A Boston (R)Evolution

Man: When you think of Boston... you don't think of people that look like me.

[Celtic rock music playing] How do you like them apples?

[Laughing] [Bleep] you.

[Bleep] you!

Make me a martini!

Skank.

Skank!

Don't call me skank.

I'll rip that nasty hair right outta your [bleep] head.

Man: You're either Irish or Italian Catholic and you have an accent and you live in these areas.

I mean, it's sad that people can't name a neighborhood in Boston that isn't South Boston or Dorchester.

There are 23 neighborhoods in Boston.

People have no idea what Boston is.

Man: They just see the Celtics, they see the Bruins.

They don't see the inner-city life.

They only see what's depicted on TV.

You know, it's probably one of the most segregated cities in the country.

So you have Boylston, Newbury, Fenway Park, but there's this whole other side of the city-- Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, that house most of the Black and Brown people.

Which city treats Black people the best?

Crowd: Boston!

It's Atlanta, actually.

Man: Boston was by far ranked as the least-welcoming to people of color among 8 major cities.

[Applause] I was born and raised in Boston, which makes me the first Black woman to ever admit that.

[Applause] Woman: The median net worth of white families in Boston was $247,500.

Compare that to the median net worth of Black families in Boston, which was $8.00.

Man: $8.00 That's not even a grande soy latte.

Man: Boston has to change.

[Seagulls squawking] [Mayor Marty Walsh] The United States Senate voted to confirm my nomination as United States Secretary of Labor.

Council President Janey will become acting mayor per city charter.

Reporter: A historic day in Boston, Kim Janey sworn in as mayor, becoming the first woman and the first person of color to take over the city's top job.

Walsh: Think about this for a minute.

A little girl from Roxbury is about to be mayor of Boston.

Woman: Congratulations, Madam Mayor.

[Applause] Man: Congratulations, Ms. Mayor.

Thank you so much.

Thank you Al, thank you Craig for having me.

Thank you.

So, let me ask you, you grew up in Boston.

Did you ever imagine a time when there would be a Boston mayor of color and that it would be you?

No, never in a million years.

And me sitting here... Man: During all of my life in Boston, every candidate for mayor was an Irish candidate.

Man: For years, it was like the Irish versus the Italians in Boston for decades.

Woman: That's what counted as diversity here, right?

Diversity was Italian and Irish.

Man: Everybody else was peripheral.

I mean, Menino was the first Italian.

That's right.

Ha ha!

Man: The demographics have changed.

It's a different ball game.

And so finally, a mayor of Boston won't be a white male, and that's a big deal.

Woman: It's so groundbreaking, kinda earth-shattering, you know, the evolution of, you know, possibilities with Mayor Janey, and it opens doors for my daughter, you know what I'm saying?

It gives her hope.

[Applause] Good afternoon, everyone.

Woman: Given Boston's fraught racial past, the significance of Janey's ascension is clear but how to describe her isn't.

Kim Janey will be sworn in as acting mayor.

Now, acting mayor Kim Janey.

She'll serve as acting mayor until the November election.

Woman: But as Kim Janey was sworn in, it became clear that's not what she's calling herself.

I stand before you as the first woman and the first Black mayor of Boston, the city that I love.

Man: Or as she puts it in her Twitter bio: "Not acting, doing."

[Cheers and applause] Janey: Even before I was sworn in, there was all this talk about power and what kind of power would I have or did I have or did I have any power?

[Cheering and applause] You know, I would reflect on the quote from Alice Walker that says, "The biggest way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any."

[Applause] And so it was important for me to walk into this office knowing that I had power.

[People chatting indistinctly] Janey: I am here today to announce that I am running for a full term as mayor to ensure we continue to get that work and so much more done for the people of Boston.

Now, Boston having its first woman and first Black mayor, that's just the start.

We've got work to do.

I am fourth-generation Roxbury.

My daughter is fifth-generation Roxbury, and my grandchildren are sixth.

But turns out that the generations go even further back than six.

