‘Taste of Ramadan’ Event At High School Calls Attention To Yemen’s Civil War

Ethnic food and culture shared before the month-long religious observance begins for Muslims

By John McNamara

Students and teachers filled the New Britain High cafeteria on March 15th for an after-school “Taste of Ramadan” event with ethnic food and observances of Muslim traditions and customs before the start of Ramadan on March 23rd when Muslims begin a month of fasting and praying.

New Britain is home to a growing Muslim population including many immigrants from Yemen, the war-torn nation in the southern Arabian peninsula. Students from more than 700 Arabic families are enrolled in the New Britain School District, according to Najal Jahaf, a public school communications assistant, who helped organize the event and works with families and students in their transition into school and community in a new country.

During a brief speaking program attendees heard advocates call for passage of a Yemen War Powers Resolution that is currently stalled in the U.S. Congress over final language. The bill, originally proposed by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) has had the backing of U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Chris Murphy (D-CT). As originally introduced it would “end U.S. complicity and the war itself,” according to Layan Jahaf, a Farmington High School student who is Chair of Pathways for Yemen.

Layan Jahaf said her organization is trying to spread awareness about the nine-year-old civil war in Yemen which has involved heavy civilian casualties, including widespread starvation and the deaths of an estimated 11,000 children. Saudi Arabia, a recipient of U.S. military aid, has intervened in the conflict arming rebels on one side and prolonging violence.

Urging student and citizen action in support of the resolution and greater involvement to end the war were Democratic Town Committee Member Bill Shortell and Hassan El-Tayyab, Legislative Director for Middle East Policy at the Friends Committee for National Legislation (FCNL), a nonpartisan Quaker lobbying organization.

Also in attendance at “Taste of Ramadan” were Superintendent of Schools Tony Gasper and State Senator Rick Lopes (D-6). Lopes, who represents New Britain, Berlin and a portion of Farmington in the State Senate and previously was State Representative from the 24th District. Lopes said he has seen a steady growth in the Muslim community, particularly Yemeni immigrants. “Over the past few years I have seen the increase of Muslims living in New Britain, especially Yemeni immigrants,” said Lopes. “We want to make sure that every new group coming to New Britain feels welcome and safe in our city. I am looking forward to how they will contribute to the future of our great immigrant city.”

An indication of the growing population of Yemeni families in the city, once appropriately called “a city for all people” by Registrar of Voters and former Mayor Lucian Pawlak, came at last year’s high school graduation when Noora Nassir Sahoobah became the first Yemeni-American to be Valedictorian at New Britain High School. Ms. Sahoobah’s valedictory remarks to her fellow graduates addressed the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and affirmed once again that New Britain is “a city for all people.”

“I would like to mention that I am extremely happy I moved to New Britain my freshman year of high school. The diversity in this city is astounding. For elementary and middle school, I lived in a non-diverse town and it was hard to fit in. When I first walked into New Britain High, I was pleasantly surprised to see so many Muslim individuals as myself. For those of you who don’t know I am from Yemen and I take great pride in being from there. I am honored to say that I am the first Yemeni-American Valedictorian at NBHS and I am absolutely thrilled to be representing my community here today. The Yemeni community in New Britain is growing exponentially and that is unfortunately in part due to war and the biggest Humanitarian Crisis occurring in Yemen.”

Participating in “Taste of Ramadan” at NBHS were Candyce Scott, Bill Shortell, Layan Jahaf of Pathways for Yemen, Hassan El-Tayyab of the Friends Committee on National Legislation and Najal Jahaf, a communications assistant at the public schools (J. McNamara)

NB Politicus Related Post from 2016

https://nbpoliticus.com/2016/11/27/new-britain-election-postscript-if-trump-wins-will-i-have-to-leave-the-country/

From The State House: To Vote Or Not To Vote And When?

Legislators Get “Rennied” Twice For Filing Bill On “Compulsory” Universal Voting

Courant Columnist Kevin Rennie has skewered the co-sponsors of a bill that would “institute mandatory voting” to “incentivise civic engagement.”not once but twice this month.

Raising Rennie’s ire is legislation that would require voters to cast a ballot or provide a valid reason for not voting subject to a fine if a citizen does not comply. The General Administration and Elections Committee (GAE) voted 13 to 6 to hold a subject matter public hearing but has not voted to draft legislation for formal consideration.

