December 13, 2020
Honorable William F. Galvin
Secretary of the Commonwealth
McCormack Building
One Ashburton Place
Boston, MA 02108
Re: Civil Rights Violation – Coming Right Up
Honorable Secretary Galvin:
Salutation. I hope that this letter finds you well and safe during this pandemic, and we wish you and yours are having good holidays.
You will find the grievance of the residents of Lawrence, in this letter in regards to what we believe is a violation of the 1964 Civil Rights, and the 1965 Civil Rights amendment. Most of us are afraid to individually report our complaints for fear of our safety. As you know, during this period, this nation is not safe when individuals speak up for voting rights or violations of rules and powers. Violence has taken abruptly the streets of the US.
Occasionally, a group of individuals will congregate to establish an end without caring for the means. It’s happening more often now, in this period of time, than it has at any time in history. It is occurring nationally, regionally, and now locally.
The most liberal democrat state in the nation is about to get a request, from a handful of elected officials, in its attempt to violate a voting act and mute the residents choice and voice.
A home rule petition conversation had already been surfacing since way before the announcement to replace outgoing Lawrence Mayor Rivera. A conspiracy and a plan, between the mayor, the city council, and his selected mayoral candidate had already begun before the announcement of Mayor Rivera’s departure. The plan: to delay elections on purpose to allow three things to possibly occur. But in any event, it’s to not allow others the rights to be considered in the special election and not allow the voters to exercise their rights under the City’s charter.
The first reason is to allow Council President Kendrys Vasquez an opportunity to gain the $100,000 income, that he would make while the Acting Mayor, pay until the beginning of January 2022. As you may know, Kendry’s employer fired him and kept Council President out of a decent paying job, until now.
The second is to allow Kendrys to get motivated, while in the Acting in the Mayor’s office, to run for Mayor seeing that he may have a better shot at winning than Vilma Dominguez Martinez (Mayor Rivera’s candidate).
The third is to allow the Mayor’s candidate (Vilma Dominguez-Martinez) more time to get her campaign going, because the numbers are not there for her yet.
The mayoral campaign has been a given, seeing that Mayor Rivera and his favorite news sites have been mentioning only Vilma in every article or press conference that has nothing to do with her position, only to get her to gain recognition. I would remind you of prior Secretary of the Lottery, Tim Cahill, and how he was found to have manipulated the press and locals into having his name of work-related ads and tasks when he contemplated for elected office. It is the very same thing that is occurring with Rivera and Dominguez-Martinez. Mayor Rivera has made sure she is at events) with him) that make it seems she was involved, when in fact the reason for the attendance is to somehow show support for her candidacy, while working, but not job-related. Am investigation will find numerous articles in which both are pictured together. The same communication has been passed to The Eagle-Tribune as was evident that they only interviewed Martinez-Dominguez for an article of the Mayor’s departure.
One would like to believe that a minority lead city such as Lawrence would not want their elected officials to override the constitution of the City of Lawrence. It’s hypocrisy at least and a violation of rights at worst. These are the exact things that many Democrats, in 2020, have been grieving throughout the United States – that the Republicans are looking to legislative bodies or courts to change the rules, of the elections, results, or rules, to benefit the party and its party leaders, or specific individuals. This is the same that is to be tried in Lawrence in the coming weeks.
Lawrence residents now face a tremendous obstacle to voting in a special election, by a bureaucratic restriction of the city council, to deny them the right to vote in a special election. Let’s break down the council by race. Two whites councilmembers (who have provided news-press their affirmative to canceling the special election). Additionally, there are seven minority councilmembers (all from the Dominican Republic and have knowing knowledge of their island’s historical abuses of elections and corrupt politicians). Additionally, a home rule petition would require the Massachusetts States Legislative to approve the Lawrence City Council request (most of the white Anglo-Saxon elected officials – that if approved would deny the rights to thousands of minorities in Lawrence the right to vote in a special election. If home rule petitions are to change the city charter is going when the powers do not want to lose power or is in their way, then why does the City have a Charter? Why not just run the city without one? This is a sarcastic question, no need to answer. It shows that when the powers to be do not like the rules they tend to want it no applied to them. The city charter was created with the intention that the rules and ordinances would be followed.
The City Charter (Lawrence’s constitution) was designed with the US Constitution in mind, and its amendments to enforce the voting rights guaranteed by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, the Act secured the right to vote for racial minorities (not only Latinos but minorities that arrived in Lawrence in prior years). The request to send a home rule petition disenfranchises the minority population of Lawrence.
Now let’s speak as to the reasons why the council would what to do the home rule petition. Councilmember Marc Laplante spoke about the funding issues and the departure of the city clerk (through the regional newspaper), while Mayor Rivera has spoken about the virus, as to some of the reasons they find it necessary to cancel Lawrence elections, to Governor Baker.
Let us just get the injudicious excuse that the virus is one of the reasons for canceling special elections. Let me remind you that the national elections just occurred in November 2020, and neither the Commonwealth’s nor was the City’s election stopped because of COVID19. People could vote by mail, vote early, and polling places were open – you did a great job in sending that message out to Massachusetts and we took it to heart as a safety message to our right to vote. No COVID19 clusters occurred, in Lawrence, because of the virus – at least none supported by Mayor Rivera’s contact tracing team data. You were adamant to our elected officials that the city did not block any intent to delay or violate the voting of its residents. We ask that of you again.
Additionally, the city council has decided to ask former City Clerk Maloney to return on a consultant, or part-time basis, if they needed him soon and to close out some work. Also, the reason why the council is using “lack of city clerk” is a smack to the face of Acting City Clerk Richard Reyes as to his abilities to do his job. You as Secretary of State, have been nothing more than over the top on Richard’s experience and ability to move the Lawrence Election Office forward. This was evident when Richard departed the City and was asked to return due to a lack of experience of Lawrence election staff; City Clerk Maloney had an awful difficult time without Mr. Reyes for the few weeks that he was at another gained employment (he is a hero). You applauded his return and had concerns over the election office staff.
The next excuse that was given was lack of funding. The funding is available. The city has enough free cash to allow for these elections to go forward. The city is in a healthy funding savings and a healthy funding spree. The Mayor stated that the city was financially healthy during his last budget hearing, and in March 2020 asks the Commonwealth to borrowed $6.9 million while increasing the people’s taxes by the maximum of 2.5%. Are we to believe that upon his departure the City’s finance are in dire straits? No, of course not and even if they were, he would not tell you especially when he is departing to a state job (so much regarding his saying of “I am not going anywhere, I am here until my last day serving as Mayor”).
So, all these excuses (and more to come, we are sure) are only a veil to real reasons that Mayor Rivera, some members of the city council, and Vilma Dominguez-Martinez are looking to delay the elections until next September 2021.
Let us not allow this small group to do this and let us allow the people of Lawrence to speak, by allowing them to vote in a special election as it’s written in our city charter. The end does not justify the means, it just violates the rights of its people. It is a work around for those who are corrupted (or are afraid to lose power) in Lawrence. I am sure that many reasons could be placed that this action may have implications due to the protection of the Civil Rights.
This is not different than what he and others have allowed the state to do, and that is to take away the rights of the people of Lawrence to vote for school committee as per the city charter. This has been like this for 10 years – no school election = civil rights violation for the people of Lawrence.
I hope that you can assist us once again!
Respectfully,
The People of the City of Lawrence
Los Residentes de la Ciudad de Lawrence
EDITOR’S NOTE: We are withholding the writer’s name to protect his/her privacy.
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