Carol Rose, executive director of the Massachusetts ACLU, said on Boston Public Radio Tuesday that amid the statewide conversation about police reform, it’s vital for Massachusetts residents to recognize that the commonwealth has its own issues with racism and police accountability. Rose mentioned the city of Springfield, which was the subject of a 28-page report from the Department of Justice in July.
"For people who say, ‘Well ... that’s just out there in Minneapolis; that’s just out there in some other place’ —you know, Massachusetts is not immune to racism,” she said. "Massachusetts is not immune to police misconduct. We need to own that we have an obligation to be part of the solution and to be a leader in the nation.”
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"Pretending that we’re immune or exceptional, and that we don’t have these kinds of problems, is really closing an eye to what’s really going on," she added.
