The ban is heinous for what it does to transgender athletes. But if you think cisgender girls and young women won’t be caught up in the fallout, too, you are woefully ignorant

"America’s extreme right wing is by far the country’s big problem, and it’s hard to address that problem when powerful elites insist that the trouble is with “both sides.”" newrepublic.com/article/2125...

My Project 2029: 1. Fix the Supreme Court 2. Disband ICE & Homeland Security and prosecute 3. Restore funding for safety nets, science, education, and the arts 4. Enshrine essential rights into law (ex voting, women’s right, LBGTQIA+) 5. Make America Affordable (housing childcare healthcare etc)

When it comes to the government, we need strict controls on how, when, where, and why AI is used. The risks of misuse, accidental or intentional, are just far too high.

When it comes to cycling, the Dutch succeed because we don't see it as a cost—we see it as an investment. One that delivers returns across healthcare, climate, public space, local economies and quality of life. If we want better cities, we need better business cases: dutchcycling.nl/knowledge/bl...

I was absolutely delighted to join my neighbors in the ribbon cutting for Central Street Studio... a studio that was already open and operating, but now as a *permanently affordable* studio. The artists that inhabit this building worked their butts off to make this happen.

Boston drivers murdered one woman already this week and now this horror. We can and must do better to protect pedestrians and everyone outside of cars #BostonVehicularViolence #VisionZeroBoston @wutrain.bsky.social @mohammedmissouri.bsky.social

/ 🚨 EXTREME HEAT WATCH 🚨 / PREPENT URSELVES / ITS GOING 2 GET *2* HOT / W/ HEAT INDEX VALUES GETTING UP 2 110 DEGREES LATER THIS WEEK / PART OF REPENTANCE 2 UR WEATHER LORDS IS STAYING SAFE & NOT DYING / SO THAT U CULD LIVE 2 REPENT ANOTHER DAY / IMG FROM UR WEATHER.GOV/BOSTON

Every single person in Massachusetts, every employer, every health care provider, should be concerned by SCOTUS' TPS decision and the immigration policies of this Administration. Here's what TPS holders need to know:

From the start, the idea behind Facebook was sleazy. They have enthusiastically done the wrong thing at every fork in the road if they believed money was to found. Zuckerberg and his company have left an enduring negative impact on society and the planet.

Incredible chart from @propublica.org. If you don’t follow enviro stuff closely, your instinct might be that the hold-your-nose solution (carbon capture from fossil fuels) would be the “pragmatic” one versus covering Earth in solar panels, which seems utopian. In fact it’s the opposite

After federal agents shot Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, a New Yorker sent ICE's director an email in January comparing him to a Nazi. This week, DHS agents stalked him across New York. His home. A hotel. They gave his wife a letter warning of criminal prosecution. www.syracuse.com/news/2026/06...

Your Prime Day reminder that half of Amazon warehouse workers struggle with food & housing costs. A third have had to rely on government assistance like SNAP — which was gutted last year. If Bezos can spend $500M on a yacht, Amazon can afford to treat its workers with dignity.

The Trump administration has rolled out AI powered surveillance cameras with motion tracking, facial recognition, spotlights, and horn speakers. This story really encapsulates everything wrong about this administration. Now they're turning the reflecting pool into a surveillance state nightmare.

Maine had a plan to feed its hungry by 2030. Then came Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” Inside the quiet unraveling of America’s food safety net 👇

I think about this strategy a lot. A person struggling and in need of support gets excluded because, for example, they own their home. If we give benefit of the doubt (I don't) and say that means testing was well intentioned, we still have to acknowledge it is broken and causes damage.

‘Our estimate is that about 200 to 400 pedestrians a year would not have died if vehicles had remained approximately the same size.’ The animations are worth scrolling through if you want to understand why I advocate for lower speeds in residential areas. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...

A @bostonglobe.com headline makes the claim that "Most Mass. voters oppose" a congestion toll in polling. But that's not accurate: Pollsters didn't ask whether voters oppose the policy. They asked “would you be willing to pay to drive downtown if there was less traffic – yes or no?” #mapoli (1/3)

Pool season is here and Somerville community pools are opening! 6/20 - Dilboy Pool (free) open daily 11a-7p. Lap swim M,W,F mornings. bit.ly/dilboypool 6/20 - Latta Brothers Pool at Foss Park (free for MA residents) mass.gov/swimming 6/22 - Ginny Smithers summer hours begin bit.ly/ginnysmithers

This part of Bow street is hugely improved. It's a space that I've watched people dash between cars so many times. Even in the crosswalk that was there, I've had to pull my small kids back to safety while heading to the playground. Glad we have people like Ben making Somerville a better place.

Great to speak at the launch event for @mikeconnollyma.bsky.social’s re-election campaign for state rep in Cambridge! Mike has been a leader in the push for social housing (and I’m excited our Social Housing Task Force kicks off its 1st meeting next week!)

