Somerville Mayor Stands Firm: Black Lives Matter Banner "Will Not Come Down"

Somerville Police Union President, Michael McGrath, says while his members support Black Lives Matter’s “core goal of equal treatment under law,” having a Black Lives Matter banner over city hall is disrespectful to police officers. 

At Somerville City Hall, Mayor Joseph Curtatone vehemently disagrees. “Standing up for minority populations and against racism and supporting the police officers who are sworn to protect and serve our communities,” Curtatone says. “I mean, that should go hand in hand.” 
 
Despite the concerns, Curtatone says he has no intention of removing the banner. “The head of the Somerville Patrolmen’s Association penned a letter insisting that we take down the Black Lives Matter banner, essentially asking our city to pick a side. Let me be clear, that banner will not come down.” 

 Curtatone grew up in Somerville, and remembers when overt acts of discrimination in housing and law enforcement were rife.

“Having grown up in this city, I’ve seen a lot of change. I’ve seen a lot of good. I’ve seen a lot when we were divided in the past based on race, based on ethnicity, but I’m proud about how this community has evolved and grown, and what we’ve embraced, the values of the community. I believe that sign speaks to those community values,” says Curtatone.  
 
Curtatone pointed to another banner that he ordered to hang over Somerville Police Headquarters weeks ago honoring the slain officers in Baton Rouge and Dallas. However, that was not enough to placate McGrath, who declined to comment. 

Somerville Police Department chief, David Fallon, told reporters that he supports the mayor’s stance. “The mayor has been nothing but a staunch supporter in this, a staunch supporter of the peace department.” 
 
Meanwhile, public opinion in the city is divided, but that wasn’t clear on the streets of Somerville. Most people seemed to be of one mind about whether to keep or remove the Black Lives Matter banner draped across City Hall’s red brick facade. 
 
“I think it’s a great thing that I live in a place where the mayor really respects everyone and understands that black lives do matter,” says Rachel Ginard. 

Jonathan Holmes believes “It’s such a charged, ugly situation, but to stand by your principles in the face of other people’s fear and anger is not an easy thing to do.” 

“I think it takes a lot of courage to take that stance when you’re an elected official, and yet that’s what this country needs is people willing to take a stand when it really counts,” says Mary Kate Schmirman. 

However, there were a few, such as Emily Chow, that were more hesitant. “To be sensitive to everyone who sees the banner, I think it would be nice to have support for both of them,” says Chow.

Ethan Costello does not see the banner as disrespectful to police officers. “I see it as something that’s not anti-police, it’s not anti-anyone, It says great things about Somerville.”

Overall, public opinion seemed to be in favor of the Mayor’s stance. “He’s definitely right to keep it hanging,” says Emily Cantosky. 
 
But the dispute between Mayor Curtatone and the Police Union over the banner reflects broader divisions evident across the country, like the tensions that played out between BLM protesters and counter-protesters at a recent Boston rally, where protesters chanted “hands up, don’t shoot.” 

The mayor and his supporters contend that black lives should matter, but often don’t matter as much when they come in contact with police. Police Union members believe the sign is inherently biased because they interpret its message as excluding other lives. The Union, in its letter to the Mayor, suggested that the Black Lives Matter movement was responsible for the quote “continuing assassination of innocent police officers across the country.” 

Historian Peniel Joseph, formerly at Tufts University and now at the University of Texas, takes issue with the Police Union‘s interpretation.

“We’ve had unfortunately the deaths in the last several weeks of five police officers in Dallas and three in Baton Rouge, but the narrative that police officers are under attack is just not a true narrative,” says Joseph.  
 
Joseph goes on to describe why the Black Lives Matter movement is not an offense to police officers, “I think today’s demonstration is really unfortunate. We can see empirically and historically with police shootings of African American boys and girls and men and women, that their lives are not as precious in the eyes of the country as other people’s lives. So, I’d say that Black Lives Matter is not an affront to anyone, it’s just an announcement of the humanity of black people in this country.” 
 
This situation is not necessarily uncommon. Peniel Joseph says black social movements have historically been misunderstood and misconstrued, “People said that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a communist, he was not. They said that the Civil Rights Movement was something the Soviet Union was orchestrating, they did not. So, racial justice movements historically in the United States, even ones we celebrate now, have always been disparaged and demonized and scapegoated.”   
 
Mayor Curtatone - who comes from a conservative Italian immigrant family - acknowledges that some of his constituents are shaking their heads over his steadfast decision to keep the Black Lives Matter banner in place. He anticipates this controversy is likely to have political repercussions.

However, the mayor remains absolute in his beliefs, “This is not about politics for me. What our residents in office have made clear is that they reject the notion that there are sides to pick here and that is why both banners will remain.” 
 
The demonstration that police and their supporters plan at Somerville City Hall is being fueled in part by social media, with some urging on Facebook that if the sign is not taken down, they should consider taking it down themselves. Mayor Curtatone says that folks can disagree over his decision, but they will have to disagree peacefully.

This story was reported and edited with the help of WGBH News interns Christina Beiene and Casey Robidoux.