‘I'm not feeling seen': Racist graduation remarks highlight earlier concerns brought to officials
Lynnfield town employees could be heard using 'inappropriate and racist words' during a graduation livestream Friday. The video has since been remove but was seen and heard by people waiting to watch the Lynnfield High School graduation on Friday.
The people in the video have been placed on administrative leave during the investigation, town officials said.
'It is especially regrettable that this incident took place on what is and should be a night to celebrate our incredible seniors. Such incidents, however, must be confronted directly and openly and a full investigation and appropriate action will be taken,' a statement by the town read on Facebook.
The video was of people setting up chairs on the football field prior to the ceremony. At least two racist words can be heard clearly, Itemlive reported.
'We, as town leaders, stand together in outrage over what has been reported this evening and wish to state emphatically that racist language and behavior has no place in our town and will be dealt with immediately,' the town's statement continued.
Select Board member Alexis Leahy spoke out against the comments and thanked the town administration for acting quickly.
'Discrimination not only undermines the values of equity and justice that a community is built upon, but it also divides us at a time when unity and understanding are more important than ever,' she wrote.
Jamie Hayman of the school committee also spoke out stating that hundreds of students have now heard these words.
'And just as importantly, they are now watching what we do next. If we treat this only as a personnel issue, we miss a critical opportunity, to lead, to grow, and to teach,' he said.
But it isn't the first time this issue has been brought up to the school board committee this year.
On June 3, the school committee hearing prior to graduation, a parent, Carl Allien, told the committee that his son was dealing with 'some incidents' as an African-American.
The school's principal had called Allien about 'some of the harsh things that my son has been enduring.' Although he did not provide any specifics, he said it wasn't about any specific person and asked for a meeting with the superintendent about these issues.
'... it's been challenging for a young African-American kid in the schools,' he said. 'I'm struggling right now.'
Two school board members encouraged Allien to leave his contact information with the district secretary for further conversation.
In February, Joseph Dixon and his mother, Wendy, went in front of the committee to urge them to have better education and celebration of Black history.
'I'm not feeling seen,' Wendy Dixon said her son told her.
Joseph Dixon said during his years at Lynnfield public schools, he has not seen Black history talked about beyond slavery and Martin Luther King Jr.
'We should learn about the many things that black people have contributed to our society and not just the struggle and hurt that they've been through,' he told the committee.
He also encouraged education on other cultures too.
'I agree with you that we can do better,' Superintendent Tom Geary said. 'Thank you for being willing to speak. It's something we will talk about administratively on how to move forward with that.'
Another school board committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday. Public comment is available.
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Los Angeles Times
an hour ago
- Los Angeles Times
ICE raid at major pot operation clouds picture for legal cannabis in California
Camarillo — Ever since federal immigration agents raided one of the largest licensed cannabis operators in the state this month, the phones of cannabis industry insiders have been blazing with messages of fear, sadness and confusion. 'It sent shock waves through the community,' said Hirsh Jain, the founder of Ananda Strategy, which advises cannabis businesses. 'Everyone is on text threads.' Glass House Brands, whose cannabis operations have helped make Santa Barbara and Ventura counties the new cannabis capitals of California, has long been among the most prominent companies in the state's wild frontier of legal cannabis. Some call it the 'Walmart of Weed' for its streamlined, low-cost production methods, its gargantuan market share and its phalanx of wealthy investors and powerful lobbyists. But federal immigration agents stormed onto company property in Camarillo and Carpinteria on July 10 in a cloud of tear gas, as if they were busting a criminal enterprise. Agents in masks and riot gear marched for hours through the company's vast greenhouses as workers fled and hid in panic. One worker, Jaime Alanís Garcia, died after he fell three stories while trying to evade capture. For Glass House, the aftermath has been devastating. Its stock, which is traded on the Canadian stock exchange, dropped from more than $7.75 a share the day before the raid to $5.27 on Thursday. Some workers disappeared into Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention or bolted, too fearful to return. Others were so traumatized that Glass House brought in grief counselors, according to a source close to the company. Across the wider world of legal California cannabis — where many growers and entrepreneurs have hoped the Trump administration would legalize the drug — people were also shaken. Did the action against Glass House signal an end to federal law enforcement's ceasefire against legal cannabis in California and dozens of other states? And what did it mean for Glass House itself, among the largest cannabis companies in the world? How could this slick corporate entity, founded by an ex-cop and special education teacher and a former tech entrepreneur, be in a position in which federal agents claimed to have apprehended more than a dozen undocumented minors on site? 