IT'S STILL A THING! $15K FOR 15 YEARS OF COMPASS COMMUNITY
M
arch 1 will mark 15 years since this lil’ ole newspaper was first published. It started as a brainchild of Sam Potrykus, a UMass Boston student at the time, who maniacally xeroxed hundreds of copies of a single sheet of paper advertising DIY music shows and distributed them all over Boston. This was the first edition of the Boston Compass newspaper. Over the past decade and a half, hundreds of Boston creatives have come together and supported us. There were many late nights and early mornings hitting print deadlines, countless illustrations and articles drawn up to fill our pages, and who-knows-how-many connections made from Bostonians following our leads to underground events from our Happenings listings.
Now, at Issue #178, we’ve grown to include a Patreon subscription, an option for home delivery, a brand new website (bostoncompassnewspaper.com), and the eight pages you see here today! Everything is contributed, designed, and compiled by local creatives. We are proud to pay our contributors around $9,000 a year for this important work, in addition to paying monthly stipends to our staff of artists. But, as we come upon this milestone, our future is uncertain. Without community support, it is likely that we will not be able to continue publishing through the spring. The current political climate and administration seek to divide and silo us, with aims to silence community advocacy for marginalized individuals. We realize that our work providing the Boston Compass as a resource is more important than ever, especially as cultural institutions face increasing threats. In a world where such opportunities are few and far between, we want to continue providing paid work for emerg-
ing and marginalized artists and writers. To support this work, we are launching a crowdfunding campaign to raise $15,000 to support our annual operating expenses!
Our $15K for 15 Years Campaign will run until the end of March, and we invite you to support us and spread the word! There are opportunities to win gift certificates from our amazing sponsor organizations, 1369 Coffeehouse and Capitol Theatre; art pieces from local artists; and BCN-
branded merch. Most importantly, you will be able to support the future of your local, free, and artist-run newspaper. We need your support! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to everyone who has had a hand in producing this thing: our patrons, our sponsors, our friends, and our family. As the last sentence of Issue #1 from March 2010 reads, “HAVE FUN IN YOUR CITY!”
BCN OPS NERD & BRAIN ARTS ORG BOARD MEMBER
MASSACHUSETTS MINUTE
Swizzy Preps for Cordless Currency
“We ain’t from them gentrified regions.”
As much of Boston continues to succumb to rising housing costs, leading to the displacement of the city’s lifelong residents and an overall erasure of culture, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to identify those who truly embody the spirit of the city. With neighborhoods like Southie and Seaport serving as the frontlines of gentrification warfare for the majority of the last decade, neighborhoods like Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, and Hyde Park— and their residents—have become some of the last true landmarks of what it actually means to be considered a Bostonian.
The six words at the beginning of this month’s column are those of Swizzy, a rising wordsmith who originally hails from Boston’s Roxbury neighborhood. The first line is heard off of his recent single, “Nubian Notion,” which features fellow Boston talents Sasha Charm and Red Amandala. This song is a much-needed reminder that this city has not, and will not, fall victim to any sort of cultural degradation.
For Swizzy and his close musical collaborators, Boston is intricately woven into the fabric of their identities. Nowhere does this become more apparent than across the two lead singles to Swizzy’s Cordless Currency,
Accompanied by a music video that includes scenes in and around Boston, “Nubian Notion” is an excellent portrayal of Swizzy’s musical prowess. Despite what the soulful, laidback instrumentation may suggest, this track is full of punchy, impactful rap lines from both Swizzy and Red Amandala. Sasha Charm’s voice connects the two stanzas with delicate precision, helping to round-out an exceptional glimpse of what Cordless Currency will ultimately hold.
“Audemars,” the second single off of the project, continues with the deeply-rich production from Zeus. This track provides a podium for Swizzy to relay a continuous stream of high-quality raps. Centered around themes of ambition, hustling, and luxury, “Audemars” represents the moment where success and grit meet head-on.
As the dust settles around these two releases, fans of the Boston rap scene will undoubtedly feel the excitement that surrounds the upcoming release. This project is set to be one of Swizzy’s most prominent releases yet, so if this is your first time hearing of the Boston rapper, then it’s the perfect time to tune-in.
LIKE CARRIE BRADSHAW
your freak on
Known for its cheap beer, hot dogs, and an always-dominated pool table, the Silhouette Lounge never fails to create an energy that allows for the most eclectic stories to unfold. While the sounds of a local band buzzed in the background, I picked at the label of my High Life until my ears perked up at the sounds of gossip.