Rennie’s acerbic takedowns of the five lawmakers supporting “vote police” are an understandable reaction to a law that would impose a penalty of any sort on registered voters for not voting. His sentiments will find lots of company among many citizens be they left, right or center as an infringement on constitutional rights. “The basic elements of American democracy elude them,” wrote Rennie of the legislators. “Voters have as much right to decline to participate in an election as they do to cast a ballot. It is one of freedom’s glories.” Rennie believes that the intent of the bill to increase participation will have the opposite effect, further decreasing turnouts that in Connecticut municipal elections in 2021 dropped to a dismal 32%. In New Britain municipal voting reached a nadir of 28% despite record high spending in the mayoral race.

An impetus for the bill that proponents refer to as “universal voting” is a book by former Secretary of the State and Common Cause leader Miles Rapoport and Washington Post Columnist E.J. Dionne: “100% Democracy: The Case For Universal Voting” published in 2022. The book and the universal voting organization is pushing the idea of ‘mandatory” voting based mainly on Australia’s 100+ year practice of compulsory voting that produces very high turnouts. Voters Down Under are liable for a fine ($20) akin to a parking ticket if they ignore filing a form excusing themselves.. It should be noted that elections there are celebratory community holidays held on Saturdays. In their book the Liberal-leaning Rapoport and Dionne say the move to Australia’s universal voting early in the 20th century stemmed from the conservative party worried that organized Labor would outpoll their party members without making it compulsory. The authors point out the practice is in place in other democracies around the world. Saying voting should be equivalent to jury duty they counter what would appear to be the strong First Amendment argument against it saying that voters need not vote for anyone but, like jury duty, citizens just have to show up and are free to leave the ballot blank. In the judicial system the failure to answer a summons for jury duty comes with a fine that has always been the rule under the principal of being judged by “a jury of your peers.”

Feeling the wrath of Rennie but signing on to give universal voting a legislative hearing anyway are Hamden State Reps Josh Elliot (D-88) and Mike D’Agostino (D-91), Middletown State Rep. Brandon Chafee (D-33), Waterbury State Rep. Geraldo Reyes, Jr., Easton State Rep Anne Hughes (D-135) and East Windsor State Senator Saud Anwar (D-3). Similar legislation has been filed in Washington state and U.S. Rep. John Larson (CT-1) has added a friendly voice for universal voting in his advocacy of the For The People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act that have been stalled in the Congress.

It’s unlikely that “compulsory” or “universal” voting will advance beyond a legislative hearing in 2023. It raises too many questions about enforcement and costs, not to mention deeply held views that citizens have both a right and a right not to vote. The GAE also has more pressing election bills to consider: early voting, no-excuse absentee voting and rank-choice voting all of which are on the docket for hearings and reports to the full General Assembly.

But by introducing the controversial idea of making voting compulsory just like jury duty, State Rep. Elliot and allies may be easing the way for what Rapoport and Dionne call “gateway reforms” that are short of required voting — early voting, vote by mail, Election Day holidays, adequate funding of election administration and safeguards against “overly aggressive” purging that has been a means of exclusion and suppression by local election officials. These are reachable steps to boost access, turnouts and restore civic engagement at a time of disengagement and restrictive voting laws coming out of the Trump-influenced Republican Party.

NB Politicus

CT Is Finally Set To Join 46 Other States With Early Voting: Public Hearing Wednesday 2/22

One of the big items for the General Assembly’s Government Administration and Elections (GAE) Committee in 2023 is implementing the state constitutional amendment that finally will allow early voting in the state.

On Wednesday, February 22nd the GAE will hear three bills that would provide 10 days, 14 days or 18 days to vote early ahead of this year’s November 7th local elections.

Last November “Blue” Connecticut finally got rid of an 18th century constitutional clause that made showing up at the polls mandatory with few exceptions. Now comes the decision by the legislature on how many days before E-Day will be established to vote early aside from the absentee vote option.

Based on 60 percent voter support in last November’s referendum and the backing of a Democratic majority early voting is now a lock for Connecticut to catch up with 46 other states in opening up polling places at designated locations in each community.

GAE Members will hear lots of testimony at Wednesday’s hearing to expedite passage of a bill that will extend early voting a minimum of 10 days and up to 18 days. In testimony already submitted Win Heimer, representing the CT Alliance for Retired Americans says: “Connecticut has some of the most restrictive voter laws in the nation and unlike many of its neighbors in New England, has been slow to adopt changes designed to make voting easier, particularly for working people, the
elderly and communities of color.”

