Civil Rights, Racial Equity, and Immigrant Advancement on October 14, 2026

Today's hearing is on docket number 1340, order for a hearing to examine the civil rights implications of rapid transit equities in the city of Boston. and docket number 1341, the resolution in support of evaluating an o

to get answers that you've been hearing different facts in the public in the community in those hearings. And tonight we want to try and correct a lot of the things that you have heard that just aren't accurate. Every [c

administration allows and listens to the community, they do the opposite of what the community asks for or they make you think that they're listening to you, but then you find out that they're not taking, you know, lived

And I want to thank all the residents who are taking time out of their evening to be here to really talk about and shape what our community looks like, what Blue Hill Avenue looks like. I know that there have been many,

Massachusetts now has a new source of transportation revenue that did not exist a few years ago. The fair share amendment is bringing hundreds of millions of dollars into transportation, including investments in the MBTA

our one opportunity, that conversation is missing something. We now have new state transportation revenue coming in through the fair share. So the question should not just be how do we hold on to this one federal grant a

Um, as the counselor said, this money for construction has not been approved.

Um and and I think they need to be checked. Um and finally, you know, bold action and um you know, big vision uh seems to be allowed in other neighborhoods but not here. And I think the uh the strength of the community t

being impacted. That's the only thing that makes sense. I want to thank the other members u of the city council who did not think it robbery. to take time and come out and hear what the community had to say is the real c

be. When you get to the end of the line, you still have to pay to go where the jobs are. They have no direct connection to downtown or to the industrial zones or to any place else. It was a deliberate decision. I've serv

That the money that they spend in Franklin Park is onetenth of what they spend on the common. and for the last 50 years and now they're saying they're concerned. We should be happy that they're concerned and so they come

others that are that are here, community leaders, and my my good friend as well, Louis Lewis. Lisia Louisa, um I was going to ask Lewis a question, and I've known Lewis a long period of time, and it's not it's not a tric

actually take that feedback and actually incorporate it into the plannings that we're doing. So my question is, and I don't know if you know I'm sorry for coming in late, so I I I will apologize if this question has been

This includes people from this community currently on the buses along with new local riders and commuters as have been mentioned from other communities south of here currently driving up Blue Hill Avenue. A one seat ride

I'm really um concerned more or less that a lot of the statistics and the data weren't given at a number of the meetings. I've attended all of the meetings for Roxberry, Dorchester, Madapan, and Jamaica plane. And there

community, but it's being done to our community because we're black and because we're not respected. Now, if that makes city hall a racist, then I would be the first one to say that's exactly what I'm feeling, that they

And so we we should not shut down all other options. We we should not shut down, you know, options and say, "Oh, well, no, we just don't have the money for rail." But as has been mentioned, we have the fair share amendme

the plan that they have proposed [clears throat] and how it affects growall itself because I understand whether we don't want it or not but what they've actually proposed like what what is it that we have so um part of t

What is going to happen when we have all these things that is supposedly already um going to happen? We are talking about it, but it sounds like this is something that's already going to happen whether we talk no matter