“He wanted her to give him a … you know … with her feet … but while she was wearing her Docs in the grocery store parking lot.” My jaw dropped.
Someone chimed in, “That’s Freak Behavior for sure.”
Freak Behavior is something we all have in us. It’s a spectrum fully dependent on personal preference. But who determines what Freak Behavior is?
A few days later, I polled the room (...my “close friends” Instagram story) to see what self-proclaimed Freaks were in my immediate circles. “I got a Freak 8 days a week,” was the first message I got back from my friend, N. We dove right into what exactly that entailed the next night over the creamiest espresso martinis.
As I sat across from N in her hardcore hoodie, I grinned over the fact that in an almost empty Hobsons, we were about to gab very loudly about our sex lives to the sounds of a man playing acoustic guitar.
“‘50 Shades of Grey’ normalized some sexual behavior and brought Kink to the mainstream, but at what cost? Kink is an umbrella to a lot of shit—there are things that are what some people would consider “normal” (thanks to mainstream media, which includes “50 Shades”) and some things that are more extreme that may face some judgment,” she explained. “For example, I love being very aggressive.”
“This past weekend, I went to a birthday gang bang where a person wanted me to punch them in the face until I broke their nose. Now is that something for everyone? No, but it was for that person and it was for me too,” N said. “I didn’t know if I wanted to take it that far, but we were able to talk
about it and find a compromise that worked for both of us and it was awesome.”
It seems that everyone comes to the table with different relationships to sex. The conversation around your desires—explaining what you want and why you want something—doesn’t have to be a record scratch in the chain of events. It can be sexy, too.
In an era where community is harder to find, is it rare that the stars align and you are presented with an opportunity to have awesome sex?
“Not all sex has to be kinky for me to be good, but kink requires extra communication to make it happen,” she answered as our pizza arrived. “In a city like Boston where no one really owns property, it can be hard starting out. You have to build community.”
“Technology has made it harder to learn how to have conversations in person, but it’s an awesome way to shoot your shot on the apps and see what happens,” she continued. “The app Feeld is great because people are very open and put their kinks in their bio. Events like Feral, Fantasy Factory, and Fascination are good places to practice asking for consent and talking face-toface with people about their desires and boundaries. It’s all practice.”
As the conversation turned to our personal gossip, we closed on the most important point of all: nothing is too freaky so long as it’s happening between two consenting people. Consent is key—and mandatory— so if you are a Freak, get out there and own it! Let your Freak flag fly this March!
If you are interested in submitting stories, questions, or notes for the “Like Carrie Bradshaw” column, please scan the QR code here and fill out the Google form.
All are are welcome, and submissions can be anonymous!
an upcoming collaborative EP with Zeus The Elevated.
FIX YOUR HEARTS OR DIE
I’ve heard some describe transgender people as the “canaries in the coal mine” of democracy. It is true in the sense that this vulnerable minority has historically been an early target of fascists—the Nazis began their book burning campaign by looting and destroying the contents of Magnus Hirschfeld’s Institut für Sexualwissenschaft, a research institute and clinic that pioneered the study of trans and queer identity, science, and medicine. That said, this framing implies trans lives are a necessary sacrifice, one that alerts us to danger so that we may escape before it is too late.
To be clear: if we let trans people be erased from public life, make no protest as their life-saving health care is denied, and look on passively as their rights are stripped, it will already be too late.
On his first day in office, Trump issued, among a slew of others, an executive order that constitutes a full-bore assault on trans existence, defining sex as binary and unchangeable and outlining the enforcement of these defined terms across federal administration.
Since this order, the CDC has stripped data on transgender health from its site, federal web pages referring to LGBTQI+ people now say LGB (or have been removed entirely), and nonprofits like the Boys & Girls Club of America and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) have deleted resources and pages related to transgender and LGBTQ+ issues. Trans people are not safe in the military, at school, on sports fields, in bathrooms, or in hospitals.
It is no surprise that the Trump administration is doing this: it refuses on principle queer and trans identities because they are unfamiliar, uncomfortable, and subversive. And trans people are vulnerable, easy scapegoats because, even with the progress that has been made, they continue to be marginalized, maligned, and discriminated against. The Trump administration and its allies have been clear that trans identity—what they call “gender ideology”—is a plague to be eradicated from public life. Though they have not put it in such terms, they promise their supporters a trans genocide.
