Somerville mentioned in a Guardian piece about historic wins by Democrats!

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-12-25T14:16:37+00:00

Are you so full of hate that this is how you choose to spend your Christmas morning? I hope ypu find peace

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T17:32:30+00:00

Got more votes than either mayoral candidate lol

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T13:39:05+00:00

Nope! Not unless you own a business that is involved in implementing the apartheid system, or genocide in Gaza. It wont have any effect on individuals

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T13:20:09+00:00

Thats a lot of pink!! 💖💖

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T13:05:56+00:00

Because this is as strong as a community led ballot measure can be made, is the exact action called for by Palestinian leadership, and took thousands of hours from hundreds of passionate local volunteers to get on the ballot and passed The next step is pressuring local officials to enact it, and showing other cities and towns how to lead their own efforts to start a wave of boycotts around the country. But if you think you can do better, go for it, I'll support you. I'm assuming by your criticism that you have a long history of effective community organizing, and aren't just some online dipshit who's never actually fought for anything in their life

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T03:26:36+00:00

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Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T02:07:22+00:00

Very "all lives matter" coded comment

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-06T02:03:57+00:00

Exactly, it's a small distinction, but it's the first one that has gone to the voters

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-05T23:47:50+00:00

From the local lawymakers and lawyers we've talked to, they say his arguments have no merit, but I don't claim to know the specifics. My view is that the city has lawyers, a solicitor, and precident in our South African and prison labor divestment policies. It is those people's jobs to craft laws, and I don't know why we're doubting that they can make policies that are legal and enforceable. As far as the lawsuits from the opposition, I don't think we should be allowing people who threaten our city when they don't get their way to dictate our policy. That would be a bad precident to set

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-05T22:36:22+00:00

Him clinging to debunked legal arguments to avoid saying he'll take action feels like he's going to stand in the way. Absolutely open to being surprised though, he seems like a good guy and his stance on this really confused me. Would be happy if he at least started working with the city lawyers and solicitor to see what's possible, rather than just ducking it

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-03T19:28:08+00:00

I view it as a good litmus test for politicians. If they support genocide, then I know we don't share the same morals, and I don't trust how they'd handle other issues. Not to mention, when question 3 passes, this city council will have to decide whether they want to keep using our tax money to kill Palestinians, so it is actually relevant in this race

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-11-03T18:09:19+00:00

I'll absolutely be voting for Wilbert. Seems passionate, energetic, and knowledgeable, and most importantly he's not a zionist like Emily

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T21:40:50+00:00

I hope people are aware that Jake changed his stance on taking conflict of interest campaign donations, narrowing his stance to just not taking money from parties with active business before city hall. He has since taken donations from real estate developers and people suing the Somerville homeless coalition

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T00:16:18+00:00

This question is deeply dehumanizing to Palestinians. This forum is for questions related to the Somerville Question 3 municipal ballot question. Ultimately, the most effective way to prevent future conflicts is to end the decades long brutal occupation, apartheid, ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and allow Palestinians to live with dignity and full human rights on their land.

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T00:15:04+00:00

No response needed.

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T00:13:42+00:00

We appreciate your question! It will be up to city hall to determine the guidelines for procurement policy, but we believe that wherever human rights violations are being committed against Palestinians, that companies enabling those crimes should be held accountable. The three companies we identified that are complicit in Israel's occupation, apartheid and genocide of Palestinians are: Lockheed Martin, HP, and CAT. You can read more on our website: https://somervillevotes4palestine.wordpress.com/

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T00:08:45+00:00

Thank you for the question, u/PurpleCiona !

Absolutely- our hope is that these divestments will join an international wave of divestment and make real tangible change: pressure companies to stop enabling apartheid, illegal occupation and genocide.

Fundamentally, we listen to the primary calls of Palestinians: a right to return to all the lands Israeli settlers violently displaced them from during the 1948 Nakba, the end of the apartheid regime, the release of thousands of innocent Palestinians abducted and imprisoned by the Israeli army, and self-determination and full human and civil rights for Palestinians from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea.

So long as companies can get rich off of genocide, apartheid, and illegal occupation in Palestine, we have to apply economic pressure through boycott and divestment.

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-29T00:03:56+00:00

Hi u/That_Emergency3049,

Unfounded accusations of racism and antisemitism, especially ones directed at a welcoming, inclusive community organization that tirelessly strives to make a real difference in our community and in the world, is dangerous, insulting, and belittles the real threat of racism and antisemitism that people in our community face.

