With protests against racial inequities roiling the country, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Wednesday issued an executive order declaring Juneteenth a paid holiday for state employees this year. Juneteenth – June 19 – is the date in 1865 that Union soldiers landed in Galveston, Texas, with the news that the Civil War had ended and […]
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Feeling the moment after Floyd killing
Where do we go with the outrage and window for a reckoning on matters of race in the country that’s been opened by the police killing of George Floyd? Two themes emerged from a conversation on that question led yesterday by former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick. It’s important, Patrick said, for people first to feel […]
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Boston organization stirs ire of solar advocates
A shadowy Boston-based organization is sending renewable energy advocates across the country into a tizzy by challenging the logic behind one of the key subsidies that has been used to spur the growth of the solar power industry. The New England Ratepayers Association, an organization whose financial backers are unknown, filed a petition with the Federal […]
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Local police departments adopting 8 Can’t Wait
Around the country, and now in Massachusetts, police departments are adopting a set of policies that could potentially decrease violence inflicted by law enforcement. The “8 Can’t Wait” project seeks to have law enforcement adopt quick and definitive changes to their policies on use of force, which have been questioned in the wake of the […]
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Time for standardized police training in Massachusetts?
It has long been known that Massachusetts is lacking in its standardization of police training – but there was little urgency on Beacon Hill to do anything about it. Now, the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the resulting national outcry over police brutality may be the impetus needed to finally reform the process. […]
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Walsh goes from shoo-in to hot seat
It was only a few weeks ago that Mayor Marty Walsh seemed to be the man for the moment. Holding regular briefings outside Boston City Hall on all things coronavirus, he showed steady leadership and heartfelt compassion in equal measure, just what people want to see in a big-city mayor. The pandemic seemed to have […]
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Holmes, Idowu outline reform steps
In the wake of George Floyd’s death, Rep. Russell Holmes of Boston and Segun Idowu of the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts talked on the Codcast about practical steps that can be taken to address racial inequities and police misconduct. CommonWealth Magazine · Holmes, Idowu on George Floyd and where we go from here Holmes […]
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Petition seeks changes in child-care standards
When it comes to caring for children, what is safe and what is realistic may be two different things. That conflict is growing as daycares consider whether and how to reopen under state guidelines released Monday that include physical distancing and encourage mask use, daily temperature checks, and frequent cleaning. When the guidelines were announced, daycare […]
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Some police are taking a knee
Almost four years after former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick opted to kneel during the national anthem, police officers across the nation are doing the same, including in Massachusetts. At least a dozen officers took a knee in front of Boston Police headquarters on Tuesday, in what some are calling a show of solidarity with […]
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Rollins, Boston police union clash
Protests over the police killing of George Floyd have exposed a deep divide in the country on race issues. That schism is now playing out within Boston’s law enforcement community. Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins, who took office a year and a half ago with a vow that it would not be business as […]