In the media, trans identity is reduced to a political football: a subject where there are concessions and advances, rights given and taken away, but no true recognition of what it means to be transgender. We discuss these topics as “debates”—the trans sports debate, the trans kids debate—while giving little to no credence to the word of actual trans people. Supposed allies talk as though trans people are an unfortunate charity case to be “tolerated” in the name of greater unity. While this was always untrue, it is especially false in this present political moment.
Indeed, at this point it doesn’t matter how you feel about trans issues or trans peo-
ple. On principle, nobody deserves to have their life-saving healthcare, their ability to move freely, their basic freedoms revoked because of who they are. If we do not affirmatively and emphatically assert that trans people have a right to exist freely, the fascist squeeze will not stop with them. Once trans rights are stripped, gay and lesbian rights will be targeted. Once it is established that trans people do not have the right to determine their own health care, it will logically follow that women shouldn’t determine their own health care either. No one is safe, the tide will rise until it swallows us all. Unless we act now.
When David Lynch passed away in January, many fans revisited the moment in Twin Peaks: The Return when, in character as FBI Agent Gordon Cole, Lynch told fellow agent and transgender woman Denise Bryson the following: “When you became Denise, I told all of your colleagues … to fix their hearts or die.” Though this statement may have been a threat, I understand it as a warning: the refusal to embrace and honor trans humanity causes spiritual death. Of course, today it drifts into a far more literal realm.
If you are lucky enough to love a trans person through transition, you watch the person you love pull back the curtains on their life and witness as the light pours in. The person you love becomes themself in a way that is so right and so true—it is an indescribable blessing. But in order for you to see them shine, you have to make room in your mind, cluttered with noise and imperfect perceptions, to receive the previously unseen parts of their identity.
How do we fix our hearts? First, believe trans people when they tell you who they are, and practice seeing their true self. Second, use your voice and every creative form of protest possible to advocate for their right to be here. Fight for them and fight for yourself.
The Boston Compass distribution box in Allston is overlooked by a beautiful mural of Rita Hester. An Allston resident and Black trans woman, Rita Hester was murdered in her apartment in November 1998. Her death, and the contemporary murders of two other Black trans women in the Greater Boston area, sparked the creation of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Every year on November 20, communities gather to honor the lives of transgender people lost to violence. These memorials remind us that the Trump administration’s attacks on trans rights did not spring out of thin air on January 20. Rather, vital members of our communities are being killed by the hundreds, year after year, and have been for decades. A better world is possible—one where trans kids get to grow up and trans adults can live freely, where we are all fuller for having them with us. Now is the time to fight for it.
DREAMS ON A PILLOW
A Video Game Based on the Nakba
So many of us struggle to find ways of organizing people to learn about the realities of the genocide that Israel has been raining down on the Palestinian people for over 75 years. It is even more difficult to motivate more people to find ways of stopping “business as usual” to interrupt this catastrophe. Palestinian video game developer Rasheed Abueideh seeks to bridge this divide by using gaming as a tool for resistance through interactive storytelling.
Over a decade ago, Abueideh created “Liyla & The Shadows of War,” a game set during the 2014 war in Gaza, to immerse players in the experience of living under the occupation of the Israeli apartheid regime. Abueideh initially found difficulty securing funding from the close to $300 billion gaming industry for development, and the game was even temporarily banned from the Apple app store for being “too political.” Despite the game being nominated for over a dozen gaming awards, Abueideh could not secure a sustainable development career and eventually opened a nut roastery to support his family.
Amidst the continued assaults on the West Bank, it became too dangerous to travel to Abueideh’s business, and he returned to his original dream of developing games. His current project, “Dreams on a Pillow,” is an adventure game inspired by a historical Palestinian folktale about a mother’s experience of the 1948 Nakba. Similarly to “Liyla & The Shadows of War,” the new game could not be funded through traditional means, as Palestinians continue to be barred from telling their stories. However, Abueideh persisted, dreaming of retelling Palestinian history poignantly.
In “Dreams on a Pillow,” players are placed in the shoes of Omm, a Palestinian mother whose husband was murdered by Zionist invaders. Omm attempts to escape the violence exacted by Israeli colonizers with her baby in her arms, only to find out that she is carrying along a pillow instead.