You know, they do the ancestry of every mayor of Boston.

And so I learned that there were Janeys who were very active in Massachusetts, in the Abolitionist Society and the Free African Society.

And so that was the 1800s that we have been here in Massachusetts.

And so I am blessed to come from such good stock and I'm gonna focus on making sure that as mayor, my city and the people who call Boston home are well taken care of.

Reporter: Kim Janey now officially joining the already crowded race for mayor in Boston.

Reporter: The preliminary election is coming up on September 14th.

It will narrow down this historically diverse field of mayoral candidates.

The two mayoral candidates who receive the most votes will go on to the general election in November.

Woman: This is a historical time in our city.

I mean, we've never seen this many candidates of color, this many female candidates.

I'm so empowered.

Good time to be alive.

[Chuckling] Men, we have messed this thing up for too long.

It is now time, you know.

I think about my daughters.

I think about these young men.

We need a progressive woman in that office.

This is a time where people should really get out, grasp what's going on, enjoy it, and participate in the process.

Woman: When I was a kid, it was all the Irish boys running, right?

Nobody ever asked the question whether or not, "Well, is one too many Irish boy running?"

They just ran, right?

[Applause] Right?

Now that we have the diversity of Black and Brown folks running and we're asking the question.

That's the wrong question.

Crowd: That's right.

The right question is who is most qualified to do this work?

Crowd: That's right, that's right.

[Applause] And when I asked myself that question, I came up with Andrea Campbell.

Woman: Yes.

[Applause] Woman: We love you!

Campbell: This is our moment in time to transform the city of Boston.

The backdrop was COVID-19 devastating our communities, especially communities of color.

The backdrop was the painful public murder of George Floyd that we all experienced.

And as a Black woman and as a mother of two boys, I said, "I'm gonna do something about that."

I'm no longer standing on the sidelines waiting for someone else to exercise the leadership that I know is meant for me.

That's right, that's right.

Campbell: This is our time to close all of these gaps for every single family in the city of Boston, to truly make the next generation's lives easier and the generation after that and the generation after that.

Thank you all so very much.

[Cheering and applause] Woman: It's everyday working-class people, who live in the city, who look like me, who really force the city to change course, even if it's not in the textbooks, our stories, the stories of Black and LatinX families, the story of young people, the cross-racial, the cross-cultural, the cross-class coalitions gave us a sense of ownership over this city.

People are telling me that I'm too young to be running.

Like, you are never too young to exercise your right to be a person in your community who brings along everyone with you.

So age is not a determinant of the power and the strength of your voice.

[Laughter] [Soft jazz music playing] Woman: And you guys are already fully vaccinated?

Yes.

Perfect, welcome.

[Indistinct chatter] Woman: Latinas for Michelle Wu for mayor.

Yeah!

Man: Look at the beautiful diversity that we have here today.

This family here clearly shows that we can, we should, and we will change the world together.

All aboard!

Audience: Wu train!

[Applause] Hello, everyone!

[Crowd responding] Wu: This is a city whose legacy has always been about standing up and fighting for what's right, standing up for our common shared destiny, the public good, our commonwealth, the city who gave birth to American democracy.

The conversations that we are building, the team, the momentum that we are building today, we are aiming for that future that we all deserve, the city that we dream of, and we are going to do it across every single community.

I'm so grateful for all of you, I'm so thankful.

We're gonna get this done and I love you all so, so much.

Thank you for being here.

Man: We think of Boston as a place where we think about the Kennedy legacy and we think about the Kevin Whites and the Meninos and the Walshes.

I think it's now a town in which we think about the legacy of people like the Ayanna Pressleys, Elizabeth Warren, and women politicians as really defining Boston in a critical way.

Man: It just feels like such a sea change that's happened so quickly.

And it feels like a moment of like big change in the city in a way that other elections, at least to me, have not.

Man: The demographic change here is really a big part of the story.

Walker: Yeah.

