sponsored by The Boston Foundation
CommonWealth Voices aims to be a beacon of robust discourse, offering a platform for analysis and advocacy on the challenges and aspirations of political life in Massachusetts.
The Boston Foundation is deeply committed to civic leadership, and essential to our work is the exchange of informed opinions. We are proud to partner on a platform that engages such a broad range of demographic and ideological viewpoints.
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We welcome informed commentary about local, state and national public policy. Please include the author’s contact information when submitting.
I want statues of saints at my church, not at my police station
Installing two larger-than-life Christian saints to loom over the entrance of our public safety building sends a clear message to non-Christians.
Legislature should impose limits on harmful book bans in state libraries
MASSACHUSETTS HAS A rare opportunity to strengthen the public’s ability to freely debate ideas, a foundational democratic concept under attack at the local, state, and national levels. Passing “An Act Regarding Free Expression,” currently pending in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, will limit harmful book bans in the state’s libraries and protect authors and other creators from economic and reputational damage. If you’re wondering why a religious denomination – the Unitarian Universalist Association – is weighing in on this topic, you should know that as part of our longstanding values and principles, Unitarian Universalists believe all people should have the…
Healey and lawmakers are overreaching with proposed social media restrictions for children
The bill’s goal is to protect children, but in practice it restricts younger users’ access to lawful online content. Courts have repeatedly made clear that protecting minors does not give the government a generalized power to limit what people can read, view, or say.
No time for timidity on clean energy
As fuel prices surge from the war in the Middle East and residents demand relief from their monthly bills, now is the time to deliver clean energy and energy efficiency solutions for the people of Massachusetts.
We’ve lived in the juvenile justice and child welfare systems. Here’s why we’re fighting to ‘Raise the Age.’
Too often, young adults in the criminal justice system are told the second they reach 18 that their mistakes are who they are rather than something they can learn from. We know this is not true.
Here’s how we could build market-rate housing units in Boston that cost $100,000
Proven construction methods already exist to build housing at much lower cost than standard methods. What is missing is a strategy that aligns these elements into a system that actually produces entry-level homeownership.Â
Massachusetts has a once-in-a-decade chance to stop predatory electric suppliers
The bill’s consumer protections would move Massachusetts from having some of the weakest safeguards for residential electricity customers to some of the strongest.
An Earth Day call to action against dangerous rollback of federal environmental protections
The EPA’s Endangerment Finding has served as the backbone of action under the Clean Air Act to limit pollution from motor vehicles, the nation’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. The Trump administration axed it.
Hampshire College’s demise is another blow to creative, outside-the-box options in higher education
It’s another sign of the higher ed consolidation, in which wealthy schools and those that deliver a traditional and often vocationally driven curriculum have a big advantage.
Here’s how to fix primary care for the highest-need patients
Health care in Massachusetts isn’t living up to its full potential. A revised model of the patient-centered medical home would be a meaningful step in the right direction.
Why Boston’s biggest institutions should co-invest in climate protection
If every institution acts independently, Boston risks a patchwork of expensive and inefficient defenses that protect individual buildings but fail to secure the broader systems that keep the city functioning. A better approach would coordinate a portion of those inevitable investments into shared infrastructure solutions that protect entire districts and employment centers.
Massachusetts must have a common, measurable graduation standard for all students
Stripped of its appealing rhetoric, Laurie Gagnon’s recent op-ed is an argument for dismantling the very mechanisms that protect the students most likely to be left behind.Â
For new high school graduation requirement, Massachusetts doesn’t have to choose between standards and innovation
Reciprocal accountability is a system where the state sets high expectations for outcomes, but grants districts flexibility in how students demonstrate mastery, with the state responsible for providing the support communities need to succeed.
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