Uprooted from her family home in al-Tantura, Omm must travel to Lebanon surreptitiously, avoiding the occupation army on the way. Throughout this hazardous journey, the players experience events from two decades of Palestinian history, learning about the Nakba, the massacre of al-Tantura, and other tragic pieces of the past. Some scenes that are more peaceful occur during dreams Omm has about pre-Zionist Palestine while resting on her perilous voyage. According to Abueideh’s Launchgood page for the game, these tableaus disprove the common propagandic myth of Palestine being “a land without a people for a people without a land.”
Abueideh’s persistence paid off. Despite consistent funding rejections, he organized a Launchgood campaign to be able to sustainably complete the game’s production. Due to the diligent support of over 3,000 people who recognize the need to uplift the Palestinian struggle, the online campaign exceeded its initial goal of $194,800. These funds will advance the team of developers from pre-production to production.
Despite multiple obstacles incurred by a world that refuses to recognize Palestinians, Abueideh managed to bring his project to life. He refused to sacrifice his dream or to revise its premise to satisfy funders’ anti-Palestinian racist attitudes. Capturing the fading memories of the past and harnessing their power, Abueideh’s “Dreams On a Pillow” is a project that reflects the unwavering resilience of the Palestinian struggle.
We ask that you show your support in any way that you can, either by sharing posts about Dreams on a Pillow on social media, donating on Abueideh’s new Launchgood page (launchgood.com/1948), or installing the game after its release. To keep yourself updated on its status, you can follow Abueideh on Instagram (@rasheed_abueideh), and read the full story behind the game on his Launchgood page.
theater & performance art
3/1 Cafe du Cheap Artiste Fork & Shoe Theatre
Cooperative's regular open mic/cabernet night returns to Central Square @ Middlesex 5pm 21+ FREE
3/15 Death Becomes Her Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn kill in this early '90s classic comedy @ Brattle Theater 12pm $15
3/6 Boston Bit Down A 3-day chiptune/digital fusion festival showcasing 50 artists representing different representations of the genre ft. events at The Jungle, Crystal Ballroom, Capitol Theatre and more! 21+ $20$120 @crystalballroomsomerville
3/6 Confiere, The Oracle, Prayer Position, Knelt @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $12 @ prayer__position
3/7 Social Studies & The Chemist present: an all-vinyl evening with Shigeto Ft. Sacha and Alfredo @ 109 High St, Boston 9pm 18+ $22.85
3/8 Monterey Mountain, Desert Bats, Groan Man @ The Square Root Cafe 8pm11pm $10
3/8 Balkan Music Night is a vibrant event that highlights the rich musical and dance traditions of the Balkans @ Arts at the Armory 6pm-9pm All Ages
3/8 Pledge Pins | Whyte Lipstick | Andy California | Stress Balls @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
3/9 Sonic Environments ft. Eden Rayz, Killick Hinds, Federico Balducci, Becca Pasley @ Lilypad 5:30pm All Ages
3/9 Mass Revolutionary Arts Presents the Power in Peace Showcase ft. Zazu Noir @ The Jungle 9pm-11:30pm 21+ FREE
3/10 Punk Rockin' and Pastie Poppin' A monthly night of bad-ass burlesque and a punk rock dance party @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
3/11 Freedom Sounds: Alligator Bites Never Heal Join us for an album listening party of Doechi's album. The conversation will be facilitated by our music curator, Steph Davis. @ JustBook-ish 6:30pm-8:00pm FREE
3/12 Fully Celebrated Orchestra w/ Big Limo + hi-fi monk @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
3/13 Entifan, Girl Annual, Preyhound @ Lilypad 7:30pm10pm $12 adv / $15 doors
3/13 Singer Songwriter Night hosted by Glenn Williams with Patrick Fant, Corin Ashley and Noah Maltsberger @ The Square Root Cafe 7:30pm10:30pm $10
3/14 The 4th Wall Presents: Preacher and Daisy, & Sweet Petunia w/ visuals by: BADWARE doors 9pm, music 9:30pm @ The Capitol Theatre 18+ $12
3/15 Lilypad Art Jam! A community space for artmaking and open jamming! Come hang, grab a drink, make art, make friends! full backline byo art supplies $520 suggested donation (not required) @ Lilypad 3pm-7pm
3/18 Freedom Sounds: Music by Diji Kay The Freedom Sounds is a live music series occurring every Tuesday curated by Steph Davis. The feature this week is flutist DijiKay @ JustBook-ish 6:30pm-8pm
3/21 Lower Worlds Booking presents: Sullest, Today Junior, Frogs, Teardrops @ Midway Cafe 7pm 21+ $10
