►
From YouTube: Mayor Walsh's remarks to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Virtual Government Affairs Forum
Description
Mayor Marty Walsh addressed the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Virtual Government Affairs Forum on September 29, 2020.
"Good morning to all the leaders, members, and guests of the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. I’m addressing you this year under very different circumstances, so I’m here at a place that’s different than our usual venue. It’s a place that helps tell the story of our city — what we’ve been going through this year, how we’ve responded, and how we must move forward together."
For the full text of the Mayor's remarks: https://www.boston.gov/news/mayor-wal...
A
This
is
the
guild
in
dorchester,
it's
a
refuge
created
by
black
and
brown
bostonians,
where
neighbors
come
together
to
heal,
reclaim
and
revitalize
their
community
when
covert
hit
the
guild
jumped
into
action.
They
transformed
this
sanctuary
into
a
relief
hub,
providing
food
supplies,
comfort
and
care
to
the
families
and
seniors
in
their
community,
but
the
need
was
overwhelming
in
their
staff
and
volunteers
themselves
at
high
risk
from
coving.
A
It
was
the
same
story
at
so
many
of
our
non-profits.
At
the
same
time,
members
of
boston's
business
community
were
reaching
out
to
me
every
day.
Asking.
What
can
I
do
to
help?
That's
why?
In
march,
we
created
the
boston
resiliency
fund
to
connect
these
powerful
forces
of
compassion
in
our
city
and
put
them
to
work,
saving
lives.
A
Boston
responded
in
a
big
way.
We
blew
past
our
fundraising
goals
and
in
a
matter
of
days
we
were
getting
food,
healthcare,
diapers
and
formula
into
the
homes
of
our
residents
through
trusted.
Community
providers
with
the
resiliency
fund
backing
the
guild
expanded
its
reach
from
a
few
hundred
neighbors
to
a
total
of
now
over
thirty
thousand
residents,
including
seniors
families
in
quarantine
and
immigrant
households
in
neighborhoods
all
across
the
city,
one
young
woman
discovered
a
passion
for
volunteering
at
the
guild
and
connecting
her
with
elderly
neighbors.
A
She
said
it's
so
much
more
than
just
distributing
supplies.
It's
uplifting
our
community
in
tough
times,
bostonians
work
together.
No
one
should
get
left
behind.
That's
what
the
guild
works
for
here
and
that's
what
we
work
for
in
every
neighborhood
of
our
city,
so
boston
could
stay
home
and
flatten
the
curve.
A
A
A
I
want
to
thank
everyone
who
donated
to
the
resiliency
fund,
for
your
generosity
and
for
the
many
businesses
who
reached
out
in
our
time
of
need-
and
I
want
to
thank
the
volunteers
and
workers
who
deliver
these
services
to
their
neighbors
and
to
continue
to
do
so.
Every
single
day
we
proved
in
boston,
there's
absolutely
nothing.
We
can't
do
when
we
come
together.
A
I
know
why
there
was
hesitancy,
what
the
scientists
were
telling
us
was
frightening,
but
we
had
to
listen
to
that
science
and
we
had
to
take
action.
Lives
were
at
stake
and
I
knew
our
city
would
rise
to
the
occasion.
Here's
what
we
did.
We
brought
in
the
crystal
group
to
help
us
reorganize
the
operations
of
the
city
government
around
the
daily
crisis
response.
A
We
created
a
daily
text
message
alert
system
that
gets
critical
information
to
nearly
a
hundred
thousand
residents
in
11
different
languages.
We
brought
covet
testing
to
18
community
health
centers,
making
sure
that
every
single
resident
has
access
to
no-cost
testing
from
a
trusted
provider
in
their
own
neighborhood.
A
We
created
a
health
and
equities
task
force
and
an
immigrant
collaborative
to
target
resources
of
the
vulnerable
communities
that
are
hardest
hit
by
covenant.
We
put
together
a
city-wide
food
access
system
that
has
distributed
over
3.5
million,
free
meals
to
families
and
seniors
in
need.
We
funded
a
thousand
child
care
seats
for
essential
workers.
