All out for national day of mourning!
The 56th National Day of Mourning will be commemorated on Nov. 27, in Plymouth, MA. on so-called “Thanksgiving Thursday.”
Since 1970, hundreds of Native people and non-Native allies have gathered annually in Plymouth on U.S. Thanksgiving Day. This year, in addition to the live program in Plymouth, the event will be livestreamed on hate5six’s YouTube channel starting at 12 p.m.
The commemoration begins and ends with a prayer ceremony, and participants will listen to speeches and march through the streets of Plymouth. While only Indigenous people are invited to speak, non-Native allies are encouraged to attend.
“Native people have no reason to celebrate the arrival of the Pilgrims. We want to educate people about the true origins of the first Thanksgiving, which were far bloodier than the Thanksgiving myth of happy Pilgrims and Indians,” said United American Indians of New England co-leader Kisha James.
“Many people still don’t realize that the
first official day of ‘Thanksgiving’ was declared in Massachusetts in 1637 by Puritan Governor Winthrop to celebrate the massacre of over 700 Pequot men, women, and children on the banks of the Mystic River in Connecticut. Wampanoag and other Indigenous people have certainly not lived happily ever after since the arrival of the Pilgrims. To us, Thanksgiving is a Day of Mourning, because we remember the millions of our ancestors who were murdered by the Pilgrims and subsequent generations of settlers. It is a time when we and many Indigenous people around the country say, ‘No Thanks, No Giving.’»
James shared that much of the day will also be devoted to speaking about contemporary Indigenous issues.
“More than 400 years after the arrival of the Mayflower, Indigenous people are still denied basic human rights and full control of their own homelands. Change is long past due. We are still facing many of the issues that our elders talked about in 1970 at the first National Day of Mourning. We call on non-Native people to listen to Indigenous voices, especially about how to address the climate crisis, and to join us in trying to stop the continued destruction of our
homelands and waterways by greedy corporations. Native lands must be returned to our control in order to ensure a future for all of life on earth.”
UAINE co-leader Mahtowin Munro added, “From Peru to British Columbia, from Boston to Gaza, Indigenous peoples are defending their sovereignty and insisting that nothing should happen on their lands without their freely given consent. Indigenous solidarity and resistance are international. We stand in solidarity with all the Indigenous nations opposing pipelines, mines, megadams, and other destructive projects. I’m also sure that many of those in attendance will support the call of millions around the world to end the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Now more than ever, we all need to join together in solidarity.”
For further information:
Email: info@uaine.org
Website: www.uaine.org
Twitter, Bluesky & Insta: UAINE@ mahtowin1
Transportation information and many other details can be found at the facebook event: https://www.facebook. com/events/1918990738650146 and on the UAINE facebook group.
UNITED AMERICAN INDIANS OF NEW ENGLAND (UAINE)
COLLABORATORS IN ARMS
Tomo Singh and Sam Lê Shave prove what artists in dialogue can build together
My companions and I waited outside the studio building, wondering if we’d lollygagged a little too aimlessly on a warm late spring Friday evening, on June 6th, too late to catch a duo show pulled together by local luminaries (and friends/acquaintances to the waiting party) Tomo Singh and Sam Lê Shave.
I knew Singh, knew of Lê Shave, and hoped I’d be able to see Singh’s work up on a white wall. Friends of our friends emerged from the studio building, greeting us warmly and letting us know that Singh would be down soon to bring us up into the belly of SoWa’s artist gallery/studio South End behemoth.
While we’d missed the show’s opening, we still were able to see the pieces themselves— mostly painted canvases with some mixed media and textile work, which felt similar but not congruent between the two of them, informed by street art, and before that, by graffiti.
Both Singh and Lê Shave are from Dorchester, Upham’s Corner, and Fields Corner, respectively. Seeing their work in a studio space emblematic of gentrification, in a neighborhood accused of displacing local artists, felt important.
I came back the following weekend to take in the work once more and to have a real conversation with Lê Shave.
She’d been practicing what I considered a form of mutual aid, what she considered peerto-peer support, allowing her studio to double as a showing space for artists she was collaborating with. Singh was the latest artist to work with her in this capacity.
We spoke about how she uses text and language, obscuring from the viewer meanings only legible to her. She’d borrowed this tactic from graffiti writers. In front of one of Singh’s pieces, “Blood Money,” we talked about the futility and frustration that come with commodity fetishism and how Lê Shave struggles with attaching a price tag to her work. Behind us, another piece from Singh asked, “How much will you sacrifice?”
