Tag: Dorchester Reporter

  • New bill targets ‘humanitarian crisis’ in Mass prisons

    Legislation targeting what advocates call a “humanitarian crisis” in Massachusetts prisons would enhance educational opportunities, mental health services, and other standards across the system, advocates say.

    The bill, introduced by Rep. Brandy Fluker-Reid of Mattapan, would create universal standards for conditions that would apply in state prisons, county jails, and houses of correction, said Jesse White, a policy director for Prisoners’ Legal Services of Massachusetts.

    Under the proposal, inmates would spend at least eight hours per day outside of their cells. 

    “It’s really aimed at shifting our correctional culture, which right now is really a culture that centers around punishment and deprivation,” said White.

    Educational and vocational programs would also be modified to fit the needs of modern businesses as a way to better equip inmates become productive members of society when they are released.

    The current population of Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Lancaster, the state’s only maximum security prison, is 75 percent people of color who have little access to programming, said White. Most inmates are in their cells up to 20 hours a day.

    “Souza Baronowski is arguably the most restrictive and operationally dysfunctional facility of all,” said Geoffrey Reese, a prisoner at the center, in his testimony for the Legislature’s Committee on Public Safety and Homeland Security.

    He said out-of-cell time is restricted to less than four hours, depending on where in the facility the inmate is housed. This is slightly more than inmates who are housed in restrictive units.

    Research shows that activities among inmates that promote cooperative and productive behavior can improve mental well-being, while isolation can worsen mental health and hinder rehabilitation, said Sophia Leggio, the marketing and communications coordinator from the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Massachusetts.

    “A major issue is that, in effect, we still have a solitary confinement system,” said White. “The Department of Correction and many county correctional facilities stated that they eliminated restrictive housing, but what they did, in actuality, is they created units that they claim fall outside the definition of restrictive housing.”

    The bill establishes minimum standards for health care and mental health care that align with the community standard of care. Mental health treatment will tackle the addiction and suicide rates plaguing the system, particularly related to the drug K2. 

    “[The prison system is] only about punishment: loss of contact visits, loss of family contact, loss of community support, fines, fees, etc. This brings a sense of hopelessness,” said William Duclos, an inmate at MCI Norfolk in his testimony before the legislative panel.

    “Unfortunately,” he added, “in the last few weeks, this hopelessness created two suicides of men that were under the influence and were struggling with K2 addiction.”

    Massachusetts has one of the oldest prison populations in the country, with 30 percent of the population over 50, according to White, who noted that imprisonment is known to cause faster aging, which contributes to the trauma of confinement.

    The Massachusetts Department of Correction declined to comment on the legislation.

    “If we are serious as a Commonwealth about improving re-entry outcomes and reducing recidivism, it is imperative that we support policies and practices that foster personal growth, connection, and resilience during incarceration,” said Leggio.

  • Dot delegation has mixed feelings on state flag and redesign of seal

    Dorchester legislators have mixed feelings about the new Massachusetts flag and seal design options that have been laid out by a state advisory commission.

    After a previous panel failed to select a design in 2023, the current commission sifted through more than 1,150 entries to come up with three finalists for a flag, motto, and seal just before Labor Day, according to State House News Service.

    The existing flag and seal features a Native American man standing with a hand holding a sword above his head, and has been deemed offensive to Native Americans by many critics.

    The commission narrowed its designs to images depicting a mayflower, the Blue Hills, and turkey feathers as a way to celebrate Massachusetts’ natural history. They plan to have public hearings this fall to make a final decision.

    State Sen. Liz Miranda, who represents parts of Dorchester and Roxbury in the Second Suffolk district, favors a change.

    “As the Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Racial Equity, Civil Rights, and Inclusion, I support the creation of a new state flag and the Commission’s thoughtful process in studying and recommending symbols that better reflect the values and diversity of Massachusetts today,” Miranda, a Democrat, wrote in an email.

    Rep. Brandy Fluker-Reid, of Mattapan, said: “The Massachusetts state flag represents all of us, and I believe the people should have the final say in what it looks like.”

    “While I respect the process that brought us to this point, my focus remains on the urgent issues facing our communities — issues such as protecting our seniors, education, public safety and economic opportunity,” said Fluker-Reid. “These are the priorities that directly impact the lives of families in our district.”

    p6 finalists state flag REP 41-25.png

    Rep. Russell Holmes, who represents parts of Mattapan, Dorchester, and Roslindale, supports a redesign, but doesn’t like any of the three finalists.

    “We’ve known it’s been important for indigenous people and Native Americans for years now, and we need to address it,” said Holmes, who added that he wants Native Americans and indigenous people to have an amplified voice in the process.

