As a violent summer in the City of Boston begins to come to an end and families prepare for their students to return to school, Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn continues to focus his advocacy on public safety and ensure we as a city are providing a safe and healthy environment for all residents, families, students and workers in downtown, Back Bay, Beacon Hill, and the Boston Common.
As the school year approaches, Councilor Flynn has met with concerned parents and educators to discuss concerns about ongoing drug dealing in Boston Common and Downtown Boston and what can be done to ensure the safety of students and families returning to school. They recalled seeing similar incidents in 2024, and raised concerns that the rising violence will only continue.
In the fall of 2024, a four-year-old child and their caregiver were assaulted by a woman with mental and behavioral issues. In October of that same year, there was a stabbing near Brewer Fountain, and many parents witnessed the aftermath while taking their children to school. Parents have expressed frustration for the safety of their children and the unhealthy conditions they have to walk by in the Boston Common each day with their children. Many families do not feel safe and have left the City as a result.
Additionally, Councilor Flynn has held several public safety meetings across the City, including Downtown Boston and Beacon Hill and the Back Bay. Neighbors and stakeholders raised concerns surrounding open-air drug dealing and public consumption, disruptive behavior, and other quality of life issues that affect residents, workers, businesses, students, and visitors. Public safety is ultimately measured by how people feel in their communities. Residents, workers, and visitors must feel safe Downtown, and there was a clear consensus that more must be done to address these concerns.
We need a larger police presence, community policing, and partnerships with various organizations and stakeholders. But we also need a Massachusetts criminal justice system that values justice for survivors of crime, their families and law enforcement by holding people accountable when convicted for their own criminal wrongdoing, actions and behavior. Crime, open drug dealing, open drug use, human trafficking and quality of life issues are negatively impacting neighborhoods and creating an environment where people no longer feel safe.
“As families across Boston prepare to send their children back to school, they should not have to worry about walking through Boston Common and encountering open-air drug dealing, public drug use, violence, and disorder. Our children deserve to live, learn, and grow in a safe and healthy environment, and our families deserve to feel safe in their own city,” said Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn. “We cannot normalize or accept these conditions as the new normal. It is time for stronger police presence, community policing, and a criminal justice system that holds those who commit crimes accountable. Public safety must be our top priority.”
For more information, please contact Councilor Flynn’s office at 617-635-3203 or [email protected].