Boston City Council and Acts of Radical Violence

The Boston City Council voted, via Zoom, to pass the Boston Public Schools (BPS) budget, the FY21 budget operating budget, and the Capital Budget on Wednesday, 24, 2020. However, the operating budget was passed 8-5, the Capital budget was passed unanimously, and the BPD budget was passed 11-2. Also, the one house city legislator voted to appropriate $40 million to the Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) Liability Trust Fund. Meanwhile, the city council voted to transfer funds from the Commonwealth Transportation Infrastructure Enhancement Trust Fund and the Parking Meter Fund into the Capital Grant Fund.

WCVB ABC reported that the Boston City Council debated Boston’s strong Mayor Marty Walsh’s new 2021 fiscal year budget proposal. At the same time, marchers and protestors continued to protest and march in the city. Moreover, the budget includes cuts to the Boston Police Department (BPD).

Walsh said that the city lost $65 million from the COVID – 19 pandemics. WCBC ABC reported that public officials are still not certain how funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts will signify how much funding they will spend in the Boston Public School Department.

City Council member Ed Flynn said in an interview on Monday, June 22, 2020, that the United States is in a recession that will last for a long time. Councilmember Flynn made the statement during a virtual meeting.

Radicals vandalize homes belonging to Boston City Council Members

Meanwhile, City Council President Kim Janey responded to vandals that vandalized several of her colleague’s homes. Also, Universal Hub reported that the vandalism occurred as a backlash because of the police budget.

Chief Executive Officer Walsh stated that a message, or report cards, was glued to councilors’ homes which were written in a text related to the budget bill. In addition, the bill transferred $12 million out of overtime for the municipal Police Department. However, the bill did not make reductions to the overall police budget.

Meanwhile, the report cards were merely posted on the residencies of the Boston city council members. Regardless, a Boston city council member found a derogatory message glued to their driveway. Moreover, a radicalized defund the police organization named FTP Boston took credit for the incidents of animosity.

Janey was one of the five council members in the Hub that voted against the operational budget. However, Janey, which represents the Roxbury district, voted on the bill in the last week of June. Meanwhile, the last week of June is the first week of the fiscal year. The other four council members who voted against the budget were Michelle Wu (Citywide), Julia Mejia (Citywide), Andrea Campbell, (Dorchester, Mattapan district), and Ricardo Arroyo, (Hyde Park, Mattapan, Roslindale district).

Boston city leaders react to acts of vandalism against public officials

Mayor Walsh and President of the Boston City Council Janey did not specify which council member’s homes were vandalized, in the city. The municipality was once informally known as the Center of the Universe. However, Walsh stated that attempting to prove a statement by vandalizing people’s homes is never an acceptable action, in society.

By John A. Federico

Edited by Sheena Robertson

Jamaica Plain Gazette: Boston City Council passes FY21 budget in close vote

WCVB 5 ABC: Boston City Council deliberates Mayor Walsh’s new budget proposal

Universal Hub: Boston council president says several of her colleagues’ homes ‘vandalized’ over weekend

Top Image Courtesy of Boston City Archives’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons