Opinion

Slapping the name of a historic figure with a checkered past on a public place or erecting a monument to him is not sacred and immutable for all times.

If BPS is serious about eliminating gaps, it's time to discard the lens of whiteness that pushes the narrative of American racial fiction that was part of my miseducation in BPS decades ago.

When we characterize Columbus as a hero, we forget the history of the indigenous people who lived on this land long before it was “discovered.” Columbus began the systematic murder and rape of native people and the theft of native land, all justified by the logic of white supremacy.

These businesses are neighborhood anchors and pillars, representing a rich legacy of Black-owned business and entrepreneurship that spans 180+ years in the Black community.

Clearly Police Commissioner William Gross does not understand the chain of command. Mayor Walsh is individually responsible for the outcome of the revisions in the role of the police. If the commissioner is unable to comply with the commands or directions of the mayor, he should resign.

The disease of racism isn’t just a white policeman kneeling on a black man’s neck. It’s black and brown people breathing polluted air. It’s black folks in Boston spending 64 more hours stuck on the bus than white folks. It’s decades of housing policy that leave the average black family in Boston with $8 in wealth while the average white family has $247,500.

The core principle of our current housing system is protection of the private market, with 96.3% of the nation’s housing stock in private hands. Only 3.7% is made up of different forms of social housing ¾ public housing, nonprofit housing, cooperatives and community land trusts.

The brutal treatment of the Native Americans established that whites could not be expected to be more cordial to blacks. Perhaps inhumanity to outsiders is a consistent element of their culture

Covid-19 has created a crisis that has led to a path of top-down decision making and a lack of transparency.

The blue code of silence makes it possible for bad cops and bad administrators to get away and keep getting away with abusive acts.

George Floyd’s brutal death brought together a multi-racial cadre of visionaries. With continued collaboration we can achieve the desired social change.

The killing of George Floyd, and the many other reported incidents of people of color dying or being killed because of the actions of police officers or vigilantes has left us hurting, emotionally drained and dismayed.