New city fund provides support to families impacted by opioid crisis
Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Boston’s health commissioner, announces the city’s new family overdose support fund at the Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building during the Jan. 29 meeting of the Nubian Square Task Force.

Trump admin. takes aim at diversity programs
“At LCR, what we recognize is that with the new administration and the flurry of changes in various aspects of life, the executive orders and the direction specifically related to DEI is actually unsurprising and not new,” she said, pointing to...

Joint study to look at future of state’s women and girls
Patti Satterthwaite, chief operating officer for the Women’s Foundation of Boston, emphasized the significance and necessity of studies like this one, not only for data and statistics collection but also for creating solutions to the problems that studies like this could highlight.

Cool things to do this February vacation week
For almost 110 year, kids have delighted in a one-week reprieve from school in February while parents have been stressed about how to keep them busy. Most — though not all — major city school districts don’t enjoy a week off in February, so Bostonians have to get creative about how to fill that time.

Schools can still teach Black history — very carefully
A 2022 study found that a quarter of all teachers say limitations on lessons involving race or gender influenced their choice of curriculum materials or instructional practices. That indicates that what lawmakers do directly affects what happens in the classroom.

Health care in Flux
For decades, Americans have been worried about their healthcare: Are they going to be covered? How expensive will their prescription drugs be and how much will their overall costs rise? What happens if their child has a preexisting condition? This was especially acute for the Black and brown communities across the country.

“With all this chaos we are still not going to be able to provide the help folks need.”
“With all this chaos we are still not going to be able to provide the help folks need.”.

The strength and endurance of Black love
African American life in the U.S. is primarily depicted as a struggle devoid of romantic love rather than a radical act of living, liberation, and loving families. Under the tyranny of colonization, slavery, Jim Crow, and simple everyday life, how do we have time for love?.

On Trayvon’s 30th birthday, Black lives still matter
On a Sunday evening in late February 2012, I gathered around the TV with my family in Los Angeles to watch the NBA All-Star Game. I was all in for LeBron James and the Eastern Conference, while my two sons, born and raised in L.A., went for Kobe Bryant and the West.

IN THE NEWS
Dr. Hamilton’s history within the public health sector is prodigious, having spent most of his career focused on the well-being of his patients and teaching others how to do so. Dr.

BPS partnership aims to make computer science careers ‘Beyond Possible’
Madison Park Vocational Technical High School, shown Feb. 10. The school is one of four Boston Public high schools that are included in a three-way college pathways program partnership between the district, Wentworth Institute of Technology and The Possible Zone aimed at increasing access to the computer science industry.

Task force on Carney Hospital plans broader focus on social determinants of health
The group had originally planned to complete its recommendations by now. But the nuanced nature of their work has required additional time, said Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, the working group co-chair and head of the Boston Public Health Commission.

Why the word “woke” is a dead name for Black People
The word “woke” has existed in the Black community for years. Created by Black Power movements dating to the 1930s, Black revolutionaries have defined the term as the action of Black people being conscious of the truth and not being under a distorted reality.

New perspectives on Black History from Boston youth
This Black History Month, the Banner is teaming up with Write Boston’s Teens-In-Print Program, highlighting young voices of color. Each week, we will feature the work of three new students, who will deliver their perspectives on Black History and what it means to them.

Never married and never happier?
That’s according to a 2023 report by the Pew Research Center, which analyzed Census Bureau data to reveal that a record-high share of Americans over 40 have never been married. One in four 40-year-olds had never tied the knot as of 2021, up from 1 in 5 in 2010.

Journalism as the 4th branch of government
There have probably been times when you’ve learned something about someone that’s given you a newfound appreciation for them, whether that be a story about your parents from before you were born, a skill that you didn’t know your friend had or even learning that a celebrity has similar interest as you.

Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson at MFA
Art historian, professor emerita, and founding director for the Center for Race and Culture at Maryland Institute College of Art Leslie King Hammond serves as curator and tour guide for the newly opened “Witnessing Humanity: The Art of John Wilson.” Currently on display at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance opens second office in Boston
DTA Jackson Square office Director Patria Espinal (left), Front-End Staff Cindy Saintus, Jeff Saintus, and Ana Castrillon (center), HHS Secretary Kate Walsh (back) and DTA Commissioner Jeff McCue (right) cut ribbon at the new DTA Jackson Square office.

Gov. Healey, Lt. Gov. Driscoll celebrate Black History Month with Black Empowerment Advisory Council
(top) Children from Yawkey Boys & Girls Club of Roxbury led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance. (bottom) Gov. Maura Healey joins members of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Black Empowerment, members of Zeta Phi Beta and Phi Beta Sigma for the second annual Black History Month celebration in the Great Hall of Flags at the State.

Groundbreaking of Yawkey Youth Development Center in Jamaica Plain
Set to open in 2026, the new three-story facility at 267 Amory Street will enable Youth Enrichment Services (YES) to expand its reach and support an even greater number of city youth eager to participate in its programs.

Boston Collegiate Readathon
At the start of the school year, 39% of new Boston Collegiate 5th graders were reading at or above grade level according to the i-Ready reading assessment, a nationally normed diagnostic. Now, 63% of 5th graders are reading at or above grade level..

The Eagles crush the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX
The words of quarterback Jalen Hurts following the team’s 38-35 loss to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII proved prophetic: “We are going to get back here, and the next time, we will win.

KC crumbles under the weight of NFL History
The Chiefs were attempting to become the first team in the Super Bowl era to win three straight Vincent Lombardi trophies — named after the man who guided the Green Bay Packers to three consecutive championships in 1965, ’66 and ’67 in the old National Football League — to go along with victories in their first two Super Bowl games.

MORE Advertising reaches for the sky
“I am incredibly proud of the firm that (Managing Partner and President Judi Haber) and I have built, which centers around behavior change and cause-driven campaigns.

A ‘whirlwind’ two years leading Boston’s coding nonprofit
There was the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd in 2020 that brought attention to systemic inequality. There were the layoffs plaguing the tech industry. Then came the companies walking back from DEI commitments and, amid it all, a surprise gift from MacKenzie Scott’s charitable fund.

‘Ernest Cole: Lost and Found’
This book ban subsequently forced Cole into exile in Europe and America for the remainder of his life. His exile became a bondage of its own and he often wrote, “I am homesick, and I cannot return.

Opera on Tap celebrates Black joy and love
Pioneered by soprano Nina Evelyn and Opera on Tap board member Melynda Davis, this event brings together five artists to perform songs with themes of love, laughter and community. Evelyn and Davis will be on stage alongside soprano Morgan Beckford, tenor Fred VanNess and pianist Julian Gau.

Machine learning meets Indigenous tradition in ‘List Projects 31: Kite’
Indigenous history meets contemporary technology in “List Projects 31: Kite,” an installation by Oglála Lakhóta artist Kite at the MIT List Visual Arts Center.