Press Releases

Boston Public School parents were disappointed when some of them noticed the small blurb, only two sentences long, buried at the bottom of the newsletter this week saying that they have made the decision to continue the current pause in athletics.

Sports provide our children with way more than just the opportunity to exercise their bodies. There are social, health and psychological benefits that allow our kids to do better in life. As a mother of student athletes (Go BLA Dragons and Eagles!) who benefitted in so many ways from their time on school teams, and as a public school teacher who knows that educating the whole child has to include physical and social wellness to be successful, I will fight for school sports for our BPS kids. I know how participation on a school team, whether it’s volleyball, cheering, football, or soccer, can transform a youngster’s life, increasing motivation and a sense of inclusion, and knitting together a closer school and neighborhood community.

I believe we should be doing everything possible to get our Boston Public School sports back on track. Boston children who attend METCO, private and parochial schools are still playing sports. Kids in neighboring towns are still playing sports. Many of our BPS students are still playing sports in their neighborhood athletic organizations. As long as we are following the CDC guidelines, I do not think we should continue the pause that was started during winter break. Boston Public School kids need this outlet for their social and mental health, now more than ever.

This has to stop and I will fight for our students on the City Council. It’s the right thing to do because we all know that sports are good for everyone. The physical benefits are just the beginning. Kids who participate on school teams are far more likely to have improved grades, report healthier social behavior, and to reach higher academic and professional success after high school. Our own kids have the will, the talent, and the RIGHT to all the wonderful, life-long benefits that school sports offer.

As the only teacher on the City Council, one with real lived experience, who knows firsthand what it means to be a BPS student, athlete, parent, and teacher. That’s me. It’s what I’ve done all my life, and as your At Large City Councilor it is what I will continue to do for each and every family in BPS and Boston.

Erin

Crisscrossing the city these last few months, I’ve been inspired by what an engine of our city strong women are. Grandmothers, mothers, wives, sister, friends, teachers, cops, C suite executives, coffeeshop workers -- women really do make Boston run. And women are one of the big reasons I’m running.Our City Council is the most diverse it’s ever been, both a representation of our city and a celebration of it. Three of our four at-large councilors are women, and eight of our thirteen members of the Council are women. That’s historic.And I’m running in part to preserve a strong woman’s voice on the Council. Four of our female representatives are running for mayor, and I don’t want there to be any sort of drop-off in what strong female representation can provide for our city.I was honored to be the first recipient of the EXTRAordinary Woman of the Year. This campaign highlights women that do extraordinary work within the Boston community. I was also the proud recipient of the Unsung Heroine Award from the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women for my unheralded acts of public leadership and volunteerism that make our neighborhoods, and cities, better places to live. I have been advancing the status of women and girls my whole life.And I am thrilled to partner with the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus, which endorsed me. They told me in an email, “The Board of Directors were incredibly impressed with your values, career experience, policy knowledge and depth of connection with your constituents. We are excited to endorse such a rising star in Massachusetts politics.”That’s nice to hear! And I was able to talk with them about how I bring a multidimensional understanding of the challenges that women -- and everyone! -- face. Education, housing, public safety, income inequality -- these are women’s issues and they’re everyone’s issues. I’ve been a single mother in the city. I’ve been a teacher in the city. I’ve worked, both personally and professionally, with individuals working with substance abuse problems and recovery in the city. I finished the Marathon three times in the city. I work hard and I like to solve problems, and I want to bring that commitment to City Hall, to be a team player who’s always working to make our neighborhoods better for EVERYONE.And, to be honest with everyone, I’m having fun running. I like when young girls come up to me and tell me they want to grow up and be scientists or carpenters. When young women, former students of mine, register to vote and are excited to vote for their teacher. I like talking to women who are seniors and remember a time when the Council was all men or almost all men. No more! The Boston City Council has more than just “a woman’s touch” now. Let’s keep it that way. Please vote for me on September 14th, to keep a strong voice on the council!Sincerely,Erin

There’s been a lot of coverage in recent days about the United Nations report about climate change and the head of the UN, António Guterres, called it a “code red for humanity.” It’s scary stuff, but really we didn’t need a panel of experts to tell us that life on Earth has changed. The wildfires in the American West, the floods this summer in Europe, the defrosting of the permafrost in Siberia. Heck, even great white sharks making their way farther up the Massachusetts coast. Maybe some of this seems fairly removed from Boston, but it’s really not. We are a (proud!) seaside town, a lot of us live on landfill that used to be harbor, and we’re susceptible not just to rising oceans caused by melting ice caps, but to the other ravages of climate change as well. And we all know about the hotter weather (hello, rest of the week!).As an At-Large City Councilor, I will steer our city government toward an aggressive, equitable approach to climate change. People often talk about what it’s going to mean for the Seaport and Downtown, but climate change affects all of our residents in all of our neighborhoods. It’s not just skyscrapers in the Financial District, it’s responsible brownfields redevelopment in Hyde Park and Mattapan and strategic defense of our coastal roadways in Dorchester and Southie. It’s working with homeowners and neighborhood associations in the South End and Back Bay to address groundwater issues. It’s consulting with community leaders in Jamaica Plain and Roxbury and Charlestown and Eastie to leverage the investments we’ll need to make to combat climate change in a way that benefits those communities. It’s understanding that there is a connection between climate policy and transportation, climate policy and housing, climate policy and economic development. We have an opportunity to do this right, but we need to do it smartly and we need to ensure that ALL of Boston’s neighborhoods have their unique needs addressed as we move forward.