As a mixed-media artist, rapper, producer, engineer, fashion designer, and graffiti writer, there’s little Singh restricts himself from envisioning or making. He characterizes his artistic practice as often spontaneous and DIY, naturally inflected by his style and his approach to graffiti. His work is often representational and figurative, populated with characters, and sometimes references to other cultural tentpoles.
Sitting next to Lê Shave’s work, much more abstract,expressionist, vibrant, and drawn to curvilinear forms, the two fit, but it’s clear whose work is whose. Still, their collaboration was easy-going; sitting in on a work session where Singh and Lê Shave slipped into and out of conversation, working on a paint-on-fabric piece together, it became clear that their spontaneities and attitudes of co-creation allowed them to flow:
Both Lê Shave and Singh find it important to find space and place in their neighborhoods to produce work on city surfaces. Both artists have mural work up in Dorchester as part of “The Mural Project,” a two-day event where both artists invited friends and community to join them in painting boulevard medians with emblems and artefacts of culture.
Representing their city well comes naturally, if not easily, to the pair. Lê Shave was a mentee in Artists For Humanity’s teen program and organized with the Asian American Resource Workshop for three years. Singh is a mentor and educator with Teen Empowerment, connecting young people in the City of Boston with opportunities and showing them paths towards creative careers. Neither plan on leaving Boston, or even their neighborhoods, for greener pastures elsewhere; instead, both hope to make home into the greenest pasture it can be for artists who come after them.
This article is also being published in Guerrilla Magazine’s forthcoming digital zine, to be released this fall.
TRANSGENDER ANARCHO-COMMUNIST COFFEE
“Last year, Roxy Martinez-Dobbs had resigned herself to being unemployable. She was living off a small inheritance from her late stepmother and roasting coffee in a jury-rigged stove top VKP Popcorn Popper. Her beans were the stuff that turn a hobby into a cottage industry, but the city of Malden frowned on her home roasting operation. “I was kind of selling coffee like we used to sell weed,” she said. “Out of my backpack, on a need-to-know basis.”
Martinez-Dobbs sought out commissary kitchens and bakeries to legitimize her operation, but the larger commercial storefronts were not the types to lend space to a one-woman roasting operation. “So what’s like a bakery?” she asked herself. “I’ll try a brewery.” Cafe Reynard would find a home in the beer hall of Idle Hands Ales shortly thereafter.
Cafe Reynard strives to be the best bodega coffee on planet earth. “Not a rarefied kind of coffee that you have to be a Q-grader to appreciate. Not just drain grade sludge that you have to adulterate to hell and back in order to make it palatable. I want to make good black coffee,” Martinez-Dobbs explained.
The “trans-run, worker-owned queer cafe and coffee roaster,” has carved out a third space for queer folk and enjoyers of a quality brew to simply exist as their most authentic selves. “We take it as a sacred duty – nothing more and nothing less – to provide a refuge for the people who are being targeted by the rising fascists.”
Cafe Reynard is a thoroughly anti-fascist establishment organized under Martinez-Dobbs’ anarcho-communist ideals. There are no managers; major decisions are made democratically, and staff members are offered a buy-in to become worker-owners. Everyone brings a unique expertise and shares in the work that needs doing.
“We’re an anti-hustle culture, and that has a run-on effect. We make the money that we make for the work that we do, and we make sure that we get paid adequately for it,” she said. “ And so I think that makes us treat our customers differently.”
Running a café this way just made sense to Martinez-Dobbs. She has worked in cafes much of her adult life and considers lots of common practices unkind and contradictory to what she sees as the goals of a café – a place for people to be.
They offer free water and don’t even require a purchase to make use of their space. “You come here on a day when you have no money, when you need a place of refuge, and you need a place like this, and we just let you hang out,” Martinez-Dobbs explained. “You’re going to remember that and you’re going to come back here and you’re going to bring friends and those friends are going to tip well.”
Inclusion is part of Cafe Reynard’s brand, but it isn’t just a marketing tactic. They work with local partners, including Boston Magazine Best of Boston 2025 recipient Lionheart Confections, and source their beans through a direct-trade relationship with a fourth-generation coffee bean grower in Guatemala, Quality Coffees. They even have a cohort of regulars, complete with a small bike gang sometimes parked outside. On Sunday mornings, these regulars gather for what they call “Trans Coffee Church.”
