Progressive Massachusetts

The Work We Need: Trump Year 1 Drove It Home

If you believe that local neighborhood teams, regular people, are driving big changes, and that this power, when coordinated and focused, is stronger together...

If you understand that the way to fight Trump is to fight at the state level--to lead by example, to protect and invest in our communities, indivisible with justice for All (that means all), the way we really should...

If you think Massachusetts at the state level should be as good as we think we are (we are not)....

2018 Statewide Endorsements

After studying our questionnaires, going to forums, meeting candidates, and asking tough questions, we asked our members who they wanted to endorse for three contested statewide offices.

And they overwhelmingly voted to endorse Jay Gonzalez for Governor, Quentin Palfrey for Lieutenant Governor, and Josh Zakim for Secretary of State.

Why did our members like them so much? Read their questionnaires here, check out some key dates, and then get involved!

Elections

Special Elections have Special Powers

Support Progressive Candidates on the State and Local Level Finally getting Massachusetts back on track as the progressive leader we once were is a project with many fronts—grassroots organizing, legislative pressure, and electoral change … We need to build a better, more progressive Beacon Hill. Not just in name, but in actual policy-making and priority-setting. To win on our issues: we need more legislators willing to stand up to the forces in the system that have pulled our policy too far ... (Read More...)

CAUCUSES: a chance to lean on the system

From our friends in the Progressive Needham chapter, a useful graphic on caucuses--and, below, some suggestions about how one might organize/engage to affect the electoral landscape From February 3 to March 4, local Democratic town and ward committees across the state will be holding caucuses to elect delegates to the 6/2 Mass Dems Convention. Find your caucus location here: massdems.org/convention/2018-caucus-dates Caucuses are one of the opportunities activists, organizers, and regular o... (Read More...)

When Candidates Are on a Listening Tour, Give Them Something to Listen To

TL;DR: Start thinking about what you want in a progressive governor, and start questioning and pressuring candidates and prospective candidates before committing. One year from now, Democrats across the state will have elected delegates to go to the state party convention where gubernatorial candidates will vie with each other for the party’s endorsement. The primary field is not settled yet—there’s some time to go, and candidates may yet emerge. But, already, candidates and prospective c... (Read More...)

Take Action: A Budget is a Statement of Values (FY2019 House Budget)

As the saying goes, a budget is a statement of values. The FY2019 budget from the MA House, released last week, makes some modest steps forward, but in others, is just standing still (which, as we all know, is another way of moving backwards). Over the past few years, our Democratic Legislature has too often taken its cues for the budget from our Republican governor rather than from the needs of communities around the state. In other words, we can do better. Legislators last week filed a lit... (Read More...)

Stand Against Discrimination of Transgender People in MA!

As the mother of 2 transgender children, I have had many reasons to be glad that we live in Massachusetts. Our community has been very supportive since my daughters transitioned about 3 years ago, and Massachusetts is one of only 18 states in which my children can enjoy full protection under the law. As you may know, this came about in 2018 when the Legislature passed transgender anti-discrimination legislation, protecting the rights of transgender individuals in all public spaces. What you ... (Read More...)

Criminal Justice Reform Is One Step Closer to a Reality

PDF VERSION - Hard work and advocacy paid off with the release of the criminal justice conference committee’s new CJR bill. This comprehensive bill addresses almost every issue affecting our criminal justice system. When we began this process in 2016, we could not have imagined the setbacks and the hard work that lay ahead. But through the near destruction of the bill when the Council on State Governments process collapsed, the bill--like a phoenix from the ashes--was revitalized, and the leg... (Read More...)

Progressive Needham Sends Delegates to Convention

After a packed general chapter meeting on Friday night at the Kirks' home, many Progressive Needham members got up early the next morning to Caucus with the Needham Dems. It was a mini-reunion the next day, with many first-timers, as well as many people who had caucused before, but not in many years. (Read More...)

Criminal Justice Reform - It's time to make this happen!

Last week, the Senate unveiled the eagerly anticipated Criminal Justice Reform bill. While those of us interested in comprehensive reform did not get everything we wanted, the final Senate version represents a significant step forward in returning some real justice to our criminal justice system. So what's in the bill, and what can you do to help? (Read More...)

Resisting Trump’s Extreme Immigration Policies with the Safe Communities Act

“When Mexico sends its people, it's not sending its best…They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.” That is a direct quote from our current President. In his dark view of the world, the United States is under assault by a horde of dangerous immigrants unleashing a wave of violence against hapless citizens. There's only one tiny problem with this view-it's completely false. (Read More...)