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Acting mayor, congresswoman and state rep have Andrea Campbell's back in war with police union
By adamg on Sat, 05/01/2021 - 2:41pm
Acting Mayor Kim Janey, US Rep. Ayanna Pressley and state Rep. Liz Miranda are all telling the Boston Police Patrolmen's Association to knock it off with the personal attacks on City Councilor Andrea Campbell - who is running against Janey in the fall elections - saying they are no longer going to just sit back while the union continues what Pressley called its long running racism.
On Wednesday and Thursday, Campbell and the union traded Twitter barbs over Campbell's alleged slow pace in moving $1.3 million in federal police grants out of her public-safety committee and the union's supposed failure to explain why it supported the rise of alleged multiple child-rapist Patrick Rose to the presidency of the union - at the end of which, the union dropped this little nugget, blaming Campbell for the actions of her adult brother:
There’s a lil’ saying about people who live in glass houses which seems incredibly appropriate at this time. And, if I were you, when the topic of discussion turns to enabling criminals, you and your credibility would be best served by recusing yourself or @ nobody. #Hypocrisy https://t.co/zzmG0dnEKB
— Boston Police Patrolmen's Association (BPPA) (@BostonPatrolmen) April 29, 2021
Last night, Pressley tweeted:
The racism & vitriol directed at women of color in office by the BPPA is absolutely unacceptable. Full stop.
Unfortunately, every elected official of color in MA knows their Twitter playbook - and the threats that follow - all too well. pic.twitter.com/aLjRuw0zmo— Ayanna Pressley (@AyannaPressley) April 30, 2021
This morning, Janey tweeted:
I agree with @ayannapressley - these vicious personal attacks against @andreaforboston are abhorrent and cannot stand. BPPA needs to stop them right now.
This afternoon, state Rep Liz Miranda (D-Roxbury) also told the union to take a step back:
Lucille Clifton once said “What they call you is one thing. What you answer to is something else.” I’m from a precarious place & in my family I have a sibling who is incarcerated, 1 who was deported & 1 who was murdered. Their stories are intertwined with mine, but are not mine.
Black women cannot be your shield & your target.
My siblings grew up in the same community & our fates were different. we were given different opportunities & while I excelled academically they were faced with very different circumstances in the streets. my story is very similar to @andreaforboston
Asking for transparency & accountability from a police union & force that we invest in didn’t require her to be marked for the wrongdoings & pain caused by someone in her family. She shouldn’t be further shamed & burdened by that as I am sure it already has impacted her.
Now, keeping an alleged child rapist employed, covering it up & giving him more positions of authority does require that system & affiliations to be called into question. It’s the Mayor’s & City Council’s duty to ensure our city services are safe & work for the people of Boston.
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Comments
Ayanna, shouting racism?
Get out of town! When has that ever happened before?
Yea.... but they're "good
Yea.... but they're "good cops"! (good at covering up for each other). Sad that we can't trust the City or State Cops. "1 bad apple... " yet we have a bushel of bad apples City & State.
I’m sorry.. but this is a
I’m sorry.. but this is a “war”?
What do you call the 200 rounds fired in Boston last Saturday that nobody cares about?
Not every criticism of an
Not every criticism of an elected official who is black is based in racism.
Dear BPA:
Thank you for helping me to know who to vote for. Remember dearlings: the smaller the number of voters the more weight each vote carries. I'm glad my vote will count against you.
Yes, hopefully this is the
Yes, hopefully this is the beginning of a pattern where elected officials representing the voters tell the Police what to do and not the other way around -something that has increasingly become the norm in Boston.
Kudos to these four ladies for taking that lead; change is good! I'll say don't stop here; we need to start a serious conversation about banning these rogue and toxic public safety unions, starting with the quasi criminal organization that is the BPPA. There are very good reasons why the military doesn't allow organized labor.
I am not calling for a banishment of the police; only asking for sensible reforms, accountability and justified use of our taxpayer money. None of this will ever happen while the BPPA is pulling so many strings and intimidating politicians.
So no more organized labor telling officials what to do?
Then can you say the same for reforming/abolishing the BTU? After all, it dictated to local leaders the glacial pace for reopening BPS, despite multiple assurances from the CDC that in-person learning is not hazardous, and despite overwhelming public opposition to virtual learning.
big up to women of influence sticking up for each other.
big up to women of influence sticking up for each other.