While state election law needs to be amended early voting in New Britain will likely be set up in the same way Election Day Registration (EDR) is handled when eligible residents register and vote at New Britain City Hall.

Proponents, including the League of Women Voters of Connecticut and Connecticut Common Cause, are also advocating for other voter access implementers in 2023, including another constitutional amendment to go to ballots that will allow “No Excuse” absentee voting . The state currently allows absentee voting for limited reasons, an option that was extended in 2020 to all voters because of the pandemic risk. If approved a 2024 referendum will ask “Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to allow each voter to vote by absentee ballot?”

How Neighboring States Vote Early

State	Early Voting Begins	Early Voting Ends	Locations
Maine	In-person absentee voting available as soon as absentee ballots are ready (30-45 days before election)	Three business days before election, unless the voter has an acceptable excuse.	Municipal clerks’ offices
Massachusetts	Seventeen days before election for state biennial elections; 10 days before election for presidential or state primaries.	Four days before an election	Early voting sites, which includes the local election office. Additional locations may be provided at the discretion of the city or town registrar.
New York	Tenth day before election	Second day before an election	At least one early voting location for every full increment of 50,000 registered voters in each county, but not more than seven are required.
New Jersey	Ten days before the election, but in-person absentee voting begins forty-five days before election.	Sunday before election	Each county board of elections shall designate at least three and up to seven but not more than 10 based on the number of registered voters.

Source: National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/early-in-person-voting

Why Trump’s Party Rallies in New Britain

Mayor Stewart’s former campaign headquarters is one of 20 “RNC Community Centers” in the nation where “Stop The Steal” workshops are occurring

By John McNamara

Ronna McDaniel, the national Republican Party’s Chairperson and Donald Trump sycophant, made her way to New Britain this week to blast not one Democrat but all Democrats as favoring “greed, communism, and crazy. And that’s what they are for.” New Britain may be an unlikely town for the Republican Party to base its operations in blue Connecticut, but early this year Mayor Erin Stewart handed the keys to her West Main Street headquarters over to the Republican National Committee (RNC).

An RNC Center in New Britain is purportedly part of an urban strategy to help George Logan, a former state senator newly relocated to the 5th Congressional District (CD), defeat U.S. Rep Jahana Hayes (D-5) on November 8th. Large winning margins for the Democratic nominee in New Britain have kept the state’s most competitive CD blue ever since Chris Murphy toppled Nancy Johnson (R-6) in 2006. The RNC gambit here is to cut into that Democratic base with outreach to Hispanic and Black precincts in the cities. Like Hayes, Logan is an African American.

On Wednesday (September 14) McDaniel was touting Logan and U.S. Senate Nominee and Trump endorsed Leora Levy of Greenwich at the store front gathering of Republican officials that drew plenty of Connecticut media.

NB Politicus

“The Democrats do not care about our families, they do not care about our kids, they do not care because their priorities in Washington have done anything but help the American people and they do not care, but you know what? We do,” said McDaniel in shrill talking points on behalf of Republican candidates as reported by CT News Junkie.

Not to be seen at the rally, however, were Republican Gubernatorial Nominee Bob Stefanowski and Mayor Stewart, who obligingly cut the ribbon on the RNC Community Center in March but was no where near the place this week.

Stewart would have had a hard time standing next to McDaniel as McDaniel accused Democrats of not caring about our “families” and “kids”. Her administration is using the Biden Administration’s $56 million in local COVID funding as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a law that was enacted without a single Republican vote in the U.S. House. Stewart is announcing initiatives and projects with barely a mention that the money comes from the Democrats’ “Washington priorities” trashed by McDaniel, Logan and Levy on the campaign trail. Now the Inflation Reduction Act is on the way, also without a single Republican vote in Congress, with provisions on energy, climate and local aid that mayors are lining up for in a pandemic recovery.

Mayor Erin Stewart’s former campaign office is now RNC Community Center in New Britain (NB Politicus)

In state politics, Stewart doesn’t really owe Republicans anything for this election cycle. They have not been kind to the multi-term mayor in a Democratic city who pundits say would have cross-over appeal in a general election. Her cancelled gubernatorial run and primary loss for Lt Governor in 2018 showed the GOP base would never support her socially moderate views and weren’t interested in her “fiscally responsible” budgets that, Democratic critics say, rely heavily on borrowing to kick current obligations down the road.

