We, the members of The Black Response in Cambridge, MA, are deeply concerned about the City’s budgetary priorities during this fiscal cycle.  We believe that the City of Cambridge is contemplating fiscal restraint and limiting the expansion of crucial social service…

We write to you today in response to inquiries about Cambridge City Councilor Paul Toner and recent reports alleging that he engaged in purchasing sex in a state where sex work is criminalized. There have also been deeply concerning mentions that the individuals involved may have been victims of human trafficking. As a community-based organization grounded in Black liberation, feminist values, and a commitment to Prison Industrial Complex (PIC) abolition, we feel it is important to speak to this moment with clarity, care, and a refusal to replicate the carceral logics that cause harm across our society. Our goal with this statement is to center survivors, clarify the real harm in this situation, and humanize all of those involved, including the so-called ‘offender’. 

Over the last few weeks, a rise in anti-Black rhetoric against Haitian migrants has created dangerous conditions for Black migrants generally and the Haitian community specifically. As a pan-african, Black, and immigrant led organization, we whole-heartedly condemn the dangerous and vitriolic anti-Black racism that is commonplace in our political discourse.

We send you love and strength for this injustice. We stand with you in your continued fight for justice and accountability.

The Black Response stands in solidarity with the people of Atlanta and Gaza in their resistance to militarism and colonial violence.

The recent murders of Black people by the police have brought to the surface the inherently violent and racist structures of policing in the United States. It has become increasingly clear that police presence cannot keep Black people safe. In fact, police presence leads to physical and psychological harm to Black people, who are most likely to have repeated encounters with police.