“It’s kind of a meme that arose from some of our ‘congregants.’ Sunday just happens to be Big Donut Day,” explained Martinez-Dobbs. “This has become a space for trans people to congregate in, almost kind of like a Dionysian sense. There’s almost something of a sacrament in the coffee and the donut… And I’ll be damned if I don’t feel the Holy Spirit.”
Martinez-Dobbs identifies the cafe as a queer environment that doesn’t care for respectability politics. “We are not the LGBT-friendly space where you have to be on your best behavior or the most socially acceptable version of queer,” she said. “You can come here and you can be your most authentic self... Obviously, you have to keep it PG-13 for public space. But you can meow. People meow here.”
She said she hopes the café’s commitment to queerness puts off the right kind of people. “If you are the kind of person who is weirded out by fox ears, then we do not want you at our cafe,” she said. “It really is kind of like a candle in the window. It’s a signal for those who are in the know.”
“We don’t turn away straight people. But you’ve got to be cool with people meowing.”
Cafe Reynard is located at 89 Commercial St, Malden, MA. They are open Sundays, 8-11:30 p.m., and Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m.2:30 p.m. They can be found online at cafe-reynard.com or on Instagram @cafe_reynard.
---------------------------------- JACOB DOWNEY
MASS SOUNDS
Get stuck on glue
I’m sitting on the floor of an undisclosed Allston basement venue, where I’ve been graciously invited to watch Sean Antongiorgi (piano, vocals), Marlon Edlin (guitar), Oliver Unger (bass), Sequoyah Cisneros (saxophone), and Trey Tarzia (drums) rehearse “Canned,” a song on Antongiorgi’s January 2025 album by the same name. The room fills with the light acoustic strumming of Edlin’s acoustic, followed by Antongiorgi’s restrained crooning:
“a way to figure this out / to spin out.”
Edlin’s strumming gets more anxious and desperate as Antongiorgi continues, louder this time: “Find a way to talk about / this diamond.” The others join in as the tempo accelerates and Antongiorgi’s voice builds in tension.
It’s clear that Antongiorgi is a deliberate person – something that affects both his lyrical and instrumental decisions, as well as the people he chooses to share his music with.
This nature and his collaborative spirit beam through in their project, Glue, which was partially named for an affection toward the wood glue he used to fix pianos while studying at Berklee College of Music. “Canned” features a collection of songs written, produced, and performed entirely by Antongiorgi, with heavy consultation from Nathaniel Baron. Since graduating, Antongiorgi has expanded the project to include collaborators Edlin, Unger, Cisneros, and Tarzia. Despite this being the first time they’ve all rehearsed as a group, they work well together, treating the material with care and frequently consulting Antongiorgi about the nuances within.
He credits the Allston and Berklee scenes for the evolution of their practice. The beginning of his time at Berklee coalesced with the creation of The Keira Knightleys with Baron, and friends Mark Michele and Joaquin Mateo Cervantes. Antongiorgi recalls observing their music-making processes his freshman year and being “so blown away and enamored by all their talents.” From Baron, he was inspired to learn as much as he could about recording. After they moved away, he moved on to finalizing “Canned.”
With self-described echoes of The Magnetic Fields, Elliott Smith, and Belle & Sebastian, “Canned’s” songs are reflective of a sinceclosed chapter of Antongiorgi’s life. “Nineteen’s got me down,” he laments on “Red White.” On “One,” he mourns the end of a college relationship, asking a fateful question: “Are you glad that I’m around to split your twin-size bed in two?”
Moving away from the directly personal nature of “Canned,” his new work skews fantastical. Antongiorgi recalls a pivotal conversation with a friend about his songwriting:
“I’m like, ‘it’s about some girl, it’s about being alone, it’s about this thing that happened, or you know, it’s about me, all this stuff.’ He’s like, ‘Why don’t you write some shit like “The Nutcracker”? Why don’t you write about mouse kings and sugar plum fairies, or firebirds? Why don’t you write about something magical?’ I was like, ‘That’s a great point.’”
He’s taken this to heart. An unreleased single he showed me is about duck hunting, which he’s never actually done. When asked if it evoked “Duck Dynasty or Looney Tunes,” he decisively responded with the latter. On another unreleased song, he sings from the perspective of a hypothetical old man asking out an 83-year-old woman he once met.