It’s also possible that Stefanowski, who purchased the Republican nomination for a second time, snubbed Stewart even to be on a short list in picking a Lt. Governor candidate this year. With the Trump effect still in play, the party has moved further to the fringe on a woman’s right to choose, guns and the right to vote. Though Stewart is as partisan a Republican as there is in governing, it is not in her interest inside New Britain to be associated with the Republican Party at least for now. Her plentiful “Democrats for Stewart” lawn signs in municipal years confirm the unwritten rule that the label Republican shall never be used.

New Britain’s RNC Center, one of 20 around the country targeting Black and Hispanic voters, does not appear to be an operations center yet for turning blue to red in New Britain aside from some anecdotal reports of door-to-door activity in the city. The office has been largely shuttered save for a grand opening in March and this week’s rally. Ominously, it has been the site for the GOP’s “election security” training held out of the public eye. A “Learn how to become a poll watcher” workshop drew the ire of Democratic Party Chair Nancy Dinardo and Common Cause CT in July, a sure sign that even in Connecticut the “Stop the Steal” movement and false claims of 2020 vote fraud are being embraced by the CT GOP to the detriment of voter access and participation in 2022.

The Return of Tim Stewart: Former Mayor Chairs SBC As $50 Million School Project Begins

Former Mayor Tim Stewart is the new Chairperson of the School Building Committee, gaining reappointment by his daughter, Mayor Erin Stewart, just as the seven-member committee moves forward with expenditures on the $50 million major renovation at the Chamberlain Elementary School on the city’s East Side.

The former four-term Mayor resigned from the SBC and the Mattabassett District Commission in 2019 under pressure and at the behest of his daughter, over offensive, misogynestic social media posts that referred to Democratic U.S. representatives in Congress, including 5th District Rep. Jahana Hayes, as “bitches in heat.” The controversy also forced Stewart out of his job as President of the New Britain Chamber of Commerce. Stewart currently works as a commercial realtor. In 2017 Stewart came under fire for disparaging and racially charged remarks about the North Oak neighborhood, but he held on to his municipal appointments and Chamber job.

His return to the SBC comes after the Common Council on April 28th approved by a party-line vote a resolution to increase the powers of the SBC, designate the Mayor as the sole appointing authority and to diminish oversight by the Common Council and Board of Education.

The city is receiving a higher than usual 95 percent reimbursement for the Chamberlain school project for which a groundbreaking occurred August 10th. Representatives of Kaestle Boos Associates and Newfield Construction, the major contractors on the two-year project, were joined by Stewart administration officials. State Representative Bobby Sanchez (D-25), the House Chair of the Legislature’s Education Committee, led efforts to secure the state bonding for Chamberlain and previously worked to secure state financing of Smalley and Gaffney school projects. Neither Sanchez, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for Mayor in the September 14th Primary to run against Stewart, nor BOE members were reported as participants at the groundbreaking.

The revised ordinance , authored by Republican Caucus members Danny Salerno and Sharon Beloin-Saavadra, has drawn bipartisan protests. It gives the SBC absolute authority to “engage, select, and enter into or continue all necessary contracts with contractors, architects, landscape architects, or engineers.” Those powers also extend to hiring “construction representatives” on projects, positions that have been known to turn into lucrative patronage jobs. The ordinance retains board of education and common council approval of preliminary and final plans but everything in between, including change orders and expenditures in design/build and construction phases, is left up to the SBC.

News of Stewart’s low-key return to the SBC appeared on the August 18th agenda of the SBC in a terse statement: “Chairperson Fran Wolski stepped down and Tim Stewart is the new elected Chairman.” Last February SBC Chair Wolski announced her resignation as the Chair, according to the SBC committee minutes. According to the city’s website, Wolski remains a member with Stewart as Chair and Peter Smulski as Vice Chair. Other members include Robert Ames, Michael Cassella and Angelo D’Alfonso. Paul Salina, the Stewart-appointed Director of Support Services and a former school administrator, oversees the SBC for the city.

