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Boston's Morning Newsletter
Mass. progressives take a new shot at establishing Indigenous Peoples Day statewide
Editor's Note: This is an excerpt from WBUR's daily morning newsletter, WBUR Today. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox, sign up here.
It may not feel like it quite yet, but we could come close to breaking high temperature records today and tomorrow. Before you bust out the summer clothes one last time this year, let’s get to the news:
What do you call the upcoming holiday weekend? It depends where you are in Massachusetts. In Boston and over two-dozen cities and towns, it’s Indigenous Peoples Day. But at the state level and in the other 300+ communities, it remains Columbus Day — at least as of now. This morning, the State House will hear a bill sponsored by Sen. Jo Comerford and Rep. Christine Barber to strike Columbus Day from official state statute and swap in Indigenous Peoples Day on the second Monday in October. “Christopher Columbus did not discover the Americas,” Comerford and Barber said in a joint statement, adding the change would “honor those who first settled this land.”
- Zoom out: Twenty states and Washington, D.C., observe some version of Indigenous Peoples Day either instead of or in addition to Columbus Day, according to CNN. President Joe Biden also issued a proclamation recognizing Indigenous Peoples Day at the federal level for the first time in 2021, though it remains Columbus Day on the official calendar of federal holidays.
- Zoom in: This is the third legislative session in a row that Bay State progressives have pushed for the change. Comerford and Barber have more colleagues on board this time, with more than 30 cosponsors. That’s up from 20 total sponsors on their bill last session. Still, there’s a big “but”: The two most powerful figures in the State House — Senate President Karen Spilka and House Speaker Ron Mariano — haven’t come out in support of the change. Neither’s office got back to us with their stance on the bill.
- The movement does however have one very important supporter: Gov. Maura Healey, who would give a thumbs up to the change, according to her office. (Internally, her staff already refer to the holiday as Indigenous Peoples Day, as they did when she was the state’s attorney general, too.)
- What’s next: The bill will get a committee hearing today at 11 a.m. But that’s just the first step on its murky path through the State House, so don’t make any edits to your calendar quite yet.
Welcome to the 21st century: Applications for child care assistance in Massachusetts are going online. WBUR’s Carrie Jung reports it’s part of the state’s year-plus effort to reduce paperwork and make life easier for busy parents who need financial aid.
- What’s different: Before this week, families had to make in-person appointments, bring paperwork and then watch the mail to find out if they qualified for subsidized child care. Now, the state department of early education and care is transitioning to virtual appointments, text messages and the ability to upload documents. You can explore it all on the new online application website.
- Bonus: Officials hope the new process will also reduce red tape for providers and encourage more of them to offer subsidized care.
Big hits for the Patriots defense: ESPN reports that New England Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez and standout pass rusher Matthew Judon will both be out indefinitely, after getting hurt during the team’s blowout loss Sunday to the Dallas Cowboys. The players — two bright spots in the team’s 1-3 start to the season — are reportedly trying to get second opinions on their injuries.
Check your pockets: Those old state-themed quarters might be worth a lot more than 25 cents today. As MassLive reports, a rare version of the Massachusetts quarter released in 2000 — part of the U.S. Mint’s “50 State Quarters Program” that ran from 1999 to 2009 — recently sold at auction for $3,760.
- FWIW: Most state quarters won’t be worth that much; the value depends on its condition and other factors like rare misprints.
P.S.— There are still tickets left to see WBUR’s Anthony Brooks chat with The Atlantic staff writer Franklin Foer about his new book on President Joe Biden’s first two years in the White House. Copies of the book “The Last Politician” will be available for purchase, and Foer will sign copies following the conversation. Grab a ticket or two here.
