News

Khymani James has been appointed student representative to the Boston School Committee. James is a senior at Boston Latin Academy and is a lifelong Boston resident.

International Underground Railroad Month is underway, and the National Parks Service is shining a light on fugitive slaves who made their way through Boston.

As Black businesses struggle to recover from COVID-19, local experts have gathered to talk solutions and resources to rebuild Black wealth amidst the ongoing crisis. In partnership with the Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA) and Berkshire Bank, the Bay State Banner’s Howard Manly moderated a panel on “Helping Black Businesses Thrive.”

Police Reform Task Force released its initial recommendations to the public Sept. 10, awaiting the mayor’s and City Council’s response. The group is proposing an Office of Police Accountability and Transparency to replace the Community Ombudsman Oversight Panel, with more power in its departments, as well as expanded rules on body cameras, use of force and more.

When Marcus Medley set out to launch Apace Forms, a software that provides easy-to-use templates for real estate contracts, he knew it all started with the answer to a very simple question: what is a problem I face that needs to be solved?

A WGBH investigation has revealed that minority businesses may not get as great a share of state contracting dollars as the governor is reporting.

Wu, who has championed making the MBTA free, called for the elimination of the city’s Boston Planning and Development Agency and voted against the mayor’s 2021 budget while calling for cuts to Boston Police Department funding will most likely be running to the left of Walsh — following in the footsteps of U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a former at-large councilor who took out incumbent Congressman Michael Capuano.

Roxbury residents fighting city and state officials’ plans to remove more than 100 trees on Melnea Cass Boulevard scored a victory last week when city officials agreed to pause the construction project, which is aimed at widening sections of the roadway.

Last year, Boston-based OneUnited Bank launched a BankBlack credit card, aligned with its increasing focus on online transactions. The Black-owned bank’s move to online banking proved prescient, as the COVID-19 pandemic moved much of Americans’ commerce online during the lockdowns that dominated the spring.

The Boston Arts Academy has named Krystal Prime Banfield as vice chair of its board of trustees.

Residents and business owners of the South End and Roxbury and advocates came together last week for a rally at the corner of Mass Avenue and Washington Street to demand actions from city officials to address safety and hygiene issues in the area commonly referred to as the “Methadone Mile.”

Labor leaders joined with community activists on Labor Day at the Massachusetts State House to voice support for legislation that would raise taxes on the state’s top earners and top-grossing corporations to pay for social safety net services they say are badly needed during the current pandemic.