In his prior time on the SBC in 2016 Stewart with Wolski supported the selection of a troubled Bridgeport architectural firm with a less than stellar, litigious track record for the $53 million Smalley School project, a decision that was subsequently set aside when New Britain-based Kaestle Boos Associates challenged the selection process. State Senator Rick Lopes (D-6), then the 24th District State Representative, alerted the SBC to the problem but the committee chose the “beleaguered” Bridgeport firm anyway. That action resulted in delays and cost overruns on the Smalley project.

Relations between the Mayor’s office and the BOE, contentious over budget issues in most years, have become even more adversarial over the SBC’s move late last year to hire Ray Moore, a retired school facilities director and a colleague of Paul Salina, as a consultant or “construction representative” on the Chamberlain School project at a six-figure annualized salary. BOE President Merrill Gay, Vice Chair Nick Mercier and Dr. Violette Jimenez-Sims criticized the attempted hiring with “no request for proposals or bidding for this position,” asserting that the role could be filled with existing school staff to save money for other education needs. Intervention by the BOE’s attorney averted a full appointment of Moore at that time to the consultant post. Republican Mercier’s public opposition to hiring a consultant without BOE input and questioning the Stewart-controlled SBC also led to the Republican Town Committee’s ousting of Mercier in July for a nomination to a third term on the BOE. A longtime Republican activist and music teacher, Mercier will stand for re-election to the BOE as a petitioning candidate for his efforts at accountability on school construction issues.

By bringing back her father to now lead the SBC as another major school construction project starts, Mayor Stewart is doubling down on an adversarial relationship with the Board of Education and school officials which unfortunately is a centerpiece of her campaign for re-election.

At the same time the new School Building Committee ordinance provides fewer checks and balances by the Council and BOE in the spending of public dollars . That means public scrutiny and closer monitoring of the SBC (Monthly meetings occur the third Wednesday of the month at noon) is needed now more than it has ever been as the Chamberlain School project moves forward.

by John McNamara

School Building Committee Resolution Curtails Checks and Balances on School Construction Projects

By John McNamara

A controversial resolution that removes Common Council and Board of Education approval of all contracts and spending on school construction projects came back to the Common Council April 28th meeting and was approved on a party line vote.

The resolution, authored by Republican caucus members Daniel Salerno and Sharon Beloin-Saavedra and revised at the April 15th Consolidation Committee meeting, removes key language that requires that contracts and expenditures on multi-million dollar school projects are “subject to the approval of the board of education and common council.” Instead, it vests control of School Building Committee (SBC) appointments to the Mayor, leaving the Council with two members on the seven-member committee.

According to the new resolution the SBC will “engage, select, and enter into or continue all necessary contracts with contractors, architects, landscape architects, or engineers, and within the limits of the appropriations made by the council, this committee shall engage and fix the salary of one or more construction representatives.”

Salerno and Beloin-Saavedra, acting on behalf of Mayor Erin Stewart and willingly diminishing the Common Council’s role, cite mayoral powers in the City Charter granting appointment power for all “boards and commissions” to the Mayor as a justification for the sweeping changes that hand the purse strings and contracting over to the SBC for school renovations and construction. They say they are just cleaning up the language in accordance with the charter.

As if trying to obscure the intent of the resolution, the revised ordinance has a preamble that implies Common Council members would continue to have a say in SBC meetings and deliberations or, for that matter, any other board or commission using general ordinance language on the access any common council member has to go to a public meeting: “Alderpersons may attend any meetings. The members of the council, or any of them, may attend the regular, special, or other meetings of all boards, commissions, and agencies when, in their discretion, their presence would best serve the interests of the city.”

Unlike boards and commissions mandated by the City Charter, however, the School Building Committee is created by ordinance with purposes and conditions set by the Common Council in accordance with powers granted to the legislative branch (the Council). The mayoral powers justification for ending all BOE and Council oversight on school building projects is both exclusionary and unwise given the large amounts of taxpayer money involved on these projects which are heavily reimbursed by the state and its bonding authority. Most recently makeovers of the Smalley and Gaffney schools have cost upwards of $80 million.

Although the lion’s share of funding for any school construction comes from the state, Connecticut law is silent on local school building committees, their powers and composition, according to a legislative analysis on SBCs and school construction. What the analysis does say, however, is that boards of education are ultimately responsible and must “make a continuing study of the need for school facilities and of a long-term school building program.” State statutes do no specify how local school boards must carry out their responsibility for maintaining school buildings. Nothing either requires or allows a board to, or prevents it from, establishing a permanent committee to oversee school maintenance.”