'This could not come at a worse time,' said Jain, the cannabis consultant, adding that the images and rhetoric that have whipped across social media in the wake of the raid 'impedes our ability to legitimize this industry in the eyes of California and the American public.' He added that 'a failure to legitimize a legal cannabis industry enables the proliferation of an illicit industry that is not accountable and engages in far more nefarious practices.' 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In the days after the raid, federal officials announced they had detained 361 people, including 14 minors, who by California law cannot work in cannabis. It wasn't clear how many of those detained were undocumented or how many were even working at the operation or were just nearby. At least two American citizens were caught up in the dragnet — a security guard headed to work at Glass House and a philosophy professor at Cal State Channel Islands who was protesting the raid. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said this month that Glass House had been targeted because 'we knew, specifically from casework we had built for weeks and weeks and weeks, that there was children there that could be trafficked, being exploited, that there was individuals there involved in criminal activity.' Glass House officials declined to comment for this article, but in an earlier statement on X, the company said that it had never employed minors and that it followed all applicable employment laws. 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He also said supervisors put intense pressure on employees to work faster, screaming expletives at workers, refusing to allow breaks, or yelling at them to eat quickly and return to work before their rest periods were done. A source close to the company said the complaints involved people employed by labor contractors, regarding actions by those contractors and not Glass House directly. Many of the suits are pending, with Glass House named as a co-defendant. Company officials declined to comment publicly. A source close to the company said Glass House takes seriously its responsibilities under California labor law and is committed to ensuring that all labor practices within its operations meet the highest standards. The source added that the raid has shaken a company that has always tried to operate by the book and that, despite its exponential growth in recent years, has sought to maintain a close-knit feel. 'It's very sad,' the source said. In the wake of the raids at Glass House, the United Farm Workers union issued a bulletin in English and Spanish warning anyone who is not a U.S. citizen to 'avoid working in the cannabis industry, even at state-licensed operations.' The union noted that 'because cannabis remains criminalized under federal law, any contact with federal agencies could have serious consequences even for people with legal status.' TODEC Legal Center, a Coachella Valley-based group that supports immigrants and farmworkers, issued a similar message. TODEC warned noncitizens to avoid working in the marijuana industry and avoid discussing any marijuana use or possession — even if it is legal in California — with federal agents, because it could hurt their status. About half the farmworkers in California are undocumented, according to UC Merced researchers. Cannabis industry experts said it is too soon to know whether the raid on Glass House will affect the larger cannabis workforce — or whether more licensed cannabis operations will be raided. 'My best guest would be that this is going to be happening to a lot more cultivation farms,' said Meilad Rafiei, chief executive of the cannabis consulting group We Cann. Among the undocumented workers at Glass House on the day of the raids was Alanís, 56, who had been a farmworker in California for three decades. Over the last 10 years, Alanís worked in the Ventura area, first in a flower nursery and then, once Glass House converted the massive greenhouse complex there, in cannabis. On Monday night, his family held an emotional wake for him in Oxnard, where he lived. The Camino del Sol Funeral Home was filled, as many family members held one another tightly and cried. They remembered him as a hardworking, joyful man, who danced at parties and enjoyed every meal he shared with family. State Sen. Monique Limón (D-Goleta), who led the Senate in adjourning in Alanís' memory last week, told the chamber how he had climbed onto the roof of a greenhouse to escape federal officers. From 30 feet up, she said, he called his family to tell them what was happening, and to report 'how scared he was.' 'Jaime's life was dedicated to our lands, our crops, and to providing for his family,' Limón said, adding that he 'had had no criminal record, he was who our country and our state depended on to provide food on all of our tables.' She added that 'his last moments on Earth were filled with terror.'