Do you want to reduce your energy bills? You and your landlord may be eligible for free money. Planning an upgrade for your rental unit? Stretch your dollars further. 🧵

I’m very proud of the work Somerville has done to get off of reports like this. The work our mobility team has done alongside (and often powered by) advocates has tangible results: parents coming home to their family at night, children returning home safely from school. Vision zero works.

At a time when reproductive freedom is under attack, I am deeply honored to earn the endorsement of Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund @pplmvotes.org. We will never give an inch on reproductive freedom and health equity.

Sweeps are not only immoral, they are counterproductive. They leave vulnerable worse off and many times set them back further from getting the support they need to get housed.

BREAKING NEWS: The Senate passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act to build more housing supply and lower costs. This bill also stops private equity from buying up single-family homes.

Somerville, want to hear from the candidates for senate? There’s a candidate forum tonight! Tuesday, June 16th at 7:00 PM Friends Meeting Hall: 5 Longfellow Pk, Cambridge MA

I believe we have a Home Rule Petition in the works for this, but it’s worth noting that’d be unnecessary if we can get the MA house and senate to pass these bills: H.3587/S.2334

“Since New York City introduced congestion pricing, the state has heralded significant reductions in traffic and rush hour delays, fewer crashes and noise complaints, & toll revenue projected to hit $500 million by the end of 2026. Now, Cornell researchers have tallied the environmental benefits.”

Fireworks return to Somerville’s skies on Tuesday, June 30, at the City’s annual summer celebration featuring live music, food, family-friendly activities, and of course, a fireworks finale! 🧵

The Department of Racial and Social Justice invite all to the 2026 Juneteenth Flag Raising ceremony on Tuesday, June 16th at 12pm at City Hall There will be a short speaking program, light refreshments, and community gathered together to honor Black heritage, resilience, and joy!

SomerStreets Carnival TODAY (this is the rain date) June 14th at 2pm in East Somerville on Broadway. Lots of food and fun. You also have a chance to dunk some of your electeds—including me. I predict that no one will be able to hit the target.

What the Ellison family would own if Paramount buys Warner Bros: Paramount+ CBS CNN Showtime HBO Warner Bros TNT TBS MTV DC Studios Nickelodeon Comedy Central Cartoon Network And more... This is a rotten deal that the Trump regime has rubber stamped. State AGs must step in and block it.

The illegal Air B&B next door to my house is currently full of genial Scots, which is fine. Sometimes it's full of frat boys or bachelorette parties and they're a lot more obnoxious.

Another report from Trump's death camps. This one in Pittsburgh.

Tonight the Elizabeth Peabody House has their Gala. Should be a great time and supports an amazing Somerville org.

The City invites you to the first (online) community meeting for the East Washington Street Quick Build Safety Improvements project on Wednesday, June 17 from 6:00 to 7:30pm: voice.somervillema.gov/eastwashingt...

This is devastating to read. It important to remember that myopic policies like these cause real harm rather than the imaginary harm they seek to avert. It’s horrible, ghastly, and inexcusable to be living in a time where so many equity gains are being erased.

Yesterday there was a community meeting about the Homan Site (that patch of mostly nothingness in front of Gilman Sq Station). Mayor Wilson announced that he wants retail, daycare, and housing on the location. In the short term, he wants to activate it as a community space. Details are forthcoming.

"I’m climbing a mountain they say you can’t climb." No, you are climbing a mountain they said you *shouldn't* climb. This race to reverse all the gains in science and public health is the one of the most frustrating parts of being an American right now (though certainly not the only frustration)

Since I mentioned @bostonswac.bsky.social: Please sign this letter to our elected officials supporting H4610, “An Act to Study the Decriminalization of Sex Work,“ H1849 “An Act Relative to Archaic Laws,” and H1747, “An Act Relative to Safe Reporting.” actionnetwork.org/letters/supp...

I don't know how to explain to the people who pop up when creatives complain about "AI" to say there are legit uses for it just how much they sound like someone saying "Well actually fire is used to make bread" when people are talking about an organized arson ring burning down their fucking houses

OTOH… Given that an LLM is a lossy statistical abstraction of an enormous corpus of writing, if an LLM is conscious then a library is *even more* conscious, and wondering whether a library is conscious is AWESOME.

Sharing my May-June newsletter (one day later than I hoped). Reading through the city budget has taken a bit of a toll on my usual routine!

This is an administration where we have to keep the pressure on everywhere.

To our dismay, the artist and author Marjane Satrapi has passed away. As she wrote, ordinary Americans and Iranians have more in common with each other than we do with either of our governments, which have far too much in common with each other. We honor her memory and oppose the war.

This is an abomination. We should be expanding access to healthcare. Single payer healthcare is within reach, we just lack the political will to get there. Instead tax money is going to wars no one wanted and miscellaneous grift to enrich Trump and his cronies.

If you don't know Ben, this is a great chance to meet him and learn why he deserves your vote.

Yup, this is good advice for those unaware. It’s preferable to drop it off at a ballot box, but if you can’t, make sure you get it stamped

Boosting this if you use Linktree. Another thing I didn't realize I would be doing this month is find a new landing page for links.