Government
Public services and government action
Rhode Island demands justice for Daunte Wright - and systemic change
"...we need to create a system that breaks the cycle of violence. Then we need to end what is the mother of crime, which is poverty," said Kinverly Dicupe. "Poverty is a choice our society has made, and we can choose at any time to restructure society so that people have a floor under them. We can make sure everyone is guaranteed a high standard of living. So no one ever has to steal, sell drugs, sell their body, to make ends meet ever again. We can create a society where people don't have to self-medicate because their current reality is intolerable."
RIDOT's "bewildering" response to Kennedy Plaza plan TITLE VI civil rights complaint
RIDOT’s written response to the complaint is superficial and flimsy and disregards the significant, disproportionate and negative impacts that RIDOT’s plan will impose on people of color, disabled and low-income populations across Rhode Island. RIDOT’s trivial response took 85 days, 25 days longer than the department’s own Title VI response guidelines. Also: Newly minted lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos responds to question about the plan.
RI State House Tuesday April 13, 2021
Tuesday April 13, 2021 2pm House Oversight https://youtu.be/nUFsIztsd6I AGENDA: Call Meeting to Order.Presentation on the 2020 Rhode Island Healthy Aging Data ReportBeth Dugan, Associate Professor, Department of Gerontology, University o...
South Kingstown rallies for justice in the wake of arrests
"We all want to help healing to happen," said Eve Mombelly. "For there to be justice and repair of the harm that has been caused. First we need to see these young people returned home to their family. For the boys to beat the odds of being a Black man in the justice system and get a fair shot in our legal system."
Elorza releases report on public safety in Providence - community leaders push for action
"Many of the arrests created by the Providence Police Department are understood to be state mandated arrests by either the issuance of a warrant from a court or some regulatory issue such as driving on suspended or revoked licenses. These arrests drove about 25% of all arrests by the Providence Police Department," said PFM's Ronal Serpas, who helped author the report, "More importantly, we know in Providence and around the nation that these arrests, particularly around regulatory crimes, have a disparate racial and ethnic outcome," continued Serpas, even though a racial analysis was not the object of the report. "This can tell us that the current system is inefficient and expensive. It also begs the question of how to best service the entire community."
House Finance considers budget amendment to save Kennedy Plaza
"Back in 2014, 60% of Rhode Islanders voted to pass this $35m bond to improve the vital role of mass transit across Rhode Island," said John Flaherty, Deputy Director of GrowSmart RI. "Our concern is the potential that bond funds may be used in a way that brings harm to the transit system and to the thousands of Rhode Islanders who rely on it to get to work, to school, and to go about their daily lives."
Privatizing School Nurses: SMART Clinics in Providence Public Schools
From College Hill Independent reporters Olivia Cruz Mayeda and Mara Cavallaro: "By removing union school nurses and implementing private clinics directed by a for-profit business, the district has fundamentally restructured relationships of care in its public schools. There are now private incentives governing care where there previously were none. All of these concerns emphasize how privatization of healthcare undermines community control of basic medical and mental health services."
RI State House Monday April 12, 2021 - Redistricting, Guns and more
S0415 Bans the possession, sale, and transfer of assault weapons. Assault weapons owned on the effective date of this act would be "grandfathered" subject to certain registration provisions.
Family members of incarcerated people rally to demand correctional officer accountability
"I am the voice out here for the man I love, who is currently in the ACI. I am here to call on Governor Dan Mckee. You need to pay attention. Things here need to be investigated. We demand the guards at the ACI be held accountable..."
Rhode Island State House Friday, April 9, 2021
Friday, April 9, 2021 2pm House Judiciary https://youtu.be/EYpwoqnHO98 https://youtu.be/wTrUNuB3v1A SCHEDULED FOR HEARING AND/OR CONSIDERATION H5037 by Perez ENTITLED, AN ACT RELATING TO HEALTH AND SAFETY - BORN-ALIVE INFANT PROTECTION A...