And the way also that, you know, one election cycle after another, you could see it unfolding.

This year, no white, Irish politician in the city elected to say, "This is a good idea, this is my year," right?

That's the first time that's ever happened.

And believe me, they did consider it, but they looked at this field of candidates mainly of women and said, "You know, I'm gonna sit this one out."

Woman: Would you ever run for mayor?

They told me it wasn't my time, not time for a white man.

You know, it's a Black woman's time.

You know, and this is my only time.

I'm here 10 years.

If I were ever to run for mayor, it was this last time.

But hammering, "How dare would you ever even think putting your name on the ballot in this time?"

This has been therapy for me.

Thank you.

[Dog barking] [Knock on door] Man: What's up, Annissa?

How are you?

George: I'm good!

Keep working hard, my friend.

Yeah, keep working hard.

Good to see you.

How are you?

Good.

Hi.

Hi.

How are you?

Man: We work very, very hard.

We are all behind you around here.

George: I love it, love it.

We're pushing hard, I hope that you know, for all of our children, for all of our children, for the sake of this city, we're hoping you're successful.

Woman: Who's that?

Annissa.

Annissa.

Hi, everybody!

[Cheering and applause] Man: Next mayor!

George: I just--I just wanna take a few minutes as we-- Boy: I love you, Annissa.

I love you, too.

[Crowd chuckling] He told me he loved me!

I am overwhelmed.

I am overjoyed.

I am truly humbled.

Man: Our next mayor.

[Applause] George: And yes!

I wanna be your next mayor.

[Cheering and applause] Man: I totally agree with you on the problems.

Well, let's talk about some solutions.

Man: The solution.

The solution is us.

The solution is me and you.

The solution is all of us right here.

Is me and you-- Yeah.

coming together and going, "You know what?"

Yeah.

"Let's do this."

Because if you and I can agree on something and do it, that's power, you know?

That's why I stand on the corner-- But it start with us.

It start with us.

All right?

I know.

So, like-- You want a hug?

I give you a hug, brother.

Hey, that's what life is all about.

That's what life is all about.

It's about bringing everybody- You're supposed to do that for 30 seconds, though.

30 seconds, all right.

You still got 5 more.

1, 2...You lead the dance, don't you?

28, 29, 30!

29, 30!

That's how you [bleep] do it.

That's how you do it.

That's how you [bleep] make the change.

[Applause] Janey: I grew up here and I know what it's like to have people write me off.

I know what that is like.

As a young teenage parent, as someone who grew up poor in the city of Boston, in a neighborhood that was not invested in, I remember the Boston where there were certain neighborhoods where you could not go.

When I got to Boston, I was warned of South Boston, some areas that I shouldn't go.

At night, I wouldn't walk anywhere in the city, just scares me almost.

Nobody in the city is free to go any place they wanna go.

I'm old enough to know what that was like.

And there's still a lot of baggage that we carry from that time.

And so when folks are looking for someone who understands what the challenges are in our city and the importance and power on how we come together to solve those together, I hope that they see that in me.

[Metro bell clangs] Woman: 'Cause we see the ads it's inclusive, it's progressive it's this, it's that.

Announcer: This is a city where new voices are emerging.

Woman: I think that the All Inclusive Campaign is about where we wanna be and about where we wanna go and I think that it is absolutely right spot on about what we should be talking, what should be our goal, but it takes more than that message.

It takes action and just different thinking.

So, when I think about Boston and where we are, I think about Boston as the city of contradictions.

On the one hand, it has this wonderful history as home to the radical abolition movement where there were key figures like William Cooper Nell and William Lloyd Garrison and Mariah Stewart, right, advocating for Black civil rights and Black freedom.

And on the other hand, Boston was home to the doctrine of separate but equal.

What some people don't realize is that the very doctrine comes from the Roberts versus City of Boston's equal school rights case, where the judge said there was a school for Black children, though it was separate, it was equal.

And so for me, Boston has always had to sort of deal with these tensions.