A
A
We
created
a
small
business
fund
and
have
gotten
nine
million
dollars
to
over
2500
businesses.
More
than
half
of
them
are
owned
by
people
of
color
we've
approved
over
550
restaurants,
all
across
the
city
for
outdoor
dining,
both
in
public
and
private
spaces
in
in
covet
related
city
contracting,
33
percent
of
our
spending
has
gone
to
certified
women
and
minority
owned
businesses
to
get
all
this
done.
We
worked
more
collaboratively
than
ever
before.
A
Seven
straight
months
of
crisis
response
has
made
city
government
more
integrated,
more
nimble,
more
responsive
and
we're
going
to
stay.
That
way,
we
have
broken
down
silos
and
we're
working
with
anyone
who
can
help
our
city
move
forward:
health,
centers
and
non-profits
businesses
and
community
groups,
colleges
and
universities,
and
we're
going
to
keep
working
together
every
single
day
to
get
our
city
through
this
pandemic
and
meet
all
the
challenges
that
lie
ahead.
A
A
A
We
are
still
in
the
thick
of
this
fight.
Covert
is
still
very
much
with
us.
Economic
recovery
will
be
a
long
hard
road,
racial
injustice
must
be
addressed
and
equity
must
be
our
shared
goal.
These
are
no
small
tasks
based
on
our
response.
So
far
we
have
proven
we
can
do
hard
things,
and
my
priorities
remain
clear.
A
Today,
I'm
going
to
talk
about
how
we're
advancing
these
priorities
in
city
government
and
what
we
must
all
do
to
stay
safe,
recover
and
rebuild
our
city
I'll
start
with
our
city
finances.
Every
organization
has
faced
tough
realities
this
year,
whether
you're
a
local
business
or
a
large
corporation,
a
neighborhood,
non-profit
or
a
world's
world's
famous
hospital.
A
A
We
also
maintained
our
capital
investments,
so
we
can
continue
to
strengthen
our
city
and
boston
remains
a
place
where
people
want
to
raise
their
families
and
come
to
work
in
the
midst
of
a
trying
time.
Residents
in
every
neighborhood
will
continue
to
see
improvements
in
safety,
opportunity
and
quality
life
in
their
communities.
A
It
will
host
an
african-american
collection
and
a
center
for
economic
justice
dedicated
to
martin
luther
king,
jr
and
coretta
scott
king's
legacy.
In
our
city,
we've
been
laying
the
groundwork
to
withstand
a
crisis
like
this.
For
years,
through
responsible
budgeting,
we
earned
a
perfect
aaa
bond
rating
for
a
record
seven
years
in
a
row
that
put
us
in
a
position
to
weather
this
storm
while
continuing
to
support
our
city
and
invest
in
our
neighborhoods.
A
We
will
continue
to
make
whatever
adjustments
to
our
budgets
are
needed,
because
protecting
the
city's
financial
health
is
how
we
maintain
a
well-functioning
government
that
can
be
there
for
people
in
both
good
times
and
in
hard
times
on
so
many
issues.
The
priorities,
the
planning
and
the
investments
we
made
before
covet
have
put
us
in
a
stronger
position
to
respond
recover
and
rebuild
in
housing.
A
That's
more
crucial
than
ever
as
the
state
in
the
federal
eviction
moratorium
expires
in
transportation.
The
plans
we
made
to
expand
bus
lanes
and
bike
lanes
are
exactly
what
we
need
to
help
frontline
workers
to
get
to
and
from
their
job
safely,
now
we're
making
them
permanent
on
the
environment.
The
pandemic
has
shown
us
why
our
commitment
to
following
science,
investing
in
resilience
and
advancing
environmental
justice
is
so
important.
A
A
It's
not
just
an
achievement
gap
in
our
schools.
It's
a
skills
gap
in
our
future
workforce
and
it's
the
concept
of
equity,
clearly
defined
a
child
without
a
computer
or
internet
at
home,
needs
a
different
level
of
engagement
and
investment
than
a
child
in
a
well-resourced
home,
especially
when
you
consider
how
likely
it
is
that
the
same
child
also
experiences
systemic
racism
through
housing,
insecurities
health
inequities
and
a
host
of
other
challenges.