    He said that it has taken the Legislature a long time to address the issue, and the results are not satisfying.

    “I also just think that the three designs are not creative enough, ingenious enough, or thoughtful enough,” says Holmes. “I will be concerned if those are our final three.”

    Rep. Daniel Hunt, of Dorchester, said he does not have a strong opinion about the current design finalists, but supports the public’s ability to weigh in, which is why he voted to support the creation of the commission, he said.

    Hunt does favor keeping the state’s longtime motto, a Latin phrase “Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem,” which translates to “By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty.”

    State Sen. Nick Collins and Reps. Christopher Worrell and David Biele did not respond to requests for their comments.
    Gov. Healey said in September that she is focused on lowering housing costs, energy bills, and handling issues with ICE, and the flag design is not a priority for her while noting that she supports the legislative effort.

    One of her declared Republican opponents in next year’s gubernatorial election, Mike Kenneally, has argued that the state has more pressing issues right now and believes changing the flag would be a legislative nightmare.

    Holmes said it shouldn’t be that complicated. “We have been going back and forth on these flag conversations for too many years,” he said, “so I think we need to go on and nip it in the bud.

    “So even if there are lots of things happening, I don’t want us to get caught up in the politics of the Republicans asking why we are even changing the flag and why this is important.”

  • Boston advocates watching statewide ‘YIMBY’ push on housing matters

    The “Yes in My Backyard” (YIMBY) movement is backing a legislative proposal that would amend local zoning laws statewide – except for Boston – and allow for a broader range of housing options, including streamlined approval for small lot subdivisions, the abolition of minimum parking lot requirements and the lifting of limits on accessory dwelling units (ADUs).

    While the ongoing effort is important, said Dorchester’s Lori Hurlebaus of Dorchester Not For Sale, a neighborhood housing organization, it doesn’t go far enough to meet the needs of communities like hers.

    “The idea that zoning restrictions are what is the driving force behind housing production is false,” she said. “What we truly need in our community is affordable housing,” she added, citing proposals like the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act, which died in a State House committee in 2023, and efforts at rent control paired with zoning changes.

    Her group wants to ensure that new housing is built with strong anti-displacement protections, she said, noting that “when we are building just housing, without pairing that with protections and housing that’s actually affordable to the residents that live here now, then it just deserves to drive us out of the very communities that we built.”

    As to the exemption of Boston from the “YIMBY” proposal, interviews with backers of a Housing Abundance Amendment effort show that they want the YIMBY bill to include Boston because, they say, what happens in the city would play a key role in addressing the housing crisis in Massachusetts.

    Said Jesse Kanson-Benav, the executive director of Abundant Housing Massachusetts, Boston’s zoning laws allow changes to come from anywhere in municipal government before they are sent to the Zoning Board of Appeal and then to the mayor. Since the city’s zoning code is outdated, contractors in Boston deviate from the code and develop housing by variance.

    The proposed amendment would allow ADUs to be built in every neighborhood, reduce parking requirements, allow buildings to be six stories – and up to 12 stories for developments within a half mile of public transit, Kanson-Benav said.

    “We need other cities and towns to step up and do more,” said Kanson-Benav. “So, things like the legalization of ADUs statewide or the MBTA Communities Act, both of which don’t apply to the city of Boston, are important steps to make sure other communities are building new homes. The YIMBY bill is another step toward that goal.”

    Advocates said the bill would cut some of the “red tape” that slows development. “Right now, [housing] opportunities are blocked by outdated zoning rules, minimum lot sizes, excessive frontage requirements, and parking mandates to make small projects financially challenging and restrict design options,” said Keith Fairey, president and CEO of Wayfinders, a Springfield-based organization that helps connect families with housing.

    He noted the scarcity of multistory apartment buildings in communities like Springfield as part of the problem. The YIMBY bill would support changes to housing codes that would streamline projects and create a process for the missing middle-housing division.

    Massachusetts zoning laws do not outline uniform permitting standards, which means that contractors need permits from each municipality. Site plan review is the only way for a community to review a project before it grants a permit, but since it is not codified in state law, the process varies across the Commonwealth.

    “With 351 different versions, the current site plan is not predictable, efficient or universal,” said Rep. Kristin Kassner, (D-Hamilton). “Meaning that there are no criteria or time to review projects. Some communities do site plans very well, others do not, which can result in lengthy and unnecessary delays.”

    Another issue that arises from municipal zoning regulations is that parking regulations are often outdated and result in extra expenses.

    “The [parking] codes were not adopted through careful study and analysis,” says Daniel Herriges, policy director at the Parking Reform Network. Most often, they were copied verbatim from one town to another, and planning reports from the post-World War II era readily admit that they were quite simply guesswork.”