In nearby towns like Concord, the public school department spends $821 per student on athletic programs for their kids. In Boston, we spend $76 dollars. This is a shameful statistic and a sad reminder of just how poorly our BPS leadership is doing at fulfilling its responsibilities to the holistic education and support of our children. And it’s not like we aren’t spending money. In fact, at close to $24,000 per student, Boston spends more per pupil than most every city and town in the state. $24,000 per student and we can’t find $700 bucks for our kids? It’s not right.

As a mother of student athletes (Go BLA Dragons!) who benefitted in so many ways from their time on school teams, and as a public school teacher who knows that educating the whole child has to include physical and social wellness to be successful, I am the right person to fight for school sports for our BPS kids. I know how participation on a school team, whether it’s volleyball, cheering, football, or soccer, can transform a youngster’s life, increasing motivation and a sense of inclusion, and knitting together a closer school and neighborhood community.

The current state of the BPS athletics program is not good. Too many middle and high schools have only a small handful of teams, and some schools have no athletic program at all. For the schools that do offer sports, the funding, resources, and guidance from BPS central office is severely lacking. Teachers, coaches, and volunteer parents work so hard for these kids, often feeling abandoned and ignored by BPS leadership. This has to stop and I will fight for our students on the City Council. It’s the right thing to do because we all know that sports are good for everyone. The physical benefits are just the beginning. Kids who participate on school teams are far more likely to have improved grades, report healthier social behavior, and to reach higher academic and professional success after high school. Our own kids have the will, the talent, and the RIGHT to all the wonderful, life-long benefits that school sports offer.

The recent closure of the highly successful Scholar Athletes program by its private funders adds to the loss of meaningful school sports for most of our public school students. The problem, like so many problems plaguing our public school system, is not funding. We have the money, what we need is the WILL and the Leadership to follow through. I will tackle this issue, working to bring back a full citywide athletics program that offers a comprehensive variety of sports programs at all our middle and high schools, a sports program that ties academic tutoring and support to athletics, providing our kids with the kind of educational, physical, and social experience they not only need but, more importantly, deserve.

We need a teacher on the City Council, one with real lived experience, who knows firsthand what it means to be a BPS student, athlete, parent, and teacher. That’s me. It’s what I’ve done all my life, and as your At Large City Council it is what I will continue to do for each and every family in BPS and Boston.

-- Erin

I've spent a lot of time in the Mass & Cass area over the past several years, and like anyone who has even just passed through recently knows, the public health crisis in the center of our City has dramatically worsened even since June. At this current moment, our neighbors, businesses, public health workers, and first responders are being overwhelmed. The situation has morphed from a crisis to a catastrophe. People have been killed. Women and vulnerable younger people are being sex-trafficked, assaulted, and abused, every day and night. Illegal and dangerous drugs are being openly sold and used on public streets, sidewalks, and on private property. Residents and workers at our hospitals, businesses, and Suffolk county jail are at great physical, emotional, and financial risk as they simply try to go to work and go about their daily lives.

Yesterday, I spent several hours with Sue Sullivan, president of the Newmarket Business Association, and other local and political leaders at Mass & Cass, hearing from them how frustrated and worried they are, but also how determined they are to turn the tide at Mass & Cass. I believe that our leaders must work with Sue and related groups to transform the area back into a bustling, safe, and inclusive neighborhood, one where truck drivers, nurses, jail workers, residents, food workers, and those recovering from substance use disorder and family trauma can coexist comfortably and equitably.

Like most everyone who is appalled by the unsafe and inhumane conditions at Mass & Cass, I am also wary of more talk and not enough action. I know that the time for task forces and committees has passed. We need strong leadership from City Hall that will back up the efforts of those experts that are already in place, with plans and strategies aplenty, to make real, meaningful, and immediate change.

As your At-Large City Councilor, I commit to support and advocate for leaders like Sue Sullivan and John McGahan of the Gavin Foundation, in a united effort to:

1. Untie the hands of public health professionals and their partners in law enforcement to remove encampments and protect the safety of our most vulnerable and unhoused residents. 

2. Hold state leaders accountable to enact a regional response to the opioid epidemic to relieve the unfair and unjust burden on the South End, Lower Roxbury, Newmarket, South Boston, and Dorchester.