“I tried to make something that was less overtly about something personal I experienced and more something [that has] an inherent aesthetic appeal,” he said. “[I wanted to] go about it with that aim and figured that I’ll inevitably put my own experiences into it.”
Antongiorgi’s careful nature makes sharing work inherently vulnerable, a muscle he hopes to flex as he releases new music and books performances in the winter of 2025. Stay tuned for more of what’s to come — it’s hopefully going to be whimsical.
Stream Glue on Bandcamp, Apple Music, or Spotify. Find a full interview with Sean Antongiorgi on Substack at @yahamilton
-------------------------- YASMIN HAMILTON
MASSACHUSETTS MINUTE
Neemz joins NMFG
Music is one of the most significant forms of cultural currency in our world. Although the advent of digital streaming platforms has greatly constrained the revenue that artists can earn from their catalogs, these same platforms have made it easier than ever to discover new music from across the planet. But with this ease of access comes a price – and a position of power.
Nearly every music listener employs one of a handful of streaming platforms to listen to their favorite artists. And though a conversation is to be had about why this oligopoly is a detriment to the industry (unequal revenue distribution, algorithmic homogenization, loss of ownership, etc.) it also creates a significant opportunity for artists to make their voice heard for the issues that matter most to them.
Amidst the Israeli genocide that has reigned terror on Palestinians for more than two years – and the decades of illegal occupation and apartheid that preceded it – No Music For Genocide (NMFG) calls for artists from around the world to geo-block and remove their music from streaming platforms in Israel.
With names ranging from Clairo to MIKE to the late Ryuichi Sakamoto, the movement is quickly catching on as more artists are deciding to stand with Palestinians by delegitimizing Israel on a global stage. Amidst the vastness of the list of artists who have already joined the movement, one local name stands out – Neemz.
Neemz is a Palestinian-American artist from Boston. She’s a multi-hyphenate creative who has continued to rally support for Palestinians for many years. She routinely speaks out – both online and during in-person events and protests –against the ongoing genocide in Gaza,
the occupation and ethnic cleansing of the West Bank, and the larger apartheid that persists in Israel. She’s one of the most prominent local voices advocating for Palestinians, and making the decision to geo-block and remove her music from Israel was only a natural progression of the mission she finds herself on.
In a statement shared via Instagram in October 2023, Neemz stated, “To be an artist isn’t to entertain, but to change. To those who have been uncomfortable/offended by the truth, to those who have been silent, please block me. End the genocide, and end the occupation.” Two years later, she’s still using her position as an artist to advocate for change and using her voice for good.
If you’re an artist reading this (or have friends who are artists), and would like to join the movement, visit nomusicforgenocide.org to learn how you can initiate the process and use your voice for good.
Free Palestine.
Photo Credit: Avery Cather, Mark Michele
music & audio
5/4-12/7 State Park's Western World presents "Both Kinds", Country AND Western DJ Night with DJ Groan Man. Every first Sunday of the month from 3-6pm @ State Park Bar 21+ FREE
11/6 Singer Songwriter Night
Hosted by Glenn Williams with Michael Gray, Ramona Silver and AJ Crowe @ The Square Root Cafe 7pm10:30pm 21+ FREE
11/7 Minibeast, Sky Furrows, Linnea's Garden @ Deep Cuts Deli 7pm-11pm All Ages $15
11/8 Get to the Gig and Mass Concerts presents @ (at) ft. Noah Britton, Free Body Estimate @ Lilypad 7:30pm9:45pm All Ages
11/8 Oneida, Thalia Zedek Band, Bong Wish @ Deep Cuts Deli 7pm-11pm 18+ $10 adv/$12 dos
11/8 Hardcore Fundraiser ft Short Circuit, Silent Spring, Latch, Haste, Vicegrip @ Midway Cafe 3pm-7pm All Ages $15
11/9 Sado-domestics Acoustic show! @ The Square Root Cafe 4pm-6pm 21+ FREE
11/13 Major Stars, Mountain Movers, Gossip Collar @ Deep Cuts Deli 7pm-11pm 18+ $15 adv/$18 do
11/14 Small Forward, Gaptooth @ Lilypad 7:30pm9:30pm All Ages $15 adv/$18 do
11/15 Kris Thompson's Bday!
