"Fund us or fail us" rang through City Hall Plaza before City Council hearing on FY27 budget cuts
Contact: Kat Ramos, kat@economicdemocracy.us, 2015632447
Boston, MA - A diverse crowd of over 200 Boston residents and leaders from about three dozen community-based organizations rallied in front of City Hall on Tuesday, May 26th to issue a mandate to Boston's city councilors and Mayor Wu: "Reject the budget and restore the cuts!"
This mandate was already delivered to city hall last week in a letter to councilors with the same call to action. Boston residents have been rallying around the call to reject and amend the budget, over the last month, in response to Mayor Wu's proposed $16M in cuts to food, housing, youth jobs, and grant programs for immigrants and elders. Read the full letter here.
PC: Better Budget Alliance and T'Ajmal Hogue
A large contingent of young people from groups like Teen Empowerment and Youth Justice for Power Union blocked the intersection in front of Faneuil Hall protesting the cuts to community needs by sharing their performance art.
"We're ripping away opportunity. We're stripping [young people] of being able to dream big. This damages of our mental health and strips young people from their support systems and access to resources," said Alexa from YJPU.
PC: Better Budget Alliance and T'Ajmal Hogue
After the rally, 100 residents testfied past 10pm with the consistent theme of decreasing the police budget. Residents spoke to their experiences searching for housing and the importance of housing vouchers, to the need for a non-police, community-led mental health response, the life-changing experience of youth jobs, funding for permanently affordable housing, ESL classes, immigrant legal resources and more.
"Every dollar that we put into these programs comes back to us ten-fold for food access, public health, neighborhood stability, and safety," said Lex Nicolas from the Food Project.
HAPPENING TOMORROW: Register here for a virtual press webinar recapping yesterday's action, including photos, videos, and speakers representing the demands for immigrant support grants, food access, youth jobs, and more.
Join us from 9:00-9:45AM for a quick presentation and Q+A to follow.
