Where do we go from here?
Like many of you, I watched in disbelief Tuesday night as Donald Trump surged ahead in states that my candidate, Hillary Clinton, was expected to win. As his leads held in Wisconsin, Michigan, and even Pennsylvania, it was suddenly, starkly clear. This was a “change election” and then some. When I woke up Wednesday morning my first thought was, did that really happen? It was hard to process.
It wasn’t the first time I’ve been on the losing side of an election. Anyone who’s been an active campaigner knows the feeling. You put your heart and soul into a campaign. Losing always hurts.
This one hurt more than usual, though.
Trump said things in his campaign that alienated and even threatened people I care about, including women, immigrants, gay, lesbian, and trans people, people of color, people with disabilities and Muslims. Those words angered me during the campaign, and they concern me greatly now that he has won. I hope Trump takes seriously his pledge to move away from division and towards unity.
I agree with President Obama that we owe the next president a chance to lead. After the White House changes hands in January, we will continue to work with the federal government on anything that makes life better for Bostonians. That’s our responsibility.
But we will not compromise our values as a city. That’s our sacred duty.
We will defend our friends, neighbors, and family members from any and all efforts to exclude them, harm them, or strip them of their rights. Boston is a city of inclusion, a city of compassion, a welcoming, diverse, global city. We’ll stay that way.
The road ahead may seem uncertain. But our values are unwavering, and our work is before us. Here’s how I put it to my staff on Wednesday morning: When you lose an election, you want to do something right away, something to keep alive the spirit of the campaign and the impact you hoped to achieve in victory. It can be hard to find that outlet. But the fact is, we all have things we can do. If you’re not sure what that is for you, reach out to my office, to other elected officials, or to community organizations. In civic engagement and local organizing, you can make a difference. If movements don’t exist for your issue or in your neighborhood, you can help create them. Now is the time to make positive change.
What’s true for individuals is also true for us collectively as a city. Let me explain. In our hopes for a Clinton victory, we talked a lot about the things Washington could provide for Boston. Believe me, we’ll still fight for our fair share. But our focus likely will shift.
We’ll think more about what Boston can offer Washington, and all of America. Here’s what we’ll do:
We will not stop being a city that values and respects immigrants, both documented and undocumented. Our Office for Immigrant Advancement will continue to nurture and support the foreign-born in Boston, with everything from citizenship classes to cultural celebrations to free legal advice. Boston was here for my parents when they came here. We will always be a city that welcomes newcomers.
We will double-down on our belief in gender equality, and we will not let up in the quest for pay equity led by our Office of Women’s Advancement. We’ll continue to lead the global fight against human trafficking and create safe spaces for victimized women to recover. We’re a city that stands against sexual assault in all its forms.
We’ll continue to embrace our LGBTQ neighbors. Massachusetts was the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, and Boston City Hall will never turn away any couple based on gender identity. We’ll continue to listen to trans people and protect their rights, from health coverage to public facilities.
We’ll stay on our path to ending chronic homelessness in our city, and we’ll keep leading the fight against substance disorders and addiction with smarts and compassion. And we’ll spread the word about how we are doing it.
We’ll keep showing how even a high-cost city can set records for creating affordable housing. Bostonians just adopted the Community Preservation Act by a large majority, giving us new resources to invest in our collective well-being.
We won’t stop demonstrating how a big-city police department can forge close bonds with the neighborhoods it serves, and cut crime even while it reduces arrests. We’ll continue inviting people of all faiths to make their voices heard on our clergy and community task forces.
Finally, we’ll forge a deeper understanding of how racial disparities impact life and increase inequality in America. This Saturday, November 19, we’ll hold our first town hall meeting on race and equity in Boston. It will be followed by group dialogues, action plans, and public-private partnerships to expand opportunity for all. We’ll show how to confront the injustices of history head-on and end the cycles of division and resentment that color too much of our politics in America.
In other words, we’ll do the work that our history, our faith, and our conscience ask of us — and we’ll work even harder than before. We’ll follow Secretary Clinton’s advice to “never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it.” Come what may, we’ll show a way forward for the rest of the country as well, just as Boston always has done.
Thank you as always and God Bless you,
Marty