Who cares what Andrea
Who cares what Andrea Campbell wants ? She used Council position to push political ideology, she is no show everywhere in Mattapan& Dot and ineffectual local leader. She and Ayanna Pressly talks a lot but what have they done? Nothing.
Let’s be fair here
Her reply to them was off topic. It had zero to do with the grant money. Unless she is withholding a vote for that reason. If that is the case, then just say it. Assuming that every union member knew about Rose’s history is also unfair.
The fact that Andrea’s father was a notorious criminal once charged in a triple murder, and was associated with the Winter Hill gang is not on Andrea.
That her brother Andre was involved in a stabbing and later charged in a violent crime is also not on her.
That Her brother Alvin, is a serial rapist, and had a nasty record even prior to those assaults is not on her, unless of course there is something behind them using the word “enabled”.
But she took a shot at them, and they replied in kind.
She took a political shot at
She took a political shot at a political organization asking them to do something that is completely within their power to do, and they replied with a personal attack suggesting that she should have been able to have some agency over her family members, which of course she does not. I would say this reply is not only not "in kind" but is in fact abhorrent behavior that should absolutely not be tolerated from members of law enforcement.
She took an unprofessional jab.
She should have not responded at all, or explained why she is withholding the funds.
We expect the BPPA to roll in the mud. Andrea wants to be mayor of one of the most vibrant cities in the world - also a city that faces significant challenges that require innovative and effective leadership. Getting in Twitter fights with BPPA trolls is not what the city needs.
For far too long the city has been lead by narcissists and bullies with thin skin who dabble in revenge and old timey political bs. The people want something different. Not just someone of a different color who plays the same tired game.
The BPPA is not a political organization
But I suppose the union could have taken a lesson from Michelle Obama when it comes to this sort of thing and go high when others go low.
In the end, Campbell decided to get pissy and couldn’t handle the heat that went with doing so.
The BPPA is not a political
I don't know how you define "political organization" but I'd consider any organization that legally can, and actually does endorse political candidates to be a political organization.
So, Planned Parenthood is a political organization
Good to know.
While we're making comparisons...
Planned Parenthood delivers healthcare.
Police union delivers what?
If you don't know what a union does
I really, honestly pity you.
I didn't realize left field
I didn't realize left field was so wide in this park, I couldn't even see where that one came from.
Legally speaking, Planned Parenthood the healthcare provider is not a political organization. Their affiliated organizations with different tax designations are political organizations. The wait times are really long, especially since it is still filing season right now, but feel free to dial up the IRS at 800-829-1040 and ask them to explain the rules to you.
That said
Planned Parenthood has pontificated about proposed legislation affecting them. Much like the BPPA, they are concerned about federal grants that they are eligible for not getting to them. Also much like the BPPA, they do not exist for political purposes, but are affected by the actions of the government.
Is BPPA education or charitable?
While I am it claims those attributes the reality is that this is a union. Unions are fundamentally political. Given that this union direct management counterpart is government - a political entity - the BPPA is necessarily political.
A non-profit is theoretically extremely limited in its political activity. What this union demonstrates in this contretemps is that the leadership chooses to be solidly involved in a political environment.
If it walks like a duck and squawks like a duck....
It's fundamental role is not political
It's main role is to be the collective bargaining agent for the police officers it represents. It's political interactions are adjunct to that, but not it's main role by a longshot. At the end of the day, it's a union. I know that everyone in America, including a scary number of "progressives" who comment on this website, dislike unions, but their goal is to work for those workers they represent.
Would you consider the BTU to be a political organization? AFSCME? The Service Employees?
Labor unions are governed
Labor unions are governed under 501(c)(5) not 501(c)(3). They exist under the tax laws for, get this, labor organizations. They are allowed to conduct political activities, provided that political activity is not the primary activity of the organization.
https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/other-non-profits/labor-and-ag...
Well.....
BPPA does not control the release of those documents. That is controlled by the city and by BPD. Considering a union lawyer was involved it may also be a confidentiality issue. Either way the original post was about the existing funding. She shifted the conversation.
Not to be tolerated
Certainly not from members of law enforcement whose salaries are paid by those of us who actually live in Boston.
