By Bob Katzen
“The loss of these three workers is not just a statistic. It is a devastating reminder of the human cost of inadequate safety practices.”
— Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (COSH) Executive Director Tatiana Sofia Begault on recent reports that three Massachusetts workers died in less than two weeks.
“The history of Black Americans is deeply woven into the patchwork fabric and rich legacy of our country. A people who survived the torment of enslavement and consistently seek to lead this nation forward. A people who are the conscience of America and stand as a beacon of the great possibility of our democracy. To know the history of Black people in America is to understand our history is a testament to the enduring pursuit of America’s ideals.”
— Tanisha Sullivan, Chair of the Governor’s Black Empowerment Advisory Council at a celebration of Black History Month at the Statehouse.
“This bill is vital because it addresses the pressing issue of allowing male athletes to compete in girls’ school sports when there is no equivalent boys’ team or when a boy identifies as a girl. [The bill] would give athletes and coaches the legal right to opt out of competitions against the opposite sex without fear of discipline.”
— Statement by the Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI).
“It sickens me to see that any legislator in Massachusetts would partner with this organization to incite fearmongering and disinformation at the expense of children.”
— Tanya Neslusan, Executive Director of Mass Equality on what it calls MFI’s activities to promote discriminatory bills impacting transgender youth and anti-LGBTQ policies at the state and local level by engaging in disinformation campaigns and encouraging hateful propaganda against the LGBTQ communities across the state.
“I think after witnessing last year’s coin toss, and to my knowledge — and please correct me if I’m wrong — there was no problem with betting integrity that took place. I looked in all the jurisdictions and I Googled as many news articles as I could to see if any betting integrity [issues] took place. There are other prop bets, like the Gatorade color over the coach, the national anthem length, and we, of course, decided we didn’t want to go that far. But I think the coin toss is something we should be revisiting.”
— Massachusetts Gaming Commissioner Brad Hill on the commission’s 3-2 vote to allow sports betting companies in the Bay State to offer wagers on the Super Bowl opening coin toss.