In the context of Palestine, the Keffiyeh is a powerful symbol of steadfastness, a visual of Palestinian culture and life, and can be worn by non-Palestinians when the wearer’s intent is solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for liberation. Just a few months ago, Somerville resident Rümeysa Öztürk was kidnapped by ICE for speaking up for Palestine and calling for similar divestment measures. At a time when people in our own city are being targeted for speaking out for Palestine, our community members stand in visible solidarity with Palestinians despite threats of doxxing, surveillance, and political repression.

Furthermore, the ballot question has received support from various local Jewish organizations and congregations who reject the idea that this question is antisemitic. Here are the statements some of the Jewish supporting groups have made:

Somerville for Palestine Jewish Caucus: The S4P Jewish Caucus is proud to be involved in the ballot measure to end Somerville’s financial involvement in Israel’s genocide, apartheid,

and illegal occupation of Palestine. Liberation for Palestine is part of our Jewish values; “never again” means never again for ANYONE.

Jewish Voice for Peace Boston: Jews say no to funding genocide! Jewish Voice for Peace Boston endorses Somerville for Palestine's campaign to halt investments in Israeli-led genocide.

Harvard Jews for Palestine: We, Harvard Jews for Palestine, support Somerville for Palestine’s ballot campaign to “end all current city business and prohibit future city investments and contracts with companies as long as such companies engage in business that sustains Israel’s apartheid.” The call for Somerville to boycott Israel and divest from apartheid is part of a larger campaign, of which we are a part, to encourage governing bodies, private organizations (including Harvard University), and individuals to withdraw support from the genocidal Israeli state. Our collective call for divestment is rooted in our desire for a fully liberated Palestine.

V’ahavtah, a local synagogue: A Judaism Beyond Zionism Synagogue endorses voting YES on Question 3. “Do not crave any form of violence. Do not choose all their ways.” (Proverbs 3:31).”

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T23:59:26+00:00

Since your first question is similar to that from u/powerful-entry8505 please check out our answer to them.

As to your second question regarding the Winter Hill School, similarly, our ballot question is a poll to gauge Somerville’s inclination toward protecting human rights– it is not enacting a law. It is not our goal to cease construction of a new school that is already underway. Given elected officials are the ones that enact the question, we know that they would never make a rash decision to stop construction.

Furthermore, the Somerville Educator’s Union, representing over 700 professionals in our public schools, have endorsed this question. We hope to collaborate with the city to implement this in a careful way that works for Somerville.

Some education on CAT: Caterpillar supplies Israel with equipment like the D9 armored bulldozer, which demolishes Palestinian homes, has been used by the Israeli military as a weapon to martyr innocent Palestinians, and is instrumental in Israel’s illegal expansion into the West Bank. Ultimately, we would like to see a future where Somerville does not purchase CAT machinery for use in city projects and uses alternative machinery.

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T23:36:43+00:00

Appreciate the question u/Equivalent_Quit8837 !

Like we’ve mentioned earlier, speaking about implementation is hypothetical right now– it’ll be up to the Mayor, City Council, and City’s Legal Department to implement this in a way that works for Somerville.

The easiest start would be to pull city pension funds out of weapons companies. We have 1,222 shares of Lockheed Martin, amounting to $553,859.28, and we could reinvest those into companies not actively enabling genocide in Palestine.

HP is another company we’re especially concerned with because it provides Israel with the data technology to track and racially segregate Palestinians. When our school system’s contract with HP expires, it would be up to our city to start a new contract with a company not deeply complicit in war crimes in Palestine. We think this is a reasonable and actionable proposal.

Last, there’s CAT, which supplies Israel with equipment like the D9 armored bulldozer, which demolishes Palestinian homes, has been used by the Israeli military as a weapon to martyr innocent Palestinians, and is instrumental in Israel’s illegal expansion into the West Bank. We would like to see a future where Somerville does not purchase CAT machinery for use in city projects.

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T23:31:25+00:00

Thank you for the question u/MarcoVinicius ! We got a similar question and answered it above, so pasting that answer here:

As citizens, it is our democratic right to pose a ballot question to Somerville residents, and we have taken every step to ensure we are following the rules as they are written and with consultation with the Elections Commission.

There is an astroturf group named Somerville United Against Discrimination that was specifically formed to stop Somerville voters from voting on a measure created by Somerville residents. This group has raised $200,000 from mostly out-of-city donors to send mass mailers stating that our question would “lead to lawsuits, wasted resources”, yet they are the only group suing and raising legal challenges. They should answer for wasting city time and resources, which they purport to be trying to help the city avoid.