Man: You got Harvard, you have MIT, you know, BU, BC, you know, some of the finest universities on the planet, but then our public school system's in shambles?

Like, how does that-- that shows you right there the split.

Boston kinda has a-- it has this very segregated city, the Irish were here there, but it did not have, at least for African Americans, from my perspective, we always felt like, many felt like we were not wanted here--it was a cold city.

For me, I always thought that the understanding of Boston, its place in the country and the history, we have to get off of the Freedom Trail, we gotta go beyond the Freedom Trail.

We have to understand what took place.

See, if you're a Black kid growing up in Boston, you read about John Adams and Paul Revere, that's all taking place--the Constitution-- all that that's taking place somewhere else, and they're all white folks.

You don't hear the history of the African Meeting House, you don't hear about the intellectual development on Beacon Hill.

You don't hear about people like William Trotter, Prince Hall, and people like that.

You don't understand, for example, you don't understand that the Black Panthers created the first public breakfast program in the country here.

And if the people can get out and kids can walk around the streets of Boston and say, "This is the history, this is my neighborhood and I'm part of this history."

It's not just the Black history.

It's American history.

And I think that's the understanding that we need to have.

The first time I saw anybody come through and paint the street or fix potholes or clean up our neighborhood-- and this is a major street, major street, Mass Ave-- in Boston was, we saw these white people show up and they had everything.

They had paint, they had-- they were pouring cement, and they were like making asphalt and they were just like paving the streets.

And I'm like, "Wow!

Like, finally, they're gonna fix up the neighborhood."

We had these big brick planters in the middle of the street on what we call islands.

They went into these planters, pulled up all the weeds, and planted flowers there, all along the stretch of Mass Ave. And we're like, "Wow!"

This happens over like almost a week.

And they work fast, around the clock.

They go up to the street signs, they put flowers on all these street signs.

And I'm like, "What are they doing?"

And later we found out why they did that.

There was a new pope and the Pope was doing a tour.

It was a rockstar welcome for the pontiff as his motorcade made his way through the streets of our city.

Reporter: The Pope half seated in his limousine and hidden by all the Air Force people guarding the streets, sped up and sped by.

Adams: One of the places he was gonna go through was our stretch of Mass Ave. South End, Lower Roxbury.

And they'd be damned if the world saw how rundown the neighborhood where the Black and Latino families live is.

Janey: Boston has this duality in terms of our own history.

We are in some ways the birthplace of democracy, the birthplace of the abolitionist movement but Massachusetts is also the first state to legalize slavery.

Boston was slow when it came to school desegregation, 20 years after "Brown v. Board of Education" in 1954.

Boston began in 1974.

I was bused in 1976 in the second phase.

[Crowd chanting] Woman: It's tearing them apart.

As a community, it's tearing them apart.

[Shouting] Boy: And while we was in school, they was throwing glass at Black people and little kids.

Let us go to our neighborhoods where our kids are safe!

We want our kids safe!

We want our people safe!

I'm ordering you to disperse in the name of the Commonwealth.

If you're not gonna disperse, you're gonna be arrested.

Janey: I was one of those kids on one of those buses, at 11 years old.

And those images of angry mobs stoning our buses, calling us the N-word, not wanting us in this particular community, those images went out all over the country.

And that reputation has stuck with us.

Today, our schools are still segregated by race.

So, here we are almost 50 years later and we still see segregation not just in our schools and where we live and how we move about the city.

So, while there is more freedom to move, there is still this notion of these individuals can go here and do these things and these other individuals move over here.

I'm not prejudiced, but I like it, with regular white people, this neighborhood here.

Southie has always been a white town, I think it should stay that way.

Woman: What do you think will happen when they do move in?

There's gonna be a lot of trouble.

But honestly, I feel like if they move in, I'll move out.

Man: I never once, in growing up and traveling all around Boston and its perimeter, was accosted or called names up until the busing and then it changed.

There was one street in a part of Boston I used to drive down quite frequently and a school had been torn down and there was a brick wall left.