Newsweek
an hour ago
- Newsweek
Three Weeks That Shook the Trump Presidency
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From alleged UFO cover-ups to Epstein's supposed "client list," Trump loyalists, including sometimes Trump himself, have long stoked the belief that sinister truths would soon be exposed — just as soon as their leader was back in power. When the government declared the mystery solved, the base erupted. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Deputy Director Dan Bongino leaves after meeting with Republican lawmakers to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill" at the U.S. Capitol on June 25, 2025 in Washington,... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Deputy Director Dan Bongino leaves after meeting with Republican lawmakers to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill" at the U.S. Capitol on June 25, 2025 in Washington, DC. More Getty Images/AFP Trump Begs, MAGA Burns As the month progressed and outrage escalated, Trump loyalists began turning on each other. On July 9, Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino—long a leading promoter of Epstein conspiracies in his former job as media personality—confronted Bondi in a closed-door White House meeting. Furious that the DOJ memo appeared to shut down any further disclosure, Bongino reportedly threatened to resign. "Bongino is out-of-control furious," one senior official told NBC. "This destroyed his credibility. He's threatening to quit and torch Pam unless she's fired." Trump's Truth Social post on July 12, imploring his supporters not to attack Bondi, backfired immediately. "What's going on with my 'boys' and, in some cases, 'gals'?" he asked, apparently referring to the MAGA-aligned podcasters and influencers with whom he was rapidly losing favor. He defended Bondi and downplayed Epstein as "somebody that nobody cares about." It became the first Trump post ever "ratioed" on his own platform. In Congress, Speaker Mike Johnson abruptly canceled House business, sending lawmakers home for summer early rather than face a vote on Epstein documents. When pressed, he called for "full transparency" and urged Bondi to explain the department's decisions. By mid-July, fractures were visible in public opinion polling. Quinnipiac found that 63 percent of voters disapproved of Trump's Epstein response. Even among Republicans, just 40 percent approved. His support among young men—the backbone of his 2024 online comeback—collapsed. A CBS/YouGov poll showed Trump's net approval among voters aged 18 to 29 dropped from 55 percent in February to 28 percent by July, a remarkable 27-point swing in a matter of months. Joe Rogan, Andrew Schulz, and Tim Dillon — three prominent voices from the manosphere — have begun openly criticizing Donald Trump on their respective podcasts, signaling a shift in the online culture that once helped... Joe Rogan, Andrew Schulz, and Tim Dillon — three prominent voices from the manosphere — have begun openly criticizing Donald Trump on their respective podcasts, signaling a shift in the online culture that once helped power his appeal. More YouTube / X "They voted for him because he met them where they were," said Rachel Janfaza, a researcher who studies Gen Z behavior. "But the message has to match the messenger. They're not seeing results—rent is still unaffordable, jobs are scarce, and their degrees feel obsolete the moment they graduate." Thom Hartmann, left-leaning political commentator and host of The Thom Hartmann Program, said the emotional toll of disappointment was starting to show. "Many Trump supporters have spent years emotionally and socially invested in his mythos... Admitting betrayal or deception requires admitting they were wrong, which comes with deep psychological costs. This accounts for the anguish and conflict we're seeing among the Trump base." On social media, longtime loyalists posted videos of themselves burning red MAGA hats. Others shared screenshots of Epstein files stamped "PHASE 1" and captioned them "where's phase 2?" Why was that stupid binder referred to as 'Phase 1' of Epstein document releases if DOJ believed there to be no client list and no additional information about Epstein's activities? Where is Phase 2? The whole thing is so stupid and ham-fisted. Tell us which intel agencies he… — Sean Davis (@seanmdav) July 8, 2025 Hartmann said the outcome depends on whether more revelations surface: "Original videotapes or photos that are clearly not doctored, first-person testimony by Ghislaine Maxwell, or more former teenage victims going on the record could spell doom for his relationship with his base." But so far, no second wave of documents has arrived. And the blowback continues to metastasize. A clearly rattled White House communications office even issued an on-the-record response to a "South Park" episode skewering the president, keeping it in the news. Anything, it seemed, to take the focus off Epstein. As Trump scrambled to shift the spotlight elsewhere—accusing former President Barack Obama of a capital crime, releasing files on unrelated, long-ago assassinations, demanding the Washington Commanders go back to their old name, and even sending Cabinet officials to kick the tires on Alcatraz's ability to house criminals again—he found that none of the tactics that once insulated him from political fallout could contain the fury this time.
Chicago Tribune
2 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Today in Chicago History: Cubs pitcher Greg Maddux records 3,000th strikeout at a wet Wrigley
Here's a look back at what happened in the Chicago area on July 26, according to the Tribune's archives. Is an important event missing from this date? Email us. Weather records (from the National Weather Service, Chicago) 1964: Jimmy Hoffa, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, was found guilty in Chicago on three of 20 counts of fraud related to the Teamsters' Central States Pension Fund and one count of conspiracy. He was convicted of jury tampering earlier that year. 1985: Old St. Patrick's Church held its first 'World's Largest Block Party.' Tickets were $15 and entertainment included Stanley Paul & His Orchestra and the Jesse White Tumblers. The church discontinued the annual event in 2020. 2005: After a lengthy rain delay, Chicago Cubs pitcher Greg Maddux recorded his 3,000th career strikeout. Maddux caught San Francisco Giants shortstop Omar Vizquel looking at a third strike to end the third inning. Maddux, who was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2014, became the 13th member of the 3,000 strikeout club and the ninth pitcher in history with both 3,000 strikeouts and 300 victories. 2016: Park Ridge native Hillary Clinton became the first woman nominated to lead a major American political party in a run toward the White House. Subscribe to the free Vintage Chicago Tribune newsletter, join our Chicagoland history Facebook group, stay current with Today in Chicago History and follow us on Instagram for more from Chicago's past.