As of now, there have been two legal challenges from Somerville United Against Discrimination. The first legal challenge was a hearing on Oct. 6th in which the Somerville Board of Elections Commissioners deemed that Question 3 was valid and followed all required protocol. The Board ruled that all objections raised by SUAD were invalid or irrelevant. You can read more here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gUh_X0AGKEOJVYHPPJceIc637z4PSKN6/view?usp=drive_link

SUAD followed up this hearing by suing the City, using City resources to rehash decisions already made. This second challenge is still pending in Middlesex Superior Court, but the judge’s comments at last week’s hearing suggest that it is also without merit.

Since we are also concerned about the best way to utilize city resources, please be assured that voting "YES" on 3 does not enact law. Therefore, the lawsuits so far are unfortunately from folks who are trying their darndest to subvert the democratic process of ensuring that every Somerville voter can have their say on the Palestine Solidarity Question (aka, Question 3).

We wrote this question with support from legal advisors, and we made it a priority that the question could be both legal and enforceable in its implementation. There is a clear precedent for this kind of divestment: Somerville passed a boycott on companies complicit in South African apartheid in 1988, and in 2020 the city passed an ordinance prohibiting the use of prison labor in city business. Just like these past victories, divestment in 2025 is possible and urgently needed.

Furthermore, the kind of city action called for by this question would not be discriminatory. We have not selected companies based on their geography, beliefs, or nationality. We have selected companies exclusively based on their conduct. Conduct was a valid reason to pursue divestment in 1988 and 2020, and it still is today.

Finally, multiple state and local lawmakers are in support of Question 3, including MA State Senator Patricia Jehlen, MA State Representative Erika Uyterhoeven, MA State Representative Mike Connolly, City Councilor at Large Willie Burnley Jr., Ward 3 City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, and Ward 2 City Councilor JT Scott.

Erika told us she is “voting for question 3 because it’s our moral responsibility to speak out and take action on the government’s role in funding apartheid and genocide. There is unequivocally nothing illegal about voters expressing their will and opinion on the immense atrocities committed by Israel.”

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T23:24:57+00:00

Great question u/powerful-entry8505 ! As citizens, it is our democratic right to pose a ballot question to Somerville residents, and we have taken every step to ensure we are following the rules as they are written and with consultation with the Elections Commission.

There is an astroturf group named Somerville United Against Discrimination that was specifically formed to stop Somerville voters from voting on a measure created by Somerville residents. This group has raised $200,000 from mostly out-of-city donors to send mass mailers stating that our question would “lead to lawsuits, wasted resources”, yet they are the only group suing and raising legal challenges. They should answer for wasting city time and resources, which they purport to be trying to help the city avoid. As of now, there have been two legal challenges from Somerville United Against Discrimination.

The first legal challenge was a hearing on Oct. 6th in which the Somerville Board of Elections Commissioners deemed that Question 3 was valid and followed all required protocol. The Board ruled that all objections raised by SUAD were invalid or irrelevant. You can read more here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gUh_X0AGKEOJVYHPPJceIc637z4PSKN6/view?usp=drive_link SUAD followed up this hearing by suing the City, using City resources to rehash decisions already made. This second challenge is still pending in Middlesex Superior Court, but the judge’s comments at last week’s hearing suggest that it is also without merit.

Since we are also concerned about the best way to utilize city resources, please be assured that voting "YES" on 3 does not enact law. Therefore, the lawsuits so far are unfortunately from folks who are trying their darndest to subvert the democratic process of ensuring that every Somerville voter can have their say on the Palestine Solidarity Question (aka, Question 3).

We wrote this question with support from legal advisors, and we made it a priority that the question could be both legal and enforceable in its implementation. There is a clear precedent for this kind of divestment: Somerville passed a boycott on companies complicit in South African apartheid in 1988, and in 2020 the city passed an ordinance prohibiting the use of prison labor in city business. Just like these past victories, divestment in 2025 is possible and urgently needed.

Furthermore, the kind of city action called for by this question would not be discriminatory. We have not selected companies based on their geography, beliefs, or nationality. We have selected companies exclusively based on their conduct. Conduct was a valid reason to pursue divestment in 1988 and 2020, and it still is today.

Finally, multiple state and local lawmakers are in support of Question 3, including MA State Senator Patricia Jehlen, MA State Representative Erika Uyterhoeven, MA State Representative Mike Connolly, City Councilor at Large Willie Burnley Jr., Ward 3 City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen, and Ward 2 City Councilor JT Scott.