The revised New Britain resolution makes the Superintendent of Schools an ex-officio member of the SBC which is to say the BOE’s representative is an observer without a vote.

Democratic Alderman at Large Chris Anderson opposed the revised ordinance asserting that it “consolidates power, reduces transparency and eliminates checks and balances.” He was joined by five other Democrats on the Council opposing the move to usurp Common Council and Board of Education authority over public monies they appropriate and are responsible for in the school district’s buildings.

A consequence of the new SBC resolution is that it contributes to a bigger divide between City Hall and the BOE. New Britain’s close to last ranking in how much the municipal government contributes to public schools is a perennial and contentious issue at budget time every year and this year is no exception. Politically, it serves the Mayor and her Council cohorts well to disparage the BOE by implying it wastes money as they engage in tax-cut demagoguery. During the Common Council’s discussion of the SBC resolution, for example, Alderwomen Beloin-Saavedra, a former BOE President, didn’t help BOE-City Hall cooperation. She disparagingly pointed to the BOE and school administration as the place where more oversight is needed,asking: “Who’s watching the henhouse over there?”

And as with most issues to come before the Council the nine members of the Republican caucus remained rubber stamps for Mayor Stewart, ceding absolute control over the school construction process and the opportunities it presents the city administration for patronage, favors and picking contractors.

Four Ways to Fight Racism in Your Town

Commentary courtesy of Otherwords.org

Spontaneous, peaceful protests have been occurring in New Britain over the murder of George Floyd and systemic police violence. A rare 15 to 0 Common Council vote declared “racism is a public health crisis.” The movement is ramping up the pressure for a Civilian Review Board and changes in city government that would emphasize more community policing and de-escalation tactics in law enforcement and more funding to education and neighborhood services.

This commentary by Gloria Oladipo, a Cornell University student, discusses activities to keep the momentum going.

By Gloria Oladipo June 24, 2020

For weeks since the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, protests have erupted across the globe. While demonstrations in larger cities have drawn the most attention in the U.S., smaller communities can be — and are — involved in the fight for racial justice.

From Medford, Oregon to Meridian, Mississippi, and many places beyond, peaceful protests have attracted hundreds. Even those in conservative, majority-white towns — some with active KKK chapters — have gathered to reject racism and violence.

It’s an encouraging sign. But not all communities have been able to hold gatherings, especially at the height of COVID-19. Thankfully, there are other ways to contribute to the fight for racial justice, even if protests have not reached your area.

1. Educate yourself.

The first step to being an effective ally is to educate yourself on racism, both structurally and in your community. A number of books are a great starting point. I recommend Freedom Is a Constant Struggle by Angela Davis and So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo.

If you prefer watching to reading, Netflix has a number of documentaries to help understand racism and its role in the United States, including 13th and When They See Us.

Don’t forget to learn about racism and police brutality in your own community. Despite the media’s depiction of police brutality as an issue impacting mainly cities, many rural communities and suburbs also suffer from disturbing examples of police brutality.

Keep track of events in the local news. Meet with your local sheriff and ask about police accountability measures. You have a right to live in a town where the police aren’t a threat to you and others.

2. Talk about racism at home.

One of the most impactful things that allies can do in the face of anti-Blackness is to discuss these topics at home, especially with racist people in your inner circles. Challenging racism inter-personally can help change the ideology of family and friends — or at least introduce a different perspective.

Educating your family and friends is the first step to creating new allies and fostering a more tolerant culture in your community.

3. Support racial justice organizations.

Organizations need resources to support activists on the ground, bail out protestors, and pay their bills. Funding is especially important for local organizations who may not have the same bandwidth as national organizations to raise money. For these small local groups, every dollar counts.

A simple Google search can produce thousands of results for local, smaller organizations in your area. If the internet is not accessible in your area, check local community boards. Often, groups will post flyers about events, opportunities for you to learn more about the work they do, and ways to donate to their efforts.

4. Support struggling people.

Many Black people are exhausted and vulnerable. Many need financial help. Whether suffering from COVID-19, job loss, the death of family members, or marginalization on account of their race or gender identity, direct donations can change their lives.

Finding people in need isn’t difficult. GoFundMe has hundreds of thousands of people asking for help with basic needs. Twitter houses similar campaigns, including threads with women looking for donations to escape abusive situations or in need of general financial help.