3/21 The Femmes Your favorite non-binary party name is playing 2 sets at JP's favorite dive @ Midway Cafe 9:30pm 21+ $15
3/22 KLYAM presents: Fugue State, Johnny and the Foodmasters, Intac, Deuce Club @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
3/24 Nonevent presents: Jules Reidy and crys cole Amazing double bill of experimental music & song by Berlin musicians @ GoetheInstitut Boston 8pm All Ages $20 / $15 @noneventseries
3/28 The 4th Wall Presents: parachute club, jiddo, leatheraxx doors 9pm, music 9:30pm @ The Capitol Theatre 18+ $12
3/30 This Music Presents: Satoko Fujii Tokyo Trio (Tokyo), Spatial Decay (NYC/ BOS) @ Lilypad 6pm-9pm All Ages
3/7 Ula After Dark: International Women's Day Movie Night! In partnership with international women's travel community Wanderful, Ula Cafe is gathering to celebrate International Women's Day and Women's History Month with a film screening of Wadjda (2012)! The full menu will be available (plus beer and wine!) So you can have dinner and drinks while enjoying movie night. Plus, Wanderful members will get a free cookie. @ Ula Cafe 6pm FREE
3/7 JUST BE(LOVED) Poetry Slam & Open Mic ft. Ephraim Nehemiah @ JustBook-ish 6pm FREE
3/8 The Lois Weber Film Festival Join us for an unforgettable celebration of women’s contributions to cinema with a rare screening of Lois Weber’s 1915 film “Hypocrites” (58 mins) w/ live music by Jeff Rapsis, and opening remarks by Shelley Stamp, author of Lois Weber in Early Hollywood. There will be red carpet networking, 3-film blocks, and an award ceremony that ends on a sweet note: with cake! ASL interpretation provided during the keynote. @ The Capitol Theatre 12pm All Ages $35
3/8 Eraserhead David Lynch's surrealist nightmare screens at Coolidge After Midnite @ Coolidge Corner Theater 11:59pm $17
3/11 Smithereens Director Susan Seidelman will be in person to discuss her debut feature that captures downtown '80s New York music scene @ Coolidge Corner Theater 7pm $17
3/12-16 The Seasons An innovative new theatrical piece using Vivaldi's most famous work as the soundtrack to 4 artists seeking inspiration & more in nature. @ ArtsEmerson 25+
3/13 Clown Town: A Queer Circus Variety Show Party @ The Jungle 8pm 21+ $10
3/14 The Nova Comedy Collective presents: Nebula Night Join us in celebrating independent arts around the Boston area, enjoying the musical stylings of local artists, and coming together for all our arts community has to offer. Snacks and drinks available all show. At Nebula Night, everyone becomes a star! @ Arts at the Armory 8pm $10
3/15 The Miss Marian Anderson and Friends Project Come join the Oscar Micheaux Family Theater Program Company for a night of beautiful music and celebration! This event pays tribute to the legendary Marian Anderson and features performances by talented artists who have been inspired by her work. Get ready to be moved by soulful voices and captivating melodies. @ Strand Theatre 6pm All Ages $39.19
Thru 3/16 The Odyssey A new adaptation of Homer's epic tale, aiming past revenge and towards forgiveness @ Loeb Drama Center $35+
Thru 3/16 Hedda Gabler Henrik Ibsen continues the unfortunately relevant story of his greatest antihero Hedda, while detailing the daily battle of life as a woman 100 years ago @ Chelsea Theatre Works All Ages $65 general/$25 students or 30 & under
3/17 The Moth GrandSLAM The best storytellers in town battle it out at this championship event @ The Huntington Theatre 7:30pm $32.50
3/18 Vagabond French New Wave goddess Agnès Varda's underrated and poetic '80s film follows the final days of a young drifter @ Coolidge Corner Theater 7pm $17
3/20 Roslindale Comedy Showcase @ The Square Root Cafe 7pm-10pm $10
3/21 Boston Theater Company Presents: Queer Voices Festival featuring a showcase of ten-minute plays written and directed by LGBTQ+ playwrights. This celebration of Queerness spotlights the diversity and resilience of the LGBTQ+ community. The festival includes live performances by local artists, a staged reading with CHUANG Stage, and a family-friendly Shakespeare piece, with a twist. Queer
Voices promises to entertain, inspire, and uplift audiences of all ages. @ Boston Center for the Arts All Ages
3/21 The Room The worst movie ever made and an absolute joy to watch @ Coolidge Corner Theater 11:59pm $17
3/24 Holy Biz presents: The Devil Was an Angel First An Open Stage Drag Showcase @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $10
3/30 Joy of Sex A high schooler has a fatal prognosis and commits to losing her virginity while she can in Martha Coolidge's underrated '80s gem @ Brattle Theater 12:30pm $15
community
3/1 Vivant Vintage New Location Grand Opening Vivant moves to Newbury St!