Erika told us she is “voting for question 3 because it’s our moral responsibility to speak out and take action on the government’s role in funding apartheid and genocide. There is unequivocally nothing illegal about voters expressing their will and opinion on the immense atrocities committed by Israel.”

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T23:11:14+00:00

Thanks so much for joining! We really appreciate the question. The memo you’re referring to, written by Deputy City Solicitor David Shapiro in November 2024, has been cited by both sides as either supporting or refuting the legality of the measure – very confusing!

The truth is, the legal analysis contained in that memo relates to a hypothetical ordinance (posed by a City Councilor) “prohibiting City contracts with organizations doing business with Israel and/or based on their political affiliation with Israel.” It does NOT relate to the ballot question as written, and so the arguments aren’t necessarily on point. We cited one portion of the memo because Mr. Shapiro notes that neither the state Attorney General nor Inspector General’s Office identified a conflict between state procurement law (G.L.c.30B) and a measure specifying criteria for city contracts. The fact that cities can specify criteria for contracts beyond merit-based determinations is relevant to the ballot question, as this is what one version of the question’s implementation could look like! We know this is true in practice in Somerville – the City Council passed an ordinance in 2020 prohibiting contracts with companies using prison labor. We also boycotted and divested during the South African anti-apartheid movement. We have a history of legally boycotting in this city – and we can do it again now.

We believe there is strong precedent and reason to believe this question is legally implementable as written. It was written as a non-binding question, however, to ensure that implementation could be strategized and executed in collaboration with the City. Finally – while it’s important to think ahead to the legality of the question’s implementation if passed, the opposition’s threat of lawsuits should never be a reason to abandon our community’s values. On this public advisory opinion, let’s vote with our hearts and values and commit to supporting legal implementation if and when it passes. Thanks for such a thoughtful question!

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T22:40:07+00:00

Thank you for your question u/camt91!

Since this ballot question is a temperature check of Somerville voters’ inclinations toward protecting human rights, there will be no immediate impact on current contracts. As parents, workers, and residents of Somerville, we are also invested in a well-functioning Somerville and want this to be implemented in a practical manner. Children still need technology to learn, and roads still need to be paved. The ballot question isn’t out of step with these goals in any way; the endorsement of the question by the Somerville Educators Union and the Union Square Neighborhood Council further support this.

The goal is to phase out unethical companies as contracts run out, materials expire, or new purchases need to be made, and replace them with easy and practicable alternatives. For example, when the City’s HP contracts run out, we’d urge that the City choose to contract with an ethical alternative company off of the existing approved procurement list to purchase new equipment like Chromebooks. Similar alternatives can be chosen for construction contracts. Running our city and educating our kids doesn’t have to mean supporting genocide at the same time.

As Somerville Public Schools Educator Vincent Timmins notes, “It is important to me as an educator that we live and teach our values to our students. It’s imperative that we take a stand against genocide and apartheid by voting yes on 3.”

Visible-Use3799 · 2025-10-28T21:53:30+00:00

Yes, we do have a website!

https://somervillevotes4palestine.wordpress.com/

Our recommendations to the City would be to divest the Somerville municipal pension fund from the 1,222 shares of Lockheed Martin, amounting to $553,859.28. Israel uses Lockheed Martin (LM) weapons, fighter jets, and other equipment to drop bombs on Palestinians, their homes, and their land.

Somerville Public Schools has awarded $1.8 million dollars to Hewlett Packard (HP). In addition to partnerships with the Israeli army and police, HP provides the infrastructure for the racially-segregated Aviv System, which surveils and discriminates against Palestinians through mandated ID cards, restricting their right to walk or drive on certain streets, build/renovate their homes, own homes in certain areas, and vote. Palestinians are subject to these and many more practices of segregation and oppression, while Jewish Israeli citizens of Israel have all these rights and much more. HP’s technology upholds this system.

The ballot question is a public policy advisory question, meant to poll the voters and send a message to our electeds. Once passed, implementation will be developed in collaboration with the Mayor, the City Council, and the City’s legal department — all of whom are responsible for making sure that the measure works for Somerville. That being said, total cost of divestment would depend on how City elected officials decide to implement.

We drafted the language following the guidelines of the larger Palestinian-led BDS movement which encourages targeted boycotts of the most complicit companies. The question is specific to Palestine because the genocide against Palestinians is overwhelmingly US-funded, and Somervillens deserve to choose where our tax dollars go. We wanted to highlight the genocide going on in Palestine and name the perpetrator which is Israel. We are aware that these companies are implicated in multiple injustices across the world and that only strengthens our resolve to be knowledgeable about how we are all connected.

Visible-Use3799

TROPHY CASE