City Voices

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Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Looking at a press release from the Worcester Arts Council Tuesday about grant recipients, something near the bottom of the email caught my eye: There was a list of the current members of the WAC, followed by the sentence, “There is one open seat on the Council.”

That struck me as a great way for people to get involved in local arts. Sure, it’s not a glamorous job, but it’s a necessary one, especially if you’re from a district or neighborhood where people feel they either haven’t benefitted from the city’s public art mania, or hasn’t had a voice in how and where it occurs.

Then, it occurred to me that there were probably seats open on a few other boards and committees, so after being pointed to the right part of the website by Jeannie Michelson, principle staff assistant to the city manager — http:// www.worcesterma.gov/ boards-commissions, then scroll down and click on “Current Vacancies” — I learned that there are actually 35 seats

“Culture is the foundation of education, of sustainable governance. It provides perspective. It has a positive effect on the community, as it nurtures a sense of belonging.” TRUTHSEEKER08

Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

My name is Vanessa, and I am the co-founder and executive director of a cultural nonprofit organization called Guardians of Traditions.

Culture is the foundation of education, of sustainable governance. It provides perspective. It has a positive effect on the community, as it nurtures a sense of belonging, while also reinforcing our identity, which in turns strengthens community participation. Worcester’s greatest asset is its diversity, its people. You see, I’m an immigrant from Dominican Republic; my first time driving around town, specifically the Main Street area, I was amazed by the sounds that reminded me of my home country, yet I still craved a deeper connection to what was familiar to me, and that’s why I co-founded Guardians of Traditions.

During an event about Bachata music and its connection to African-Americans that we presented to the students of South High, many students voluntarily came to the stage to dance with us. At one point, one of them gave me a hug and told me, “I had no idea my people was so important in your culture!” That moment had such a lasting impression on me. It reminded me that where

Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Editor’s Note: Worcester comedian Shaun Connolly provides readers bad advice in his brand-new weekly column. Send your questions to woocomedyweek@gmail.com.

DEAR SHAUN: Recently I posted a photograph of myself on social media; something I rarely do. A family member remarked that I look terrible in the photograph. When I replied that I thought it was a cute picture, they said, “Take a better look at it.” This is an ongoing issue. How can I best handle it without blocking them? – Not So Photogenic

NOT SO: This is obviously rude, unnecessary, and trolllike behavior. You just said “family member” without making a distinction so I will give you some scenarios for each ring of hell, I mean family member-type. If this is your sibling you are legally within your rights to drive to their house, knock on their door and challenge them to a physical contest that you know you are better at than they are (i.e. fist fight, shrimp eating, etc.). If this is a parent you can send them memes of Minions from “Despicable Me” calling THEM ugly but in like sparkle font and their dumb boomer brain will see it and think its a compliment. If this is an uncle or aunt, they are no longer your family member. Get that White-Out out and remove their name from your tree. Call your cousins and say how sorry you are that they are orphans now. If this is your family dog or cat then welcome to our new reality. Our pets are sentient and will soon laugh at GIFs of us playing the piano.

DEAR SHAUN: I have a snoopy, busy-body neighbor who sneaks onto our property, peeps in our windows and is a general nuisance. We posted the property but unless there’s snow and he realizes he’s leaving tracks, he keeps on coming around. We know because we see him on our cameras. Any creative ideas for keeping him in his own yard? – Not Ready to Move

NOT READY: First, offer him tea or a beer or whatever they’d like. Sit down with a smile and ask him how his day is. Ask him how his week and month are, ask him about his life. Ask him about his family, his hobbies, his job, what he had for dinner, where he went on vacation as a child, what family’s pet’s name is, and all about his favorite sports teams, movies, TV shows and bands. After every single answer, respond with, “I already knew that.” Then when he catches on that you’re being a maniac to have a conversation with, he’ll say something like, “Hey, what gives?” And you’ll go, “Sorry, I’ve just been inside your house so much I feel like I already know you.” And then when he is like, “Uhhhh …” You can then say, “jk, lol not really that would be insane, but thank you for all of that personal information, I have so much it’s like I could steal your identity.” And then he’ll be like, “Drat, some of that stuff I said would be clues for my passwords and security questions … wait, why did I say that out loud?” After that, I bet he’d probably not want to snoop around anymore.