ft. The Croaks, Daughter of the Vine, Happy The Clown (Reunion!), Winds of Alluria @ Lilypad 7:30pm All Ages $15
11/15 4th Wall's 2nd Anniversary Show!
ft. Mobius Trip, Sawtooth, All The World's Gems @ The Capitol Theatre 8:30pm11:30pm All Ages $12
11/16 The Mess-Around a fun, monthly acoustic gettogether @ The Square Root Cafe 4pm-6pm 21+ FREE
11/16 HYPER NEON LOVE
DREAM presented by Trans Inclusive Crime Syndicate ft. d33ps33k, girldeth, Ensatina, DJ Watzitooya @ The Jungle 9pm 21+ FREE
11/19 Jazz ft. Hellbender @ The Square Root Cafe 8pm11pm 21+ $10
11/20 Magic Thinking Ape, Eight Foot Manchild, The Rupert Selection, Snowplow @ The Jungle 8pm 21+ FREE
11/23 Death Drive, Battlemode, Husbands 7pm 21+ $15
11/24 Franchise Music Showcase Music, Vendors, Hiphop, RnB, International @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
11/28 HOMECOMING starring Clark D ft. Malik Elijah, Dav, Ajary, Kei, Sounds by Adelaide @ Sonia 7pm 21+ $15
11/19-2/13 Arab Massachusetts Building Community in the Commonwealth. A traveling exhibition presented by the Arab American National Museum (AANM). This groundbreaking initiative will shed light on the vibrant stories of Arab American communities in the state from the late 19th century until the present day. @ PAO Arts Center
11/21 Art Battle Boston Watch as 12 artists go headto-head in 3 intense rounds of creative competition — only one will emerge as champion. Every piece created goes up for silent auction, so you can take home a piece of the action. @ Lamplighter Brewing Cambridge 8p, $20
11/22-11/23 Joy St & Brickbottom Open Studios You're invited to wander through studios, connect with art and meet artists! @ Somerville 12pm-6pm FREE
11/19 Come As You Aren't a brand new open stage variety show, where performers are encouraged to push themselves outside of their comfort zones. Drag, burlesque, live singing, dancing. Hosted by Mia Culpa @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
11/21 Where the Black Boys Are A staged reading of a new work based upon Marvin K. White’s "nothin' ugly fly." @ Boston Center for the Arts 7pm-9:30pm FREE 11/21-11/23 ArtsEmerson presents SpaceBridge Straight from its success at the NYC’s Under the Radar Fest, this moving and personal play shows the true story of Russian refugee children connecting with local kids at a NYC shelter and looking to the future. Timely and features an impressive, young cast. @ Emerson Paramount Center $27.50+
11/22 Yabás—Divine Feminine Forces Brazilian master dancer Isaura Oliveira leads a bold, immersive experimental dance and ritual performance. Pay What You Can. @ Strand Theatre 5pm7pm
11/17 Queer Board Game Night @ Club Cafe 7pm-10pm 21+ $5
11/22 Little Syria Tour Scholar, curator, and cofounding member of the Boston Little Syria Project, Lydia Harrington, will guide a walking tour from Chinatown to the South End. Meet at Chinatown Gate 2pm-4pm FREE
11/29 Herbstalk Wintergreen Market A lively marketplace features handmade herbal products and botanical goods created by New England crafters. @ Arts at the Armory 10am-4pm All Ages FREE
11/30 Bean & Barter Market a mutual aid market, where community members can acquire necessary resources like food and books, and participate in optional bartering sessions with local artisans. @ Cambridge Community Center 12:30pm5:30pm
11/7-11/20 Noirvember: Film
Noir in the ‘50s This annual series returns, featuring some timeless classics that are required viewing, including Charles Laughton’s tense and stylish The Night of the Hunter on 11/12 and Stanley Kubrick’s underrated early heist movie, The Killing on 11/18 @ Brattle Theatre $17
11/8-11/9 Godzillathon Buckle up and grab some snacks for 12 hours of the old school, Japanese icon reigning terror over Tokyo. The marathon includes favorites like Mothra vs Godzilla, Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla and Invasion of the Astro Monster @ Somerville Theatre 2pm-2pm $29
11/14 Sentimental Value (2025) Always interesting, Danish director Joachim Trier’s new film takes on family dynamics and filmmaking with humor and realism @ Coolidge Corner Theater $17
10/1-3/31 Visit the ThotBot Implantation Center An immersive & interactive installation and multimedia concert open from October - March. Is your ThotBot glitched? An audience of 14 is invited to step into the waiting room of a dystopian brain implant clinic before being pulled deeper into the ThotBot Storyworld with narrative video and a live music performance. @ Bow Market $26