And on that brick wall in formed letters, I would say at least 2 feet high, somebody had spray painted KILL NIGGERS" And I used to drive by that street all the time and I would look at it.

Now, I would give credence to the person who did it, he just hates people he doesn't like that are different.

But one of the things that I could not understand was why the local tenants that lived on that street allowed it, why they didn't remove it.

So as I asked nearby, they said, "Well, that's how they feel."

So that wasn't a pleasant remark for a city that was so endeared to me, that I've lived and worked in all my life.

[Chimes jingling] Man: I know people have different experiences.

I can honestly say I've never really experienced any negative interaction.

People were always treated as people, whether you were Black or white or whatever.

I remember as a young cop, when we arrested somebody, yeah, you met the guy who was-- but that was more posturing for people around him than it was directed at me because I was a white cop or anything like that, so... Woman: What about during busing, Dad?

You saw some bad stuff with white parents and they were attacking cops even 'cause they-- Yeah, but there was so much anger both-- Everywhere.

I'll tell you, the worst were the white parents in Southie.

Woman: My kid will never go to the Thompson.

I'll die first.

I got rights.

Well, I go, "Well, I'm not going to school no more," and I just walked out and I never went to school again.

And I've been outta school for almost 4 years now.

And I feel it's because of the Black people because of all this busing.

[Crowd shouting] O'Donnell: It was horrifying but it was so unsurprising.

There was a part of me that was looking at it and saying, "Well, OK, the truth about what this place is is finally out."

[Whistle blowing] Baumgartner: Boston's complicated racial history is so important because if we don't remember it, then we will tend to repeat it.

The fight that we see in the 19th century among African-Americans for equal school rights emerges again in the 20th century around school desegregation.

And it really means that that fight wasn't complete in the 19th century.

It wasn't finished in the 19th century.

We had to revisit it again in the 20th century.

And the question is, will we have to do that again in the 21st century or will we finally solve this issue?

[Laughter] Man: Joe used to-- Joe, from Charlestown, a townie.

And worked at the Boys & Girls Club for years.

Spent a lifetime there working.

Yeah.

Wow!

I still have kids coming back 5 years later saying, "You changed my life."

Changed my life.

You'll get my vote.

Thank you.

I promise you that.

I appreciate it.

I'm working hard, too.

I can tell.

Thank you.

Campbell: When we're talking about systemic reform and becoming a more anti-racist city and community, it's important that leaders speak to those assumptions and not just speak to them, but almost say, "Stop, Enough is enough."

And so we're doing that every day in the campaign, and I know it's resonating with a lot of folks.

Jack, say hello.

Hi.

Andrea Campbell.

Jackie's a townie.

My pleasure.

Nice to meet you.

Man: His sidekick Bobby.

You don't wanna come up and say hello?

Steve's a townie.

His daughter's a townie, not him, though.

You know this guy, yeah, let me tell you, he's the best loan shark in town.

Oh, yeah, I know.

We're trying to get away from all that, you know?

Cut the tape!

Cut the tape!

Ha ha!

Campbell: On one hand, the city of Boston can take a poor girl, me, out of Roxbury and send me to Princeton University, and by all metrics, I become successful.

My twin brother Andre, on the other hand, dies while in the custody of a prison.

And so I lift up that story to say, one, those inequities exist in the city of Boston.

There are disparate life outcomes that can happen in this city.

Knowing that to be a fact, how then are we going to address the inequities in the systems that allow for that?

No one person can undo the history of discrimination, but leadership is definitely necessary, and so I'm optimistic, at least in the city of Boston, given how small our city is, we can indeed solve these issues and be an example to other municipalities across the country on how to close these gaps going forward.

Reporter: Recent polling seems to suggest to me that at this point in the race, Kim Janey and Michelle Wu are the frontrunners.

That Annissa Essaibi George, who is in 3rd place, is in striking distance.