Worcester comedian Shaun Connolly looks at how to deal with nosy neighbors.

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there’s roots, there’s power. It made me see that while Worcester is very diverse and culturally rich, we needed to do better at elevating the voices of the marginalized and stereotyped. It made me determined to show that it is possible to retain our identity and still be part of the community; that an engaged community is a city that thrives.

At the end of the day, what makes us different shouldn’t really matter. Can we accept the differences and move on? Can I be myself and still be accepted? For me, it was writing about my experience being Latina, about coming from a country many think it only has baseball players and drug dealers; I wanted to tell everyone about the rich culture we have; I wanted to tell everyone that we have the first city of the Americas (yes, America is a continent, not a country); I wanted to tell everyone that we have the first university, first hospital, first courthouse and that we have proudly been celebrating carnival since the 1500s. I also wanted to tell everyone that even though I come from an island, I had a lot of things in common with everyone else, but a lot of times we focus too much on the differences. So, next time you see someone who looks different from you, talk to them, ask them where they’re from and tell them about yourself. You’ll be surprised at how much you have in common.

Vanessa Joga is a native of the Dominican Republic who has lived in Worcester for 8 years, where she founded a cultural nonprofit organization called Guardians of Traditions.

Worcester City Hall, the Worcester Common and Front Street are seen from the top of 507 Main St. RICK CINCLAIR/T&G STAFF

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currently open on city boards and committees at the time of this writing.

We’re not even talking obscure committees. We’re talking things that people in Worcester gripe about all the time: The brand-new Affordable Housing Trust Fund Board of Trustees has six seats open, and that’s about as hot a topic in town as anything that’s not putting a ceiling on the number of gourmet doughnut vendors. The Cable Television Advisory Committee needs three members: One particularly from District 4, one from District 3, and one from Districts 1, 2, 3 or 4. (There are, evidently, enough from District 5.) This is a big one, too, because the city is renegotiating its cable contract, and goodness knows people aren’t shy about expressing their opinions on that.

The brand-new Green Worcester Advisory Committee is currently looking to fill all seven seats, and there are seats open on the Accessibility Advisory Commission, the Citizen Advisory Council, the Community Development Advisory Committee, the Conservation Commission, the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee, the Historical Commission, the Off-Street Parking Board, the Planning Board, the Status of Women Advisory Committee and the ever-popular Zoning Board of Appeals.

This doesn’t even include newly created boards which will soon need to be filled, including the Urban Forestry Commission and the Latino Advisory Commission. A lot of the committees need representatives from particular districts, with representatives from Districts 3 and 4 being the most needed for many seats. And while minority representation on the committees has improved greatly over the years — from comprising 13% of the membership in 2003, to 28% now, according to data provided by the city manager’s office — there’s always room for improvement.

So, you might be wondering: How does this work? Well, first off, you apply online at the aforementioned web page. Then, you’re invited to a meeting of the Citizen Advisory Council, which votes on whether to accept your nomination. Then, Michelson and a liaison from the committee in question sit down with you and talk about what the committee does and what’s expected of its members. Then, it goes to the city manager, who decides whether he wants to appoint you.

“Wait!” you say. “Ed Augustus Jr. makes the final choice!?!? I said mean things about him on Twitter! I’ll never get through!” You might think that, but of 103 applications in 2021, 25 didn’t show at their CAC meeting, according to demographics provided by the city manager’s office. Of the 78 remaining, all but three were accepted. And I really, really want to know what they said on Twitter to get denied, because honestly, it’s kind of hard. There was no data handy, but conflicts of interest seemed to be the most compelling reason to turn someone down. Evidently, Augustus does not read Twitter. Which is probably for the best.

In all seriousness, this might not have the cache of sounding off at a City Council meeting or the drama of a protest, but it’s a place where just about anyone can make a real difference. It’s the grunt work of civic engagement, but it’s the place where an everyday voice can actually shift the tides a bit, and that’s something that should be valued.