Kim Janey is Boston's first Black mayor. A local historian broke down the significance

[brooklynite]

Boston Globe

Kim Janey’s time in the mayor’s seat marks a historic moment in a city whose history and progressive politics have influenced a nation for centuries, yet which has long eluded this particular milestone.

As of Monday, Janey, the former City Council president, is now Boston’s first Black mayor.

The 55-year-old District 7 councilor and Roxbury native — who is also the city’s first woman mayor — became acting mayor after Mayor Marty Walsh resigned Monday to serve as secretary of labor to President Joe Biden.

While her powers as acting mayor are somewhat limited, Janey has emphasized in she intends to carry out what needs to be done as Boston continues to face the staggering ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic and works through the phases of the vaccine rollout.

[nycbos]

1. This is very significant.

I have worked on three campaigns in Massachusetts and I could say that Boston in many ways is still pretty racist. But progress has been made and there are people who are working hard to change it's legacy on this issue.


I am a Jewish guy from NYC, but I have red hair so everyone thinks I am Irish. When I visited Ireland other tourists asked me for directions thinking I was a local and you could see how disappointed they were when they heard a generic northeastern American accent instead of the Irish brogue they were expecting.

The point of that story is that in areas like South Boston or Southie as the locals call it people thought I was one of them and I heard pretty racist language and I couldn't respond the way I wanted to because I would have been fired.


One skill you learn working on campaigns is how to have a filter between your brain and your mouth.