11/6 One Long Earring a show about the lesbian feminist comeback tour that should have stayed home. (Think Lesbian Spinal Tap) @ Crystal Ballroom 7:30pm 21+ $45
11/12-11/15 A Revelation of Character A New Play Reading on Boston’s Female Abolitionists Boston Public Library commissioned this new play about Lydia Maria Child and Maria Weston Chapman, two brave, brilliant, badass women who helped lead Bostons Antislavery movement in the 1800s. Written by playwright Patrick Gabridge using original letters in the library’s collection. @ Boston Public Library (BPL) FREE
11/16 Inside Joke Closing Gallery Reception + Comedy Show! The Venn diagram of Boston-based visual artists and standup comedians comes full circle @ Arts at the Armory 6:30pm9:30pm FREE
11/4 Transmasc Arcade Takeover Hosted by Transmasc Boston @ Roxy's Arcade 7pm-11pm 21+
11/8 Artist Caretaker Networking Night
Calling New England parents or caretakers looking to expand their creative network! Join us for an evening of community and connection with fellow artists, arts administrators, and curators. @ Gallery 263 5:30pm-7:30pm $20 11/9 Feel It Speak It Open Mic Hosted by Jha D, D Ruff, and Phree @ Civic Pavilion 5:30pm-8pm
11/12 Community Wellness
Festival This free event presented by Planet Mindfulness Foundation brings together music, movement, food, and wellness for a lively day designed to uplift and inspire. Join mini sessions including a mindfulness workshop, a yoga workshop, and a guided art therapy project alongside food, music and vendors. @ Roxbury Community College 12pm-4pm FREE
11/15 Community History Zine-Making Workshop
Our parents, elders, and forebears committed their relationships to one another, and to their communities, to the page; why can't we? In this workshop, Ujima Boston invites you to scrapbook and make albums in community. Come with photos, poems, and anything else you want to share. @ Parker Hill Branch of the Boston Public Library 1pm-2:30pm
The time has come for the Fall of the Trump Fascist Regime Beginning November 5, the one-year anniversary of Trump’s election, Refuse Fascism invites you to flood DC in nonviolent protest. Across the country, refuse to comply. Every person of conscience, millions of us together, grind the machinery of the fascist regime to a halt.
Stop Weaponizing Our Identity Massachusetts Jews are coming together to say: Stop Weaponizing Antisemitism! They invite you to sign a letter rejecting all attempts to use Jewish identities to crack down on civil liberties and undermine education in our state. This letter will be shared with MA legislators, school committees, and school administrators across the state. Visit actionnetwork.org/ petitions/massachusetts-jewssay-stop-weaponizing-ouridentity to sign.
Reclaim Roxbury
A community organization dedicated to improving the quality of life and economic wealth for Roxbury residents by preventing displacement and supporting economic development. Learn more at reclaimroxbury.org
Boston Liberation Center Open Hours The Boston Liberation Center is a socialist, working class community center located right tin the heart of Roxbury. Stop by to learn more about the work of the center and talk with the organizers, browse the community library, get some work done or just hang out! Tues & Thurs 4-8pm, Fri 1-6pm, Saturdays 10-4pm. @ Boston Liberation Center
Know Your Rights: What to Do if You Are Arrested or Detained by Immigration
This resource provides general information on what to do if you or someone you know is stopped, arrested, or detained by immigration or other law enforcement. Visit www.nilc.org/resources for more information
Stop Gaza Genocide Toolkit Visit uscpr.org/ StopGazaGenocide to find actionable items from US Campaign for Palestinian Right's Toolkits
Global Blackout for Gaza Call to Action! Every Thursday No Work, No Banking, No Shopping (in store and online). By planning weekly routines and shopping trips in advance, we can keep this powerful act of solidarity alive. Out unwavering financial pressure on government powers and complicit corporations that are fueling or enabling the genocide. Visit @globalblackoutforgaza for more information
11/2 Resist and Build: The Fight for Community Control
