Carol Rose: ‘Massachusetts Is Not Immune' To Police Misconduct

Fourth of July Boston — A Massachusetts State Police officer keeps watch over a line of people waiting to pass through security before rehearsal for the annual Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular on the Esplanade in Boston, Sunday, July 3, 2016.

Aidan Connelly is a production assistant on Boston Public Radio. A graduate of Emerson College with a B.A in journalism, his work has appeared on WBUR, KCRW, and The Marketplace Morning Report.

August 04, 2020

Updated August 07, 2023

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.”

"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.

Aidan Connelly is a production assistant on Boston Public Radio. A graduate of Emerson College with a B.A in journalism, his work has appeared on WBUR, KCRW, and The Marketplace Morning Report.