Metro

November 3, 2023 0

Massachusetts Confronts Surge in Migrant Arrivals: A Maze of Challenges and Actions

As more and more migrant families arrive in Massachusetts, community response is strong, bringing out the best and worst in all of us. Managing emergency shelters is burning through about $45 million every month. Massachusetts is hoping for some federal help, while local nonprofits, like the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project and the Family Health Center of Worcester, are desperately seeking more donations and more volunteers. Recent news stories are also reporting that migrant families are now getting harassed by extremist […]

November 3, 2023 0

State, Federal Govs. Attempt to Solve Migrant Emergency in Massachusetts

by Jeff Millman

In August, Governor Maura Healey declared a state of emergency over increased migration to Massachusetts. More than 24,000 people are now living in state-funded shelters, hotels, dormitories, and emergency facilities in the state, and the Healey administration was concerned that these temporary dwelling units would soon be at capacity. In mid-October, Healey confirmed that the emergency shelter system would reach its limit by the end of the month and that Massachusetts would no longer be able to guarantee shelter for […]

October 20, 2023 0

Guaranteed Universal Basic Income Provides Financial Freedom to Work and Grow

by Brandon Wong

The City of Cambridge announced its pilot program, Recurring Income for Success and Empowerment (RISE), in April 2021. Directing attention toward individuals below 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, RISE recently became the “first non-lottery direct-cash assistance program of its kind in the country. This reporter had the pleasure of recently speaking with Cambridge Mayor Sumbul Siddiqui. She explained, “ Regarding this progression, Cambridge is often referred to as a tale of two cities: on the one hand, we are known around the […]

September 2, 2023 0

See Say App Gives Direct Access to Transit Police to Report Violence

by Kristen Si

MBTA Chief Safety Officer, Ron Ester, left at the end of August after years of work with federal agencies regarding MBTA safety. This lack of leadership during a time when numerous incidents of violence have been reported on the MBTA concerns many riders. This past July, Transit Police at Andrew Station arrested two men on a charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. In May, 2 teens were charged for unprovoked attacks on a woman in South Boston […]

September 2, 2023 0

September 2023 Service Changes On the MBTA

by Sampan Staff

As we start a new month, go back to school, and soon welcome a new season, more changes to public transit are coming to city commuters. In an effort to keep our readers informed, Sampan will publish regular updates. September service changes will happen on the Red Line Braintree Branch for MBTA crews to perform critical rail and tie replacement work. Accessible shuttle bus service will replace Red Line trains between North Quincy and Braintree Stations on the following dates: […]

September 1, 2023 0

Asian Americans Respond to the Data Equity Bill

by Daniel Steinberg

In most data and major statistics, heterogeneous minority populations are often represented as monoliths, single groups all falling under a single racial umbrella. College acceptance, employment, income, and wealth statistics all confine the diverse groups of Asian or Latin ethnic origin to blanket categories such as “AAPI” or “LatinX.” More than just losing cultural individuality, real disparities surface within Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, or Filipino Americans (among other Asian groups) when it comes to education and health outcomes, median income, […]

August 18, 2023 0

Healey Declares State of Emergency to Take Care of 20,000 Refugees in Mass.

by Joanna Lin

On the second floor of an orange building on Allston’s Harvard Avenue, the muted conversations of parents and the loud chatter of young children can be heard, among suitcases and toys. In this pocket of the city that is the Brazilian Worker Center, Haitian families seek temporary refuge before continuing their long journeys to hotels or medical centers and pursuing the place where they hope to reside: a safer and more permanent home. They compose some of the 20,000 individuals, […]

August 5, 2023 0

Converting Used Office Buildings Into Affordable Housing: Who are the Real Stakeholders

by Kristen Si

There is no doubt that the city of Boston is currently in the midst of a housing crisis. In the Boston Foundation’s annual report, the Greater Boston area received a failing grade in the year of 2022. The report cites confounding factors of economic growth and rising housing prices with the bottom line that middle and lower-income families will be struggling in the coming years to find affordable housing options if new policies are not adopted. The current issues will […]

July 21, 2023 0

Ruling on Admissions Invites Mixed Emotions From Sampan Readers

by Sampan Staff

Editor’s Note: Sampan asked a cross-section of Massachusetts residents about the recent court ruling regarding Affirmative Action. We spoke with retired Executives, academics, students, parents, and teenagers. What follows are their emailed responses, edited for clarity and space. I am personally conflicted with how I feel about the overturning of affirmative action for college admissions. On one hand I can see the usefulness of affirmative action and how it creates a more diverse student body which is very important. As […]

July 21, 2023 0

Supreme Court: Harvard and UNC’s Use of Race in Admissions Process Is Unconstitutional

by Marina Qu

The Supreme Court ruled Friday, June 30th that Harvard’s and University of North Carolina’s use of race in the admissions process was unconstitutional, changing the impact of affirmative action in higher education. The 6-2 decision for Harvard and 6-3 decision for UNC ruled that both school’s admissions processes discriminate against Asian Americans and violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans institutions that receive federal funds from discriminating “on the grounds of race, color or national origin.” The decisions […]

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