peaceful civil disobedience to draw more attention to the issue.The first Milwaukee crowd gathered around 6 a.m. at a McDonald's at 35th Street and Juneau Avenue, chanting "Raise up Milwaukee," asking for the minimum wage to be raised to $15 per hour.McDonald's corporate office posted a statement on its website:"At McDonald's we respect everyone's rights to peacefully protest. The topic of minimum wage goes well beyond McDonald's - it affects our country's entire workforce. We believe that any minimum wage increase should be implemented over time so that the impact on owners of small and medium-sized businesses ... is manageable."Approximately 90 percent of our U.S. restaurants are independently owned and operated by franchisees who set wages according to job level and local and federal laws."