Something fishy about your argument
To list a series of criminals that she is related to but to quality each with "is also not on her" sounds like an argument out of the Trump playbook.
Guilt by association comes to mind.
I suspect (but hope I'm wrong) that your true intention is revealed in your last sentence. Hopefully I am wrong and want to give the benefit of the doubt.
However, I unequivocally believe that If these words came out of Trump's mouth, that the intention would be ugly, gross, and as anything from Trump, pure cowardice. But I am sure that you are a better person than Trump.
Except that
I am only telling you things that she sort of told you already as part of her campaign. Her own announcement ad mentions her father being in prison, and her brother dying while in custody. I am just supplying details that were not included.
She put it out on the table, and is using it as a theme to her campaign and has said those events have shaped her views of police and the justice system. So all I did was add context to what she said.
But again, unless that remark about enabling has anything behind it, then nothing that Alvin Jr did is on her. The actions of Andre and Alvin Sr are definitely not her.
I would add here, she never denied enabling her brother...
Except that
Your post repeats the information. Nothing requires that anyone else post the information. Why the information is repeated is now the question. What is the motivation or motive? To just report news? Others do a fine job of that. Here, where there are discussions the context changes.
Again...
She brought that information in to the discussion when she included it in her campaign video, and then centered her talks around how she does not blame individuals, but instead blames the system for their actions. She blames the system for her father being incarcerated. She blames the system for denying her brother Andre opportunities and ultimately his death while in custody. She of course leaves out Alvin Jr.
So she has brought this onto the table. Why are we not allowed to ask ourselves if her assessment of their various encounters with the law were the fault of the system? Why is it that she feels that Andre and Alvin Sr were victims of the system but she does not say the same for Alvin Jr? Should we take her judgment as the truth? Or should we ask ourselves if the system is really to blame for the triple murder her father was part of? The stabbing that Andre Jr was part of? Why should we not question her assessment?
I did not repeat the information. I gave the information context. She stated her father was incarcerated during her childhood. She never said the extent of his criminal involvement. She said her brother died in custody. She never said what he was in for and what else he had been involved in. Seems only fair to understand the context instead of blindly taking her word for things.
Now let me be clear here. We are not blaming her for Andre Jr or her father. Unless the “enabled” accusation is true, we are also not blaming her for Alvin Jr either. But we can certainly call into question her theories about the system.
You're allowed
to ask yourself anything you want, buttercup. We, in turn, are allowed to point out when you're being a disingenuous and racist dickbag. Like you are currently doing.
no need to be rude and resort to name calling
Simple thought here. Say you are running for mayor, and someone brings up how a family member of yours is a war criminal, or say Whitey Bulger. You answer it the same way you have in the past and denounce his actions, and distance yourself from it. Fine. Then it should not be brought up again.
Now let's say, you are running for mayor, and in your intro video, you wheel out the fact that you are related to a war criminal or Whitey Bulger. You draw the conclusion that their actions can be blamed on the system and on the police. Why can't we look into that more? why can't we question your conclusion that you relative was a sweet person, when in fact they were involved in some violent and disgusting shit?
It is not racist to question a candidate's thought process and ideology.
no need to be rude and resort to name calling
Simple thought here. Say you are running for mayor, and someone brings up how a family member of yours is a war criminal, or say Whitey Bulger. You answer it the same way you have in the past and denounce his actions, and distance yourself from it. Fine. Then it should not be brought up again.
Now let's say, you are running for mayor, and in your intro video, you wheel out the fact that you are related to a war criminal or Whitey Bulger. You draw the conclusion that their actions can be blamed on the system and on the police. Why can't we look into that more? why can't we question your conclusion that you relative was a sweet person, when in fact they were involved in some violent and disgusting shit?
It is not racist to question a candidate's thought process and ideology.
But Campbell has not tried to
But Campbell has not tried to avoid conversations about her family. Instead she's chosen to highlight the way that the different treatment she and her brother received in school was almost certainly part of the reason why he chose a life of crime and she ended up graduating from an Ivy League school and going into politics. The whole point being that she has an understanding of the system that makes her uniquely qualified to orchestrate the kinds of changes that might cause us to turn out more Andreas and fewer Andres.
