Letters to the Editor

Vote NO on Question 2

Charter schools have become ubiquitous in our educational landscape, and parents of children in poor and underperforming school districts are its direct target. I see my friends and family clamoring to enroll their children in charter schools in hopes that their kids have a chance at attending college one day. Proponents of lifting the cap on charter schools are using this as an example for their need to expand. This association is disingenuous considering charter schools have made it that much harder for poor communities of color to obtain equal access to education. We see this in the severe zero-tolerance policies, and suspensions rates that specifically target children of color and students with special needs. Families can only look on as their children get pushed out of these schools since right now there is no mechanism for communities to control how charter schools administer their education policies. Reports from groups such as the NAACP and folks supporting the movement for Black Lives have cited the data that bespeaks of a horrendous wrong done to our youth due to privatized public education.

Charter schools are contributing to the school-to-prison pipeline, excluding high needs students from their rolls, and taking millions in funding from the poorest of school districts which still educate the majority of children in the Commonwealth. Charter schools are advancing inequality harkening back to “separate but equal” education policy. We have to demand that all children have access to quality education and vote NO on Question 2.

Rebecca Amdemariam

Chelsea resident

This is an important race

When we read a story in this week’s paper on the Register of Deeds race for Suffolk County, we noted that Jeff Ross received little more than a mention. With his extensive experience and credentials Jeff Ross deserved more coverage so the residents of Suffolk County can make an informed decision.

The Register of Deeds is responsible for maintaining a permanent public record of all properly drawn legal documents submitted by the public relative to real estate. Jeff is the only attorney running for this office with a real estate background.

Jeff plans to (1) Implement property boundary reviews of deeds filed with the registry to avoid costly legal mistakes; (2) Implement optical scanner software to get records online faster; (3) Expand electronic filing (4) Increase the multi-lingual capacity at the registry; and (5) Advocate for land court hearings before a mortgage foreclosure takes place.

This is an important race, as mistakes can be a costly.One family, who had the wrong information on their deed, spent $15,000 of their retirement savings fighting over the boundary of seawall they’re required to build.

Jeff has vast experience across all of Greater Boston, both in politics and record management. In our view, Jeff Ross is the most qualified, electable, candidate for Register of Deeds.

 Sincerely yours,

Revere City Councilor George Rotondo

Chelsea City Councilor Matt Frank

 

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