The 20th Annual Honk Festival of Activist Street Bands will be hitting the streets of Somerville this weekend from October 9 through 12 (rain or shine). HONK! 2025 will feature a wide variety of musical/activist events planned for Tufts University, in Medford (HONK! U Conference on Thursday), Davis Square, in Somerville (street music, workshops, lantern parades on Friday and Saturday); and Harvard Square, in Cambridge (with a vast Parade out of Davis Sq. to then participate in Oktoberfest, on Sunday). More info at: https://honkfest.org/.

(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)

Legal counsel for Somerville United Against Discrimination (SUAD) presented arguments today detailing why Question 3 should not appear on Somerville’s November ballot. The arguments included the untimely collection of signatures, the impropriety of placing an unconstitutional and discriminatory question on the ballot, and the unwillingness of city officials to have each side, for and against, file a 150-word argument as required by state law so that voters can make an informed choice. SUAD seeks to ensure that all applicable laws and rules have been followed and to promote voter transparency.

Eagle Feathers #339 – Our Tripolitan Hero

By Bob (Monty) Doherty

In 1808, a 20-foot-tall Italian marble monument was erected just inside the gates of the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. The U.S.S. Constitution delivered it from Italy via Boston. It was the city’s first outdoor memorial, the first American monument approved by Congress, and the only one for decades to follow.

Whether it be homegrown or imported, we have at our fingertips an incredibly diverse and nearly exhaustive supply of mellifluous entertainment to keep us amused and amazed as we watch it pass through our community.

The same goes for commitment to political and social issues. It’s natural for the HONK! Festival organizers to choose our community in which to hold this event. Activism thrives here, driven by a long tradition of dialog on important issues of the day and a genuine concern for the betterment of our own community as well as that of the world at large.

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I caught up with poet bg Thurston to talk about her new poetry and prose collection, The Many Lives of Cathouse Farm. Judith Ferrara writes of her book:

“This compelling and singular collection is an expert weaving of history and poetry. The story of Cathouse Farm begins when poet bg Thurston spies “a small red farmhouse nestled behind tall sugar maples,” which beckons her with its For Sale sign. Images presented throughout these pages elucidate Thurston’s narrative of dwelling and landscape. We listen as the very house itself speaks in Sister Houses, 1771, and The Ruined House and hear occupants, such as Sarah Weeks, who “labored long for all / these years on this forlorn farm, / birthed and buried our babies- / once within the same week.” Section 3 links us to Prohibition-era owner George F. Rivers, who “set the property up as a speakeasy and rural brothel” and inspired persona poems that do not look away from these women’s struggles. This book is a significant and fascinating accomplishment, full of curiosity, empathy, and respect for the ghostly inhabitants of Cathouse Farm.”

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Sanjeev Sethi is an award-winning poet who has authored eight poetry collections. His poems have been published in forty countries and appear in over 600 journals and anthologies. Some credits: London Magazine, The Fortnightly Review, Stand Magazine, Erbacce Journal, 3:AM Magazine, London Grip, Morphrog, North Dakota Quarterly, Hamilton Stone Review, NOON | journal of the short poem, Postcolonial Text, and Indian Literature.

The waterfront along the lower Mystic River could be one of Greater Boston’s crown jewels—a shining example of a resilient working waterfront that is also widely accessible to the public and naturally beautiful. This vision of the lower Mystic waterfront, based on two years of deep community engagement across multiple municipalities, is detailed in a new report published by the Resilient Mystic Collaborative (RMC), a collective of 20 cities and towns in the Mystic River watershed working together to address the region’s climate challenges, in partnership with the Consensus Building Institute and Stoss Landscape Urbanism.

Jennifer Ochoa

‘Latino Excellence on the Hill’ coincides with Hispanic Heritage Month celebration

Somerville Public Schools (SPS) celebrates Jennifer Ochoa, Basic Needs & Housing Support Social Worker at the Somerville Family Learning Collaborative, who was recently honored as a leader in the Latino community by the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus.

Somerville graduate, Firefighter, Henry Lima.

State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine and Massachusetts Firefighting Academy leadership announced the graduation of 20 firefighters from the 50-day Career Recruit Firefighting Training Program.