No one is saying that we shouldn't be talking about Andrea's family, just that it doesn't make any sense to hold her responsible for them.
The BPPA, by contrast, absolutely could have taken action years ago to immediately remove Patrick Rose from their ranks and publicly advocate for the same treatment of him that they routinely suggest for members of the general public. Instead they chose to cover it up for decades and for that I think it's completely reasonable for us to expect an explanation (in particular, a public accounting of the individuals who played a role in covering things up).
Let me help you out
I can't stop you from doing it but I will let you know that your ass does not become any prettier through repeated showings.
1. Who is "Alvin Sr"
1. Who is "Alvin Sr"
2. How have you possibly concluded that she doesn't think the system bears responsibility for producing her older brother?
Keep in mind there is good reason for people to draw a comparison between Andrea's life and Andre's: They're twins so it's especially illustrative to look at how their lives unfolded differently given the same family circumstances.
Whoa!
Andrea sounds like she doesn't come from such a wonderful family, either. The fact that her brothers all have criminal records says a lot about the familial background, and not positive stuff, either. It may not be on Andrea, but she's sure had a rather rough, tough road to hoe, as a result.
As opposed to the Bulgers
Wonder whether any local police ever had concerns about the President of the Commonwealth's Senate being the brother of an infamous murderer?
Given Andrea's background - and the fact that she did not fall to that side of the law - her credibility and legitimace is vastly higher than the BPPA, given the political thuggery, history of racism via Pax Centurion and their former president.
Andrea is one person who is unable to control anyone else. Basic human reality
But as an organization the BPPA is many people. Many people who have tolerated racism in Pax Centurion, belligerent leadership and apparently leadership that was found to likely be guilty of child rape. Of those many people, unless all of the racist, child rapist ignoring folks are gone, then the BPPA continues to be a grotesquely tainted organization.
Perhaps it is time for Boston LEOs to disband the BPPA and establish a union that does not seem to present diluted echoes of the good old days of Teamster thuggery.
However Billy B did not run a
However Billy B did not run a campaign on his brothers failure to be a good citizen, while Andrea C frames her entire reason to be in politics based on myths of systemic wrongs her family endured. In her TED talk her father is a man who turned down Princeton, because he decided to "work" for his family and her brother Andre a lost child.
Andre Andrea, and Alvin were brought up by a career criminal, not the system. Did she escaped the family business simply because she was a woman and couldn't be in the gang?
Campbell is entitled to her narrative, but it indicative of her authoritarian her style. She tell YOU, don't you dare question, don't you answer back. How many young men shot in Boston this weekend and she is still screaming that Police are the dangerous ones. i hope she goes into trust work after she loses the election, she is not a good politician..
My, my my, a union doing the
My, my my, a union doing the wrong thing?
I'm shocked, shocked to see a
I'm shocked, shocked to see a union looking after its own interests in Boston.
Break the damned union.
Where is Calvin Coolidge when we need him?
Or Reagan?
I’ve lost respect for him as I’ve learned more about his non-response to AIDS, and the fallacy of trickle-down economics, but at least he had the balls to can an entire recalcitrant union.
Courage?
That was pure political opportunism. Just as the behind the scenes negotiations with the Iranian gov't was a political opportunity. Just as trickle down economics was political opportunism to create an illusion of someone who cared about anyone not wealthy, prestigious and powerful.
Reagan had no balls. He had greed, lust, a willingness to use and abuse anyone who furthered his personal goals of power, control and use.
If working with the traffic controllers union would have been of greater political benefit then Reagan's empty political scrotum would have swung that way.
Balls
I cannot let an assertion about Reagan's alleged ballsiness pass without a reminder of his gutless sacrifice of 240 Marines in Beirut in 1983.
Keep giving Campbell free
Keep giving Campbell free publicity. Well done, BPPA. She is the candidate they most fear because she's the only serious about breaking their union once and for all.
For BPPA, the key is how many
For BPPA, the key is how many councilors will actually vote against approving their next contract after it comes out of arbitration.
Ten years ago, Chuck Turner was the lone vote against the extremely generous firefighter contract. For that, he got setup by the FBI. Then a couple of years later, the council voted unanimously for the overly generous ("we want parity") police contract.
The police contract is already expired. I don't know if/when it get to arbitration but it will be interesting to see what happens.