Or, go through your local church. Ask your pastor or church board members if they are currently looking for donations to help marginalized people. Your dollars can and will change lives.

Don’t let Black Lives Matter be a passing, catchy slogan. Wherever you live, be an active ally who challenges racism at every opportunity. Everyone is responsible to fight against racism, now and always.

Rosemary Klotz To Be Recognized With Award at Democratic Party Women’s Leadership Brunch September 22nd

Rosemary Klotz, an executive aide to two mayors and a volunteer for Democratic campaigns in New Britain for more than 30 years, will be honored September 22^nd at the state Democratic Party’s annual Women’s Leadership Brunch.

Klotz, a Democratic Town Committee (DTC) Trustee, leads the nomination committee and candidate recruitment for the town committee.

News of the award for Klotz drew praise from current and former elected officials.

24^th State Rep. Rick Lopes said Rosemary Klotz is “a truly deserving resident and citizen of our town and country. She not only brings hard work and passion but also thoughtfulness and clear thinking that always helps advance progressive movements forward.”

“I would say Rosemary always exhibits a high level of professionalism, tempered by compassion and principled decision making,” said former Commissioner and State Senator Don DeFronzo, who worked with Klotz during his mayoral administration from 1989 to 1993. “She is conscientious, thoughtful and considerate of varying opinions. I always valued her advice when mayor and for years after.”

Said Former Mayor and State Representative Tim O’Brien: “Rosemary has passionate and strong progressive values, while also being steadfast and level-headed in the work that needs to be done to win on those values. I was glad to work with her when I was Mayor, and I feel fortunate to have her has a friend.”

Democratic Town Chair Bill Shortell nominated Klotz for the state party’s women’s award.

Klotz follows three other New Britain Democratic women who previously received the state party leadership award, including Harriet Geragosian, Emma Pierce and Shirley Black. In addition to her public service career Klotz has been a workforce development and employment specialist in the New Britain area for the Human Resource Agency and Workforce Investment Act programs. She is a graduate of Central Connecticut State University.

The Women’s Leadership Brunch will be held Sunday, September 22 at the Aqua Turf Club, 556 Mulberry St, Plantsville. Doors open at 10:30. Tickets are $65 and may be purchased at the Connecticut Democrats website. Klotz will be recognized with nine other women from the state’s five congressional districts. Receiving the Governor Ella T. Grasso Leadership Award will be Secretary of the State Denise Merrill.

Former Senator Harper To Be Remembered at CCSU Thursday, June 14th

New Britain Democratic Town Committee

A public tribute to former State Senator Joseph H. Harper, Jr. will be held Thursday, June 14th from 6 to 8 p.m. at Central Connecticut State University’s Founders Hall.

Harper, a six-term 6th district state senator and Deputy State Treasurer, died May 20th at the age of 70.

Senator Harper, the Co-Chair of the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee during his senate terms, was instrumental in building state budgets, and bringing millions of dollars back to his hometown of New Britain. A former Alderman and mayoral aide in New Britain, Harper also served two terms in the State House of Representatives After retiring from the Senate, Harper continued public service and advocacy work as a Deputy State Treasurer, as a Vice President at Central Connecticut State University and most recently as the Vice President of Government Relations at The Hospital for Special Care (HSC). In 2006, Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the…

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City Taps Patton Brook Well For Water After Calling Off Bargain Basement Sale, Hiking Rates To Pay For MDC Water

By John McNamara

More than a year after the Stewart administration and Common Council sought to sell off the Patton Brook Well at an undervalued price of $1 million the unused well is replenishing the Shuttle Meadow reservoir.

unnamed-1 — *Patton Brook Well culvert near Shuttle Meadow Reservoir (Photo taken Sunday, November 5, 2017)*

Mayor Stewart and her Council majority authorized the sale in August 2016, seeking to give up the nearby water source that is part of New Britain’s coveted watershed land in the region. The Town of Southington, where the watershed parcel and pump station are located, was the prospective buyer. Previously New Britain shared Patton Brook with Southington at reasonable rates for decades but used its other sources for city residents.

