Councillor Damali Vidot was part of a large coalition of elected officials from the Greater Boston area that showed up at Everett City Hall on Monday night to show support to Everett Councillor Gerly Adrien, whose colleagues suggested she resign at an Oct. 26 meeting if she wouldn’t start coming to meetings in person.
The rally to support Adrien, the first Black woman elected to the Council in Everett, drew elected officials from Chelsea, Boston, Winthrop, Cambridge, Somerville, and beyond to show support for her. While all of her colleagues had opted for in-person meetings, Adrien had concerns about her health and that of her family due to COVID-19, and so chose to stay on Zoom. When technical difficulties plagued that Council, several colleagues told Adrien at a public meeting to either come in or consider resigning.
Vidot was there with Boston Council President Kim Janey as part of the newly formed Massachusetts Black and LatinX Municipal Caucus – representing more than 40 city councillors across the state.
Vidot has also been one of the Councillors in Chelsea who has opted to stay on Zoom from her home to attend Council meetings. However, there have not been similar issues in Chelsea with her, and others, opting for Zoom.
At the rally, Vidot delivered a statement from the Caucus in support of Adrien.
“Councilor Adrien has faced constant criticism from her colleagues, most recently for not risking her health by attending Council meetings in person,” said Vidot. “Her colleagues have now asked her to resign. Elected officials are accountable to the people. Councilor Adrien was duly elected by the voters of Everett and came in first in her race for City Council. The will of the people will and will not be overridden…These attacks against Councilor Adrien are not unlike other attacks against women in leadership. Attempts at silencing a Black woman who challenges the status quo are rooted in racism and will not be tolerated.”