This bold film explores the courageous strategy of building community ownership while resisting the harms of the current system, and the stories of Boston-area people who are making it happen! Bostonarea organizers Yvette Moore, May Nerudova, Khalil Howe share their visionary spirit for collective control over our housing, workplaces, and public dollars - our most important economic needs. @ Strand Theatre 2pm-4pm FREE
11/8 Get ICE Out of Waltham! Join Fuerza Waltham to peacefully and powerfully demand an end to the abductions and deportations of our neighbors. Vigil 11am at Waltham District Courthouse, March to Waltham Common, Rally at the Common 12:30pm 11am-1:30pm
11/12 An Incomplete History of Black Protest & Direct Action Hosted by Epiphany Summers from the BlackOUT Collective, Ujima Boston invites you to consider how Black communities have long organized, disrupted, and created under conditions of constraint, and how these practices continue to shape the present. @ Location TBD. Visit www.ujimaboston.com/ events for more information 6pm-8pm
11/27 National Day of Mourning Since 1970, Indigenous people & their allies have gathered at noon on Cole's Hill in Plymouth to commemorate a National Day of Mourning on the US Thanksgiving holiday. Thanksgiving Day is a reminder of the genocide of millions of Native people, the theft of Native lands and the erasure of Native cultures. Participants in National Day of Mourning honor Indigenous ancestors and Native resilience. It is a day of remembrance and spiritual connection, as well as a protest against the racism and oppression that Indigenous people continue to experience worldwide. @ Cole's Hill 12pm-6pm
11/29 Reach for Gaza, Voices for Hope Join Reach Education Fund for a powerful evening with special guest Dr.Mohammed Alkandari from Kuwait, who has witnessed firsthand the devastating genocide in Gaza. Join to raise our voices, share untold stories, and stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza as they begin the long journey of recovery and rebuilding. @ Melrose Memorial Hall 6pm-9pm
Submit your music to WERS DJ of Legendary Boston rap group the Almighty RSO is DJing on 88.9 FM and he's looking for YOUR music.
Send your clean tracks to 2timez@gmail.com for a chance to get played on Saturdays on Boston's Black Experience R&B station. Shout out Museum TV for the tip!
Dance Around Boston A weekly newsletter with dance classes around Boston, Cambridge, Somerville and the greater Boston area. Visit danceclassesboston. substack.com to sign up
11/8 Literacy as Liberation: Choosing Picture Books and Early Readers Join two literacy experts for this family literacy series that aims to help families support the reading lives of their children. @ Just Book-ish 11am12:30pm All Ages FREE
11/14
Author Talk: Lama Rod Owens Join for a reading & conversation with Buddhist Minister, Author, Activist, Yoga Instructor, Authorized Lama, and Queen, Lama Rod Owens. @ Just Book-ish 6pm7:30pm All Ages FREE
Step Into Culture Dance Group Focused on the culture and creativity through black and Caribbean Dance. Every Mondays and Wednesdays at 5pm @ 24 Supple Rd 5pm-7pm All Ages FREE The deadline to apply is 12/31
Dunamis Emerging Artist Fellowship Dunamis is excited to launch this program in the Spring 2026, providing professional development training for emerging artists of color. Over the course of a year, you will have access to workshops, masterclasses, social events and oneon-one coaching to help develop your artistic lens and kickstart your career as a creative entrepreneur. Visit dunamisboston.org/eaf to learn more and apply The deadline to apply is 11/14
Poison by Kieran Teare-Thomas
Obscured By Time by Jared Kellogg
Local Lore: Buy Nothing JP by Jillian D. King @jilliandking
@britdeart
Closing Shift by Brit Parry
Friendly Fella by Austin Ickes
@sticky ickes
HAMILTON TAKES BOSTON BY STORM
A REVOLUTIONARY MUSICAL EXPERIENCE
This article is part of our collaboration with Teens in Print, an inclusive journalism program for Boston Youth.
Learn more at teensinprint.com
The world sensation musical sensation
“Hamilton” has landed in Boston, bringing its fun blend of hip-hop, jazz, R&B, and Broadway to the Citizens Opera House.
“Hamilton” has been shocking its audiences with its beautiful performance, showcasing the life and legacy of American founding father Alexander Hamilton.