A
A
We
are
working
with
leaders
and
experts
in
every
industry,
providing
safety
guidelines
and
protective
equipment
listening
to
their
needs
and
concerns
and
identifying
opportunities
to
help,
especially
the
hardest
head
to
help
the
tourism
sector
rebuild.
We
have
launched
a
plan
for
marketing
campaign
to
invite
and
welcome
regional
visitors
to
our
city
in
a
safe
and
healthy
way.
A
A
That's
not
counting
suffolk
downs,
the
largest
private
investment
in
affordable
housing
and
resilient
infrastructure
in
boston's
history,
as
we
welcome
major
investments,
we're
also
in
the
trenches
helping
our
small
businesses.
They
are
the
backbone
of
our
neighborhood
economies
and
local
communities,
and
they
have
taken
a
huge
hit
due
to
coving.
A
So,
while
we've
taken
the
steps
necessary
to
protect
our
residents,
we've
also
worked
harder
than
ever
before
to
understand
and
respond
to
the
needs
of
our
small
businesses.
For
restaurants,
like
el
barrio
cafe
and
dorchester.
These
measures
have
been
life.
Savers
owners,
joe
andre
vasquez,
said
he
could
not
have
reopened
without
the
grant,
funding
and
outdoor
dining
supports
from
the
city.
A
A
A
I
devoted
my
chamber
address
to
calling
out
our
city
to
dismantle
and
end
systemic
racism.
Here's
what
I
said.
Racial
inequities
are
evident
in
health,
education
and
almost
every
aspect
of
community
and
individual
well-being.
These
disparities
are
not
only
rooted
in
history.
They
continue
to
be
presenting
barriers
to
opportunity
today.
A
A
It
was
the
first
time
in
boston's
history
that
a
mayor
put
ending
systemic
racism
at
the
top
of
our
city's
agenda
and
we
have
advanced
this
priority
in
every
aspect
of
city
policy.
In
our
school
investments
in
our
housing
policies
in
our
neighborhood
investments
in
transportation
access,
it's
our
economic
vision
and
that's
our
public
health
mission.
A
The
covet
crisis
is
a
good
example.
It's
a
lesson
in
systemic
inequality
and
has
taken
intentional
work
every
day
to
address
it.
That's
also
a
lesson
on
how
we
are
leading
in
boston
by
tackling
inequities
head-on
and
unlocking
the
immense
talent
in
the
black
community
and
communities
of
color
to
build,
create
and
succeed.
A
A
The
conversations
we
had
with
the
chamber
in
2016
didn't
get
us
there.
This
time
must
be
different.
In
the
coming
days,
I
will
receive
the
final
recommendations
of
our
police
reform
task
force.
We
will
break
new
ground
in
accountability,
diversity
and
transparency,
but
ending
systemic
racism
goes
so
much
further
than
police
policies.
A
A
A
A
A
A
I
want
to
thank
the
businesses
and
non-profit
leaders
who
reached
out
to
help
us.
I
want
to
thank
the
nurses
and
doctors
and
medical
staff
who
worked
around
the
clock
to
save
lives.
I
want
to
thank
the
police,
fire
and
ems
first
responders,
who
never
stop
being
there
for
us,
no
matter
the
risk.
I
want
to
thank
the
grocery
store
workers,
the
restaurant
workers
and
delivery
drivers
who
kept
us
fed.
A
A
A
Boston
has
been
knocked
down
before,
but
we've
always
gotten
back
up
and
when
we
rise
up,
we
reach
back
and
lift
all
those
who
have
been
held
down
in
the
past
this
year,
and
these
challenges
are
no
different.
We
are
determined
to
keep
the
people
of
our
city
safe.
We
are
determined
to
come
out
of
this
crisis,
a
more
resilient
and
a
more
equitable
city
than
we
entered
it.
We
are
boston
and
there
is
nothing
we
can't
do
when
we
work
together.
Thank
you.
God
bless
you.
God
bless
the
city
of.