3/2 The Spring Vegan Market There will be around 30+ vendors selling vegan food, treats, apothecary items, and art products to shop from! @ Arts at the Armory 11am-4pm All Ages FREE
3/8 Boston Food Forest Coalition presents: Winter Fruit Tree Pruning Workshop Learn the why behind winter fruit tree pruning, as well as the methods, approaches, considerations, and tools needed. This three-hour workshop will be a mix of explanation, demonstration, and hands-on practice. No experience is necessary @ Ellington Street Community Food Forest 103 Ellington Street @ 10am-1pm FREE
3/8 Illustrator Talk: Ekua Holmes Ekua is a native of Roxbury, whose work features memories and contemporary subjects, often children, infused in the layers of her collages. @ JustBook-ish 2pm-3:30pm All Ages @ ekuaholmes
3/13 Ujima 101 Join the Boston Ujima Project Member Info Session to learn about the Ujima ecosystem, connect with other members, and ask any questions you may have. Go to www.ujimaboston.com/
events for Zoom info. @ 6pm7:30pm FREE
3/13 The Lit Lounge: A Reading Party Join us for a whisper-only reading party. Bring a book or buy a book. Either way, enjoy your literature in the company of others. @ JustBook-ish 6:30pm-8pm All Ages FREE
3/23 FiberFest 2025 This festival brings together New England fiber farmers, producers, and crafters. Market visitors can browse through all the fiber art and goods the festival has to offer, and enjoy educational activities such as workshops and demonstrations. @ Boston Public Market 10am5pm All Ages FREE
3/29 The Brighton Bazaar presents: Retromania A massive annual Retrospective Expo! 50K sq. ft. with over 120 vendors selling only the best highly curated true vintage fashion, collectible classics, & nostalgic goods in New England! @ Roadrunner 11am $10 advance, $15 door, $20 first dibs hour @ thebrightonbazaar
Boston Art Review: Weekly Happenings Newsletter A free resource of art events happening in the Greater Boston area sent to your inbox every Tuesday. Subscribe at bostonartreview. com/weekly-happenings
Visit New Leaf Espresso in Davis Sq! A new workerowned specialty espresso bar just opened!
3/9 Organizing for the Time We Are In: Community Care This workshop is a chance to (re)connect with folks in your community and for us to strengthen the skills of
community care. @ JustBookish 3:30pm-5:30pm
3/20 She Builds International, LLC presents: Talk on Topic
Join a vibrant community of change-makers as we explore topics aligned with the mission to empower women of color globally. It's a great opportunity to meet new people, share ideas, and learn something new. @ 535 Boylston Street, Boston @ 6pm-8pm FREE
Strategic Collective Communications: A Workbook for Building Solidarity and Reshaping Communications Food Solutions New England presents a free workbook to help communicators conceptualize, create, and participate in a Strategic Collective Communications framework while simultaneously reaching their individualized communications goals. The pages of the workbook provide instructions and insights gleaned from communications practitioners in the field. Download the workbook to use, share, and provide feedback. Only in solidarity will we build a truly resilient and just future. Visit foodsolutionsne.org and search "workbook" to learn more.
Anti-Displacement Task Force
The purpose of this task force is to develop programming and policy recommendations that aim to equitably reduce the displacement rate of people who live in, have businesses in, or create in the City of Somerville. Learn more at voice.somervillema.gov/adtf
Libraries Transforming Communities seeks to strengthen libraries’ role as core community leaders and change agents. Offering grants and online learning, this initiative offers support for advocacy
librarians to engage with their communities in new ways. Offered by the American Library Association.
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
Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition MTPC works to ensure the wellbeing, safety, and lived equity of all trans, nonbinary, and gender expansive community members in Massachusetts. Visit masstpc. org for more information.
Boston Liberation Center Open Hours The Boston Liberation Center is a socialist, working class community center located right in 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, Sat 10-4pm.
opportunities
Call for submission: Beyond the Veil Artists based in the US are invited to submit work exploring contemporary interpretations of surrealism and the supernatural. Deadline to apply is 3/2.