3. Coordinate the tremendous and life saving work that is already happening at Mass & Cass by public health and social service professionals like Mario at the Atkinson Street shelter. A job shared is a job that will get done. The good people who are actually doing the work of trying to hold back the tide of human misery that many of us only see from the safety of our cars driving by MUST be supported by steadfast leadership in City Hall.

I will be a City Councilor who follows up words with actions, and I will not give up on those who are suffering at Mass & Cass. ALL of the people and livelihoods that are suffering.

Please vote for me on November 2nd so I can get to work for leaders like Sue Sullivan and John McGahan and also for every worker, resident, and recent arrival to our great city. Housed or unhoused, employed or down and out, doing well or struggling with trauma, I will fight for you.

-- Erin

I jumped back into this race in January and have been hitting the pavement day and night for the past eight months. No days off. No breaks. Just working hard to connect with as many voters as I can before they cast their ballots and decide who they want to represent them. 

I hope you all recognize that how I campaign is exactly how I will lead. I will SHOW UP, I will LISTEN, and I will HELP. It’s what this City deserves, and it's what I am ready to do. 

Actions, not words, are what make a positive impact on the lives of others. I have been a mother for the past 32 years, and my children have seen me get up everyday and try my best. They have seen me dust myself off and keep showing up, even when it’s hard. When I see my former students on the campaign trail, which is often, their faces light up every time. I know I have made a difference in their lives and I have shown them that taking big risks in life will only make them stronger. 

I have never taken the easy path in life, and campaigning sure isn’t easy. It’s one of the hardest things I have ever done. I have been knocked down several times, and I am sure more people will try to knock me down again before the final election on November 2nd. It Is politics after all. But I will keep fighting. I will keep knocking doors. I will keep calling people. I will keep showing up in every neighborhood. I will keep working hard to BRING BOSTON BACK. TOGETHER!

Please VOTE for me on September 14th. I am #14 on the ballot. A vote for me really does mean action, not just words! 

Thank you,

Erin 

#TBT to when I ran the Chicago Marathon a few years ago. This was my fourth marathon in three years, and you learn something new about yourself every time you train, run and finish a marathon. This time I learned that I was capable of more than I thought I was.

There was a young man who was running near me for several miles and his shirt had a powerful message on it. “A lot of people run a race to see who is the fastest. I run to see who has the most guts." — Steve Prefontaine

I often compare campaigning to a marathon. There are good days, there are bad days, there are fast days, there are slow days, but there are never days that I give up! Once you believe that you are capable of more than you think you are, you can accomplish anything! 

We get out of life what you put into it and I will continue to give it my all! 💪 

Please VOTE for #14 on September 14th! 

Tell your family and friends why you are voting for me and please make a donation to help us cross over the finish line victorious!

Thank you,

Erin

I wanted to take a moment and encourage everyone to join me extending a thought, a prayer, a helping hand to our Haitian-American friends and neighbors, who are hearing and reading about a devastating 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck their Caribbean country, killing nearly 1,400 people and injuring many more.

The country has been without a head of state since the assassination of President Moïse last month and they are bracing for a tropical storm that is heading their way as the death toll continues to rise. They need our prayers. 

Part of Boston’s richness is the ability of so many communities to retain their ties to and affection for their ancestry or the lands they were born. We’re a city of immigrants and those who welcome immigrants, and the Haitian community has been such a vibrant part of our city’s fabric for so long. Our hearts go out to anyone feeling pain and uncertainty today. And we pray for safety for everyone in Haiti. 

Boston has your back. 

Photo is of me on my dad’s lap on our first visit to Port-au-Prince in 1973. 🇭🇹

I'm outraged that some of the people we entrust with decisions about the education of Boston's children have proved to be biased and prejudiced, blind to the fact that our strength is in our togetherness. While I find the resignations appropriate, I am saddened by how this drives a deeper wedge in our City. An attack on any of our neighborhoods is an attack on all of our neighborhoods. This city's strength lies in our neighborhoods -- ALL of them -- and anyone who disrespects that is not fit to represent us.

As someone who was a teacher in Boston Public Schools for 22 years, I fought for my students, their families, and our communities. Zip codes don't determine the value of our kids or families, and that's a core belief we all need to embrace.

I also call on the City of Boston’s Office of Public Records, as well as BPS and the City’s legal department, to investigate and explain to the people of Boston why the public record of the texts between the School Committee members at a public meeting were withheld from FOIA requests. Public records that are released with redactions must, by law, be plainly marked as redacted and an official explanation for the redactions must be included in a FOIA response.

I’m a Boston teacher and a Mom. I know our neighborhoods, our public schools, and our kids and families very well. And I know that expressions of hate and animosity against any group will do nothing but deepen divisions and sow animosity among people. We are ONE city. Everyone in government and elected office, and those seeking public office, must be committed to working TOGETHER, with good will toward all, to make sure Boston’s future is as bright as we know it can be, for ALL of us.

-- Erin