Boston has learned, slowly and imperfectly, that inclusion doesn’t happen at the finish line. It comes from institutions and leaders who invest in pipelines and relationships long before that point.
Race/Racism
Posted inOpinion
Transparency in procurement can help close the racial wealth gap
Procurement transparency may sound technical. In reality, it goes to the heart of how wealth is built—or excluded—in the Commonwealth.
Posted inOpinion
Instead of a war on poverty, we wage war on the poor
EVERY SAFETY NET in this country has been stitched with holes just wide enough for many of us to slip through. We’ve recently had a front row seat to this […]
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts lagging on implementation of data equity law
Over two years since the law’s passage, we have seen little progress and movement on implementation, and our residents are continuing to suffer the consequences.
Posted inOpinion
On bail policy, Massachusetts must catch up
Massachusetts has positioned itself as a leader on a range of policy domains under attack by the Trump administration. But as a national conversation has arisen about cash bail and public safety, fueled by misinformation from the White House, Massachusetts is on the sidelines.
Posted inOpinion
Solidarity among groups more crucial than ever amid changed landscape on race
Since post-Civil War Reconstruction, history is replete with moments of racial progress followed by backlash and retrenchment led by those benefiting from the status quo.
Posted inRace/Racism
Survey highlights concerns among Asian Americans in Mass.
Despite being the fastest-growing population group, APIA voices are often overlooked due to sparse data. A new report aims to change that.
Posted inOpinion
On DEI, Massachusetts leaders are following public sentiment
Why are Massachusetts’s most prominent statewide officials challenging President Trump over DEI policy? It is what residents of the Commonwealth want their elected officials to do.
Posted inOpinion
It’s time to turn the page on DEI
This crisis for colleges and universities did not begin with Trump, and we should not let his odious behavior and speech get in the way of thoughtful debate and reassessment of DEI policies.
Posted inOpinion
60 years after Bloody Sunday, celebrating progress while voting rights struggle continues
The right to vote is the precious centerpiece of American citizenship and democracy.
Posted inOpinion
The case for more Black lobbyists
Massachusetts has elected a Black governor, a Black attorney general, Black state senators and state representatives. There are Black heads of departments and secretariats. But there are virtually no Black lobbyists on Beacon Hill.
Posted inOpinion
The dark side of AI: Climate chaos, pollution, and injustice
Unless we have a seat at the table to set regulations, the AI data center boom will hurt Black and brown frontline communities like mine in Roxbury first and worst.
Posted inPolitics
For Native issues in Massachusetts, mixed intentions and a mixed bag
A new report on Native American wealth gaps was released against the backdrop of a series of issues – including the redesign of the state seal and the run up to the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution – playing out across Massachusetts that affect Native citizens and their tribes.
Posted inRace/Racism
Clinging to the spirit of MLK on Trump’s inauguration day
In a discussion on The Codcast, Nicole Obi, president and CEO of the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts, and Imari Paris Jeffries, executive director of Embrace Boston, processed the inauguration and readied for a potentially tumultuous next four years.
Posted inPolitics
Lessons for the Democrats from Latino cities
Days after the presidential election, Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia reflects on the pronounced shift toward Donald Trump by Latino voters.
Posted inPolitics
Lecciones para los Demócratas de las ciudades Latinas
Read in English. CON LAS ELECCIONES presidenciales todavía frescas y el alcance de una segunda administración Trump empezando a tomar forma, políticos, encuestadores y expertos buscan respuestas. En las autopsias […]
Posted inOpinion
State residents remain mixed on changing name of Columbus Day
Despite its reputation as a haven of progressive political leaning, Massachusetts has resisted efforts to change the name of Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day , and we find that attitudes toward race and racism have a lot to do with that.
Posted inOpinion
Mortgage discrimination, which leads to segregation, needs to be addressed
The consequences are devasting for first-time buyers, as thousands of sellers, advised by their agents, make the same decision to pick cash or conventional offers over the perceived hassle of working with an FHA buyer – a decision too often based on misperceptions rather than underlying truths.
Posted inEducation
Busing woes remain a Boston constant
The first days of school this year in Boston have had little in common with the violence-wracked start to the school year 50 years ago. Except in one respect: The city’s fleet of yellow school buses continue to figure prominently in the headlines.
Posted inOpinion
Baseball’s Hall of Fame should rewrite Tom Yawkey’s plaque
Longtime Boston Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey was inducted more than 40 years ago into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The plaque honoring Yawkey, whose team was the last in baseball to sign a Black player, should be revised to take account of his role in maintaining the sport’s segregation.
Posted inOpinion
Presidential election is not just about choosing a leader
Many argue that the activism of the global pandemic and the George Floyd racial awakening are over.
Posted inOpinion
Addressing anti-semitism in the schools
The events of 10/7 and the ensuing war have had an unmistakable impact, even in Massachusetts. ADL tracked 440 incidents in the Commonwealth in 2023, a 189 percent increase. Eighty-four incidents were in K-12, and 31 occurred after 10/7, a 138 percent increase for the same three-month period in 2022.
Posted inOpinion
Should Massachusetts establish a reparations commission?
There is a compelling case for reparations for descendants of enslaved people in the US, but there are strong countervailing arguments that the reparations conversation is a distraction from more grounded efforts to close racial gaps.
Posted inRace/Racism
DiZoglio slams state agency on minority outreach
“If we are serious about expanding opportunities for underrepresented populations, we must do better,” State Auditor Diana DiZoglio said in a statement.