RECENT SAFE MEDFORD ACTIVITIES
January 2024 Safe Medford members Barry Ingber, Munir Jiramus, and Steve Schnapp were featured on the Medford Bytes podcast titled “A Dialogue About Gaza.”
December 2023 Members of Safe Medford called on the Medford City Council and Human Rights Commission to issue public statements in support of a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza.
2021 to 2023: For three consecutive years, Safe Medford has hosted a community table at the Medford Farmers Market, featuring an interactive immigration map and other activities to raise awareness of our community’s diverse heritages.
September 2023: Safe Medford created a candidate questionnaire and solicited responses from candidates for Mayor, City Council, and School Committee. The results were posted on our website and Facebook page.
November 2022: Safe Medford endorsed the Transgender Day of Remembrance, held on November 20, 2022. This annual event, sponsored by GLAAD—the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization—honors the memory of those murdered because of anti-transgender prejudice.
October 2022 to May 2023: Safe Medford joined City Life/Vida Urbana in protesting the profit-driven eviction of tenants from a property on Bradlee Road in Medford.
May 2022: Safe Medford collaborated with Lawyers for Civil Rights, Our Revolution Medford, Medford People Power, and the Mystic Valley NAACP in monitoring the status of two Black college students who were illegally stopped, removed from their vehicle, searched, handcuffed, and held at gunpoint by nearly a dozen Medford police officers in full view of a public road in July 2021.
February 2022: Safe Medford’s Barry Ingber and local activist David Harris were featured on the Medford Bytes podcast speaking about religious diversity and inclusion in our city.
December 2021: Safe Medford members, along with many other city residents, responded when the City of Medford unintentionally displayed an antisemitic image as part of its annual Holiday Extravaganza. See our letter to Mayor Lungo-Koehn and our statement in response.
August 2021: In light of anti-gay and anti-transgender signage at a local church, Safe Medford issued a statement in support of gender diversity and pledged to donate to trans rights organizations every day until the sign was removed.
April 2021: Safe Medford issued a statement in response to anti-Asian hate and targeted harassment in Medford.
February 2021: Following the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, Safe Medford wrote to Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn and Chief of Police Jack Buckley to ask about the policies in place to monitor officers for hate speech and racists acts. Read the letter to the Mayor and Chief of Police as well as the response from Mayor Lungo-Koehn.
2020: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Safe Medford helped to funnel more than $12,000 in donations to The Welcome Project, Cosecha, and the MassUndocuFund.
June 2020: Safe Medford worked with the city and other community members to advocate for a line item in the budget for translation services. Read our letter to Mayor Lungo-Koehn and the Medford City Council in support of that push.
June 2020: Working with Medford resident and activist Divya Anand and others, Safe Medford launched a successful letter campaign to urge the Mayor and the School Committee to reconstitute the Medford High School Vision Committee to include a more diverse array of participants who represent the perspectives of a range of racial and ethnic identities, linguistic backgrounds, familiarity with LGBTQI+ concerns, awareness of disability and learning issues, and differing levels of income.
April 2020: Safe Medford successfully campaigned to have the following statement appear on all announcements regarding city services: “Medford city services are available to all residents, regardless of economic situation, race, gender, immigration status, ability, benefit eligibility, or religious affiliation.” Read our email to Jackie Piques, Medford Director of Communications.