Red Shaydez presents... MusicJumpstart: The Artist Development Bootcamp is an training program designed to equip emerging artists with the tools, knowledge, and strategy needed to elevate their music careers. Through interactive workshops, handson exercises, and personalized guidance, participants will gain insight into branding, performance, marketing, and industry navigation. Deadline to apply is 3/13.
Walking Together: Investing in Folklife in Communities of Color This grant supports folklife and traditional arts rooted in communities of color by investing in artists/practitioners and the community organizations that care for them. It is a national funding program managed by the six U.S. regional arts organizations (RAOs). Deadline to apply is 3/19.
The Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture seeks a nonprofit to lease 5 Necco St for $10/year (!!) RFP out now for a qualified nonprofit organization to lease and activate approx 4,750 sq. ft. in the Fort Point neighborhood. Learn more at boston.gov/ departments/arts-and-culture Deadline to apply is 3/31.
Disability Zine Microgrants
Wild Ramp Publishing offers four $250 grants to cover
printing costs for zines with a disability justice focus. Their grants support zine production and distribution, focusing on marginalized and underrepresented voices. Deadline to apply is 4/18.
Dunamis Boston Resource Roundup
A thorough list of grants, jobs, events, opportunities and workshops for artists and creatives in the Boston area. Check it out at dunamisboston. org/resource-roundup
WRITE FOR THE BOSTON COMPASS
The Boston Compass is seeking timely articles related to local arts and culture events in the Boston area. These pieces could be a review of a local film festival, a write-up of a local artist’s new EP, a feature on an initiative that your local organization is excited about, a creative nonfiction piece about your favorite local venue, etc. Ideal pieces will cover events happening in the month of or prior to the issue’s publication. Boston is your oyster.
Have an idea? Send a pitch by scanning the QR code and fill out the form! Some elements you should include in your pitch: the event you plan to attend, context for the clueless reader, who you could interview, and why you think this article is worthwhile.
If you need to bounce a couple ideas off of Akbota, the editor-in-chief, that is also welcome! Due to current staff capacity, inquiries that come to the editor’s inbox without set ideas often go unanswered. If you’re looking for inspiration,
check out past issues and comb through our stacked happenings spread.
Once the article is approved, the content deadline is usually around the 20th of the month. Pieces are generally 400-600 words in length, though there is flexibility on the latter side of that spectrum. Contributors must also submit 1-2 high-contrast photos for the layout. We pay $50 per article.
Good luck! I'm sure you'll come up with something cool.
Always by E.B. Hutchins
Snork Opaque by Adam Green
The Boomerang Gang by Joe Bortner
joeb draws
Bird Crimes: Billionaires by PomPoison
MEET THE ARTIST
Sean Patrick Watroba
Sean Patrick Watroba, also known as THANKYOUSEAN, is a human artist living in, on, or around the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. His work has been described on more than one occasion as “beautiful and inspiring.” That is true.
To see more work, as well as purchase prints and other items, follow on instagram @thankyou_sean or visit THANKYOUFORNOTHING.ORG.
"OK CYA"
SEAN PATRICK WATROBA
ORANGE LINE CONNECTION
Said & Done tattoo, located off Centre Street in Jamaica Plain, houses artists of authentic and bespoke talent. One in particular, Maddy Anthony, embodies the character of the shop: open to all, rich with vegetation, and illustratively storied. The shop’s small, independent nature resonates with the autonomy she reminds each client to own as they discuss the dimensions and details of each piece of body art. I’ve turned my skin over to her trusting hands multiple times, along with bits and pieces of information that one shares with their favorite tattoo artist as if it was a therapy session. She naturally marries my specifications to her unique, folky style.
As she works, tracing lines and conducting delicate shadowing, she fills the hours with stories of travels and what’s next for her. She draws tales: her trip to Italy for the first time with her partner, and her future plans to meet him at the conclusion of his hiking trip. While it may be many months before I visit the parlor again, I look forward to hearing about her life updates and watching her continue to humbly gift Boston with her artistry.
