The City Council has taken steps calling on law enforcement authorities to put enforcement of prohibitions against possession and use of entheogenic plants on low priority, pending official decriminalization.

By Jim Clark

A resolution was put forward at the latest meeting of the Somerville City Council supporting the decriminalization of entheogenic plants.

Defined as plants and natural sources such as psilocybin mushrooms, cacti, iboga and combinations of plants similar to ayahuasca, their use as a psychedelic drug of choice for many since the 60’s brought about criminalization as part of the larger “war on drugs” on a national scale.

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

By Jack Connolly
Business/Property Owner on College Ave.
Lifetime and Longtime Davis Sq. Resident
Former Somerville Ward Six Alderman & Alderman at Large

It’s no secret businesses in Davis Square, and throughout the area, are suffering and CLOSING brought on by the chaos caused by the Covid 19 virus.

Look at who are closed now in Davis sq.; Somerville Theatre, the Rosebud Diner, the Painted Burro, Dunkin’ Donuts, Sligo Pub, Spoke, Au Bon Pain, and the Rite-Aid pharmacy is closed, complete with graffiti tags. Who’s next?

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries and letters to the Editor of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

By Matthew McLaughlin
President and Ward 1 Councilor

The second President of the United States and author of the Massachusetts Constitution, which in turn influenced the United States Constitution, was very skeptical of the public. While his support for a strong executive branch, and even a constitutional monarchy, was tempered on the national level, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts embraced Adam’s strong-man form of government.

By Joe Creason

On Thursday January 21, the city’s Board of Health conducted a virtual meeting in accordance with Governor Baker’s executive orders, which adjusted certain provisions of the Open Meeting Law during the initial phase of the pandemic.

The City of Somerville’s Board of Health meeting was led by the Director of Health and Human Services, Doug Kress.

The Somerville Museum presents Voices from Somerville’s Greek Community on Wednesday, January 27, at 6:30 pm. Hear about connections between Somerville and Greece, with stories about the city’s meat-packing plants in the early 1900’s, the first Greek-American World War I Medal of Honor recipient, and the creation of a local Greek Orthodox congregation, as well as observations from an artist from Greece who documents the city today. Panelists include the granddaughter of a Greek diner owner, a former Director of the City’s Council on Aging and an award-winning artist whose work explores both Somerville and Greece. Following the panel, listen to a historian from Somerville discuss connections between Greek and U.S. history. This event is part of a Somerville Museum Zoom series called Voices from Somerville: Culture, Community and History. Special thanks to Erline Tanice, Adda Maria Santos, Adriana Fernandes and Jhenny Saint-Surin for their help in producing this series. To register, please visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/voices-from-somervilles-greek-community-tickets-137281987119.

SAVEMAStages is a collective of venue owners, music industry professionals, and diehard music fans working to ensure adequate funding reaches independent Massachusetts venues at risk of permanent closure due to the economic fallout from Covid-19.

These venues, which were the first businesses to close at the beginning of the pandemic and will be among the last to re-open, are pillars of their communities. Their cultural significance and local influence cannot be understated; live music promotes an environment of healing and emotional release for its listeners and ensures financial stability for performers.

Eagle Feathers #222 – The Collector

By Bob (Monty) Doherty

Julian deCordova and his wife traveled extensively collecting art and antiques from around the world during their 46-year marriage. They were globetrotters 16 times over and had the means to do it. For many decades, they indiscriminately gathered art work which fancied their personal varied interests.

All kidding aside, the recent move by the Somerville City Council to promote decriminalization of entheogenic plants as an aid in treating various disorders seems like a sure step in the right direction.

Use of these natural substances has been proven to help alleviate symptoms and effects of opioid abuse, depression, and suicidal tendencies. Studies have shown that patients who struggle with depression have reported tremendous relief from just a few treatments with these substances.

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Somerville has a large population of Brazilian folks. Where I live in Union Square there is a large Brazilian Market and before the pandemic, a Brazilian butcher. There are still a number of Brazilian businesses peppered around the streets of our city, and this ethnic group makes big contributions to our collective culture. So I was lucky to speak to Rejane Musis about her program to educate kids about Portuguese and Brazilian culture.

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Poet Mike Steffen writes: “I recently watched the 1945 MGM movie with Judy Garland Meet Me in Saint Louis, which piqued my interest in the 1904 World Fair there, called “The Louisiana Purchase World Fair.” I came across this colossal statue of the Roman god of the forge, Vulcan, while browsing the Internet for info on the Fair. At one point, the huge statue, the largest free-standing iron-cast statue in the world, lay in its cast sections in the Birmingham fairgrounds (after it had been returned from Saint Louis) and I came across the epigraph quote, “children would often play around the disassembled statue”. As it stands on its towering pedestal today on Red Mountain in Birmingham, the backside of the statue, in the classical Italian style, reveals the naked deity’s bare bottom, facing toward the suburb of Homewood, and there is apparently a song there sung as a joke, Moon Over Homewood.”