The Story Behind
“Hamilton” tells the story of Alexander Hamilton’s journey from being a young immigrant to becoming a key figure in America’s history. With its diverse cast and modern take on historical events, “Hamilton” has become a cultural phenomenon, resonating with audiences worldwide. According to Samba TV, in 2020, 2.86 million households streamed “Hamilton” within its first two weeks on Disney+. The musical features book, music, and direction by Thomas Kail, choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda – the man who made it happen. The musical features contributions from a variety of creatives, most notably Miranda.
While walking into the performance, I believed “Hamilton” was going to be a basic reenactment that would have nothing on the original. I was proven incredibly wrong… To start off, I want to say that The Ensemble was absolutely captivating. Dare I say, better than the original. I could feel the passion radiating off them. I could feel how ardent they were, especially trying not to do the original wrong in any way shape or form. They were so cohesive yet different. By watching them I could see who they were as people and how they were all different people who had the same goal. Musicals are mainly composed of music and songs, but it is equally as important that you are a good actor. There were many people who were such great actors and really fit the role they were tested for which made this production ten times better. First, I want to start off by reiterating that The Ensemble was absolutely amazing — their dancing? Beautiful.
Acting
My favorites were John Lawrence/Philip Hamilton (Nathan Haydel), King George III (Matt Bittner), and Eliza (Lauren Mariasoosay). Haydel’s performance was so youthful and perfect for the character. He had so much youth and energy to him that made him really jump off the stage, especially when Philip was speaking rhymes to his father and his mother; it was an amazing scene. They definitely did the original justice. The next character I want to point out
MEET THE ARTIST
Maria Fong illustrated this issue with a stick dipped in ink. You should go hunt for twigs and see what comes out compared to using a pen. It's way more fun.
Maria is so honored to draw for the Boston Compass. They are an artist and youth worker energized by organizing around housing justice, ethnic studies, and mental health crisis response without police. While they have created animation, printmaking, drawings, paintings, and public art, Maria’s current practice focuses on zines, comics and curriculum design.
Catch their upcoming workshops at the Chinatown branch of the Boston Public Library, the Boston Figurative Art Center, and the KiOSK in Harvard Square. If you are looking for someone to design and facili tate a creative workshop, please reach out. You can find more of Maria's art at @mariafongtastic on instagram and at mariafong.wixsite.com/mariafong
is King George III. I believe Bittner’s King was better than the original. There were so many times when King paused and made a face during a song. It was absolute comedy.
Lastly, there is Eliza. Now I don’t think Mariasoosay’s vocals are better than the original, but they were amazing. I will say in the song “Burn,” Eliza was portrayed as more angry inside which was really refreshing to see. In the original, she’s sad, hurt, and betrayed. It allowed for me as a listener to realize that there’s more than one perspective to the scene. The scene doesn’t need to be one way; there’s many ways to act it. It really does give the watchers something new to look at, especially if they are people who have seen the original before.
Vocals
The vocals had me so captivated, and three people stood out to me, Burr (De on’te Goodman), Angelica (Marja Harmon), and Hamilton (Tyler Fauntleroy). For those who have watched “Hamilton,” you know a good portion of the songs are group-sung so you don’t really get to hear specific voic es and know their true potential. However, these three had a few solo’s in some songs that had me genuinely questioning if they were better than the original.
In “Satisfied”, Harmon’s Angelica had lots of passion and had more power in her song. It sounded like she was proving she deserved to have that role. Contrasted to the original “Satisfied,” Renée Elise Golds berry sounds more like she is having a reg ular conversation. I don’t think this was bet ter than the original but I do think this is a very good rendition.
As Burr, Goodman did better than the orig inal. In the song “Wait For It,” he had so much passion. When the beat dropped, he seemed to have more anger in his voice. Last of my favorites for vocals is Fauntleroy. His Hamilton has a softer voice than the original. In the original, his voice is deep er and more solid which comes with age. However, Fauntleroy’s Hamilton has a voice which connects to his younger age which pairs very well with the character, especially for younger Hamilton’s songs like “My Shot.”
Set
The set for this musical was absolutely stunning. I was very impressed with the attention to detail, from the rotating stage to the moveable stair case, and even the doors were all so similar to the original. I was shocked when I saw that they had the rotating circle in the center of the stage. Those who have seen the original know exactly what I’m talking about here — it plays a very crucial role in the original that adds suspense and character to the musical. Without it, “Hamilton” wouldn’t have been as great but Boston’s production was able to and it definitely paid off.
CIMMARON HOLMAN JR.
MARIA FONG