At the other end of the Orange Line, lies the Suffolk County Courthouse. I found myself here, due to civic obligation, a few weeks ago. After settling into the realization that my randomly selected jurors and I were going to be here for a while, we acquainted ourselves with one another. The millennial adjacent crowd represented a great Boston local crop. Post-jury duty happy hour is like the beginning of a joke. “A Berklee Box Of-
fice Manager, a Broad Institute Vet, a Coffee Shop Owner, a BioPharmaceutical Consultant, a Speech Pathologist, and a Neuroscientist walk into a bar…"
And so this motley crew came to be. The Neuroscientist had his own unique story, speaking of his intense background in the army before enrolling in school in Boston (albeit an intense endeavor in itself). He reminisced on his latest adventure hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, where he was comforted by months of scenic botanicals sprawling across western mountain walls.
On this journey, he relied on his partner to mail dehydrated meals to westward outposts. He described the cooking artistry that went behind these meals: elaborate mixtures of mac and cheese powder with dehydrated vegetables and rice. I imagine them in the kitchen together, sous chefs and cartographers, but also a couple just trying to plan weeknight meals in advance.
Beaming, he told our jury troop how his partner had proposed to him when she met him at the end of the trail. He spoke so endearingly about her, and mentioned that she was a local tattoo artist.
Intrigued, I pressed: “What’s her name?”
“Maddy,” he replied, “she works at Said & Done.”
Visit @mad.anthonytattoo and @saidanddonetattoo on Instagram to see more. ESTELLE HAMILTON
A WORKER-OWNED FUTURE FOR BOSTON CAFES
What is life after unionizing? For Eoin Jaquith, one half of the worker-owner duo that recently opened New Leaf Espresso, the answer is simple: “It’s worker governance.”
As biotech and venture capital cash continue to creep into Cambridge and Somerville, turning the two cities into giant laboratories, some are determined to carve out a different future, one that puts worker equity front and center. Circus Cooperative Cafe in Cambridge and New Leaf Espresso in Somerville both utilize a worker-owned model, wherein workers own a share of the business they work for.
At these two cafes, worker-owners have chosen to do away with hierarchical management structures typically found in the restaurant industry. Andrew DeBenedictis, Jaquith’s business partner and fellow worker-owner at New Leaf Espresso, noted that theirs is “a very independent working environment, which is consistent with the co-op, because none of us need someone looking over our shoulders.”
Splitting day-to-day managerial and administrative duties has been a work in progress, but for one of the original workerowners of Circus Cooperative May (whose last name is omitted for privacy), the greatest benefit of not having a management team is that now, “when there’s issues, we can actually solve them,” she said.
In many food service establishments, floor employees often encounter belligerent and occasionally violent customers, sometimes with little recourse from management. “Here, we are empowered to do what we feel is necessary to keep the cafe safe and to keep us safe,” said May.
interest and skill set. “We try to limit power dynamics between us and people who aren’t worker-owners. We’re all compensated the same way,” said DeBenedictis. “All our voting is done by consensus,” Jaquith chimed in.
While the worker ownership model is egalitarian, these new business owners are by no means naive. “One line that we kept coming back to when opening was balancing ideals with pragmatism,” said DeBenedictis. “What we want to do is create a healthy model that is sustainable, while understanding that in a capitalist society, there are going to be constraints.
Rather than competing with one another, Jaquith and DeBenedictis reached out to Circus Cooperative for advice before they opened New Leaf Espresso. “I learned some really sobering truths and had to take a second,” said Jaquith, glad to have a more established business to lean on for guidance, “They’re our co-op brothers.”
For Jaquith, working without a management structure has a big mental benefit. “Everybody just knows what they’re doing. Nobody is worried about impressing anybody else. The level of stress is so much lower.”
Beyond ethos, the lack of managers has a direct financial impact on these independently financed cafes. “The thing that makes this model most viable is that you’re not paying somebody’s salary who’s not on the floor all day,” Jaquith explained.
Both cafes employ a small team of nonowner workers. However, everyone must work shifts on the floor, performing duties such as preparing food, steaming milk, and handling the register. Administrative duties are handled collectively, based on worker
Helping others start a co-op was a longterm goal of Circus Cooperative. “We really want to be able to provide a model so that other people that are opening up a cafe don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” said May.
For these two trailblazing cafes, the future looks bright. At New Leaf, even on a frigid Saturday, the cafe is full, and five-star Google reviews keep pouring in. May said that at the Circus Cooperative, their finances are reassuringly up from previous years.
For her, worker-ownership is a clear path to “taking over things from bosses and landlords who don’t give a shit, and who frankly might not be part of the community.” Hopefully, experimenting with this model has turned over a new leaf, opening the door for other businesses to do the same.
LALA THADDEUS
