Category: Human Rights
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Boston: Human Rights City
Beatrice Bell Spare Change News Dottie Stevens and Debbie-Ann Meskimen Ferretti, along with several others joined together in February 2010 to discuss how to have Boston become a Human Rights City. With the work from this union and several events during 2010 and 2011, Boston became a part of the Human Rights City Project on…
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Editorial: Empty gestures on homelessness
It’s easy to fault Rhode Island’s recently passed Homeless Bill of Rights as a gimmicky gesture. The bill, among other things, guarantees a person the right to use public sidewalks, parks and transportation as well as public buildings “without discrimination on the basis of his or her housing status.” It also guarantees a “reasonable expectation…
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IMMIGRANT ACTIVISTS DITCH HUNGER STRIKE, PLAN TO THANK PATRICK INSTEAD
By Michael Norton STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JUNE 26, 2012. Encouraged by Gov. Deval Patrick’s statements Monday after they questioned his commitment to defeating “anti-immigrant” budget proposals, activists have called off a planned hunger strike and State House sit-in and instead will send thank-you delegations to Patrick’s office and hold a press…
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Harvard Square Business Association Trains Homeless Ambassadors
By Adam Sennott SPARE CHANGE NEWS For a few minutes, Denise Jillson was homeless, pregnant and HIV positive. However, when time was up, Jillson went back to being the executive director of the Harvard Square Business Association. On June 2, members of the Harvard Square Business Association gathered with homeless advocates at the Harvard-Epworth United…
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Women's Commission Presses for Equal Pay/ Sick Day Bills
By Colleen Quinn STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JUNE 13, 2012….Women across the state face an frightening rate of poverty as they age because many work lower-paying or part-time jobs that leave them without pensions and retirement savings, according to the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women. Commission members gathered for their…
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An Appreciation Deferred
Anthony Thames Spare Change News On April 4, 1968, the day Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in Memphis, Tennessee, I was a five-year-old boy, unable to fully grasp the enormity of the situation. I do remember the somber mood both in school as well as at my home. I distinctly recall my mom…
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‘Unarmed truth … will have the final word’
Chris Mesfin Spare Change News Let us mark the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., one of the greatest Americans who ever lived. The 1960s saw a few great men hard at work in America, trying to end the injustices that infected America. Martin Luther King Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, and John F. Kennedy knew…
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Editorial: From MLK to Occupy
“True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” — The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Looking back on the speeches of Martin Luther King Jr. (http://www.kinginstitute.info/), we see that many of his primary…
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SENATE GIVES INITIAL APPROVAL TO BILL AIDING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS
By Colleen Quinn STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JAN. 9, 2012….Domestic violence victims would be guaranteed leave from their jobs under legislation that received initial approval in Senate Monday and has the backing of two major employer groups. The law would require Massachusetts employers with more than 50 employees to give up to…
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Diane Patrick: Face Up to Domestic Violence
Beatrice Bell Spare Change News First Lady Diane Patrick was at the Tip O’Neill Federal Building in Boston recently to discuss her experiences living in an abusive first marriage for seven years. She managed to move on and today is married to Gov. Deval Patrick. This is her talk as recorded and transcribed by Beatrice…