In the her second attempt to jettison Patton Brook altogether, Mayor Stewart and her Common Council allies insisted that repairing the well for New Britain’s use would be too costly and that Patton Brook did not figure prominently in the city’s water reserve plan. The flow of water from Patton Brook through a culvert into the Shuttle Meadow Reservoir with little in the way of repairs and expense contradicts the Mayor’s assertions that the well could not be turned back on for New Britain without a major capital expense.

unnamed — *Water flows from Patton Brook Well into New Britain’s Shuttle Meadow Reservoir on Sunday, November 5th, 2017*

In winning an 11-4 Council vote for the sale of Patton Brook Well in the summer of 2016, Mayor Stewart accused opponents of “political posturing” and spreading “outright lies and unfortunate misinformation.” Said Stewart: “We are not selling the New Britain Water Co. and have absolutely no intentions of doing so. We are transferring ownership of a physical well that isn’t connected to the city’s water pipes and hasn’t been used by the city in decades. The Patton Brook well sits on a 0.61 acre parcel of land in Southington and is valued at around $61,000.”

Amid strong public opposition and an ongoing drought that forced the water department to hike rates to pay for $400,000 in Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) reserves this year, Stewart finally relented last April as officials were awaiting state approval of the sale.

Opponents of the well sale say the city administration became aware of a developing drought as early as December 2015, but took no appropriate action to conserve supplies nor warn residents as efforts to sell Patton Brook proceeded.

unnamed-3 — *Water from Patton Brook culvert may be flowing into Shuttle Meadow reservoir. Photo taken on Sunday, November 6, 2017*

In a related development the Connecticut General Assembly enacted legislation introduced by State Rep. Rick Lopes (D-24) requiring that municipalities or water departments to obtain an independent appraisal of public watershed before it can be sold.

In early October acting Water Director Ray Esponda told the New Britain Herald that water from Patton Brook can flow into the Shuttle Meadow Reservoir, but that it would take $1 million in repairs to allow the well’s water to reach other reservoirs in the city’s regional reservoir system.

Last month the city Water Department also contradicted Mayor Stewart’s $61,000 value, confirming that the well has a current capacity of at least one million gallons a day. Translated into consumer water rates the city would quickly obtain a return on a $1 million investment whether it leased the well’s water or needed it for use by city residents. Alternatively, funding from the Army Corps of Engineers could be pursued to add capacity to New Britain’s regional watershed and supply.

Numbers Don’t Back Mayor Stewart’s Claim That State Budget Caused City’s Negative Credit Rating

By John McNamara

Mayor Erin Stewart has blamed this year’s state budget crisis for the city’s negative credit rating in response to a November 2nd report of an “escalating” debt and her administration’s own budget that shows interest payments will cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars over the next four years.

“We were downgraded by Moody’s along with many other cities and towns across Connecticut as a result of the state budget crisis,” the two-term Republican told the New Britain Herald.

Democratic Mayoral Nominee Merrill Gay, citing double-digit tax increases and a debt load rising to “$75 million”, said Ms. Stewart is mismanaging the city’s finances. “Mayor Stewart’s poor financial planning will cost New Britain taxpayers,” Gay said. “New Britain needs real economic development without increasing the debt despite two tax increases.”

The state Legislature, dealing with deficits caused mainly by unfunded pension liabilities, finally adopted a biennial state budget at the end of October after a four-month stalemate.

While the protracted debate in Hartford created short-term uncertainty for cities and towns, New Britain will maintain state aid amounts it gets as an economically distressed community. In the current fiscal year that ends June 30, 2018, state aid will be a projected $101 million to pay for schools and government — the same as it received last year. In 2019 the city will be cut by $191,000 from 2017.

City and town officials, including Mayor Stewart, are correct that state government’s continuing fiscal problems can adversely impact local government finances. Moody’s Investor Services, however, did not cite state budget woes for New Britain’s latest downgrade in the municipal bond market. Instead the investors’ rating agency pointed to the city’s higher debt costs alluding to new deferments on short-term and capital bonding that will spike interest over the next five years or more. Whereas consumers and governments usually look to re-finance for lower interest rates the Stewart administration is doing the opposite, re-financing debt that will result in sharp interest rate increases in the near term.

Early this year the Stewart administration and the Common Council pushed the city’s debt further into the future after being told by bond counsel that interests rates would rise in the out years. The result was a short-term $6 million savings to be paid back with much higher interest after the current fiscal year ends.

New-Britain-Estimated-Debt-Service — Graphic shows New Britain’s escalating debt payments. (Source: Municipal Budget Book)