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Massachusetts right-to-shelter law up for debate as migrant surge strains emergency resources

Some Bay State communities are starting to pull back the welcome mat for homeless families after a surge in need for emergency shelter space has left resources — and local patience — spread thin amid an ongoing rise in demand.  With the number of families currently in need of emergency shelter still growing and overwhelming community resources, […]

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Ballot question smorgasbord faces reality with Attorney General’s announcement today

The tragic R.J. Oppenheimer thought he was doing something powerful and good, and so does Rep. Mike Connolly… and so did Mike Dukakis and so did Cathy Judd-Stein and — well, state government is replete with cases where leaders proposed or effected explosive change, only to have it, um, bomb. John Keller explains in his […]

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Banning book bans: Cyr bill would put teachers, libraries “in the driver’s seat”

It’s Back-To-School week in many Massachusetts communities, and no doubt back to the book challenges or complaints that have hit record levels, with the hyper-partisanship infecting our national conversation working its way into schools and onto bookshelves. In 2022, Massachusetts saw 45 challenges on more than 30 books, The American Library Association said. Bay State […]

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Doula care could help close racial disparities in pregnancy outcomes in Massachusetts

Black people in Massachusetts are more than twice as likely to die in childbirth as their White counterparts — a glaring racial disparity that the state hopes to tackle in part by making doula care more accessible.  Doula care is one of the most effective tools to improve health outcomes and reduce racial disparities among pregnant and postpartum people. […]

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Climate protesters who disrupted Maura Healey, Kamala Harris fundraisers vow escalating action

Gov. Maura Healey came face-to-face with climate protesters interrupting her Nantucket fundraiser over concerns the state is already off track to meeting looming emissions reduction goals. And the group of young activists behind recent high-profile disruptions at political events say they will continue to escalate — just like climate change. “Big updates imminent. We are cranking […]

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Shared housing floated for Massachusetts migrant crisis could help plug state’s larger housing shortage

In an appeal to anyone with “an extra room or suite” to spare, Gov. Maura Healey asked Bay Staters to consider hosting a family in need of shelter as huge numbers of incoming migrants and needy families overwhelm state resources. It’s a strategy affordable housing advocates say could be deployed on a larger scale in a […]

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Massachusetts crops, businesses destroyed in floods fueled by climate change predicted to get worse

Unrelenting storms amid an unusually rainy New England summer have brought the pain of floodwaters typically experienced in coastal neighborhoods on the edge of rising seas into Massachusetts’ interior. Flash flooding in recent weeks has wreaked havoc from Western Massachusetts to Merrimack Valley and as the water levels recede, Beacon Hill leaders are scrambling to support […]