And that City Councilor Andrea Campbell, who struggled for quite a while to catch on, she's now in double digits and seems potentially to be in striking distance as well.

And she's been the one to my eye and ear who's been most aggressive when it comes to going after the acting mayor.

[Upbeat music playing] [Crowd cheering] [Cow bells clanging] Crowd: Whoo!

Whoo!

Woman: Andrea Campbell entered the race before Kim Janey.

So, I, you know, in hindsight, I guess I could understand that part of it, that some will say, "Well, Kim didn't have to run.

"She could have just said, "'Hey, I'm gonna serve as acting mayor.

"'Andrea Campbell has already entered the race, so I'm going to support her.'"

But who of us would do that?

[Cheering] Crowd: This girl is on fire... Reporter: Fireworks in a race for Boston Mayor.

Andrea Campbell calling on Mayor Kim Janey to disavow a super PAC over an attack ad.

Campbell: The acting mayor's super PAC is actually putting out attack ads right now specifically naming only me.

Reporter: Mayor Janey's campaign manager says Andrea Campbell's entire campaign is based on negative political attacks on Mayor Janey, so it's the height of hypocrisy for her to complain about an outside group providing voters with information about her.

Campbell: Black women are not a monolith, so just the framing of one Black woman running against another Black woman.

No.

It's Andrea Campbell running against a whole slate of other candidates.

And I recognize the history in that and it's wonderful.

And then I have to then of course, go out and make distinctions.

And there are major distinctions between me and all of the candidates, not just the other Black woman in the race.

I didn't give you a proper hug, I had to run to the bathroom.

No worries.

Thank you.

Yeah, absolutely, love.

Here we go.

Look at you wear these shoes.

I say, get 'em all scratched up, hey, hey.

I say, get mine all scratched up 'cause I said, "Oh, my goodness!"

Listen, these are comfortable.

It's a big chunky heel.

It's comfortable.

Security!

Man: Oh, hey, how are you?

Good to see you.

Nice to see you.

One moment at a time.

Good to see you.

Bless you.

How's everything?

Good, good.

Good to see you.

Good seeing you all talking.

Oh, absolutely.

Still talking to different ones as well, you is out here having fun.

Oh, absolutely.

They having fun.

At the end of the day, we all have to work together.

That's right.

That's it.

At the end of the day, we all have to work together.

Amen, Amen.

I'm praying for you.

All right, I appreciate that.

Take care.

All right.

All right.

Where are you going?

I was gonna take a picture.

Thanks for coming out.

Thanks for voting.

All right.

Woman: So I agree that all Black people are definitely not the same.

We shouldn't have to, as a people, get behind one candidate.

We are all very different, have different needs, but I think that we have a lot of shared experience.

And while it's unfortunate and it's not fair that as Black people we're kind of lumped together, it's almost vital in order for us to get anywhere that we do kind of come together in order to get ahead.

Right now, I don't necessarily see another way for us to get the political power that we need.

Paleologos: The lack of a smoke-filled room potentially hurt here.

The smoke-filled room would really be activists and players in the Black community.

You'd be getting together in the morning to make the decision about which one Black candidate was gonna run for mayor.

And they say, "Janey is the mayor.

"Janey has already made history.

"Andrea--bigger fish to fry, "You're gonna run for a statewide office and we're gonna back you for that."

That's how it used to work.

That's how the Irish--right-- it's how the Irish rose as a dominant political force.

You had the O'Neills and you had the old, you know, the Fitzgeralds and you had the old Irish families that kinda made those calls.

And obviously, you know, an African-American could leave the smoke-filled room and say, "I don't care.

I'm still running."

But that just would spoil the statistical probability of the outcome.

Woman: Many of those candidates were on the city council together, they were a sisterhood because they were changing Boston.

But when they're running for mayor, the sisterhood breaks up because isn't it great women are allowed to be competitive?

Woman: And I think that's good.

Yes, like, "I wanna win.

"You wanna win?

I wanna win."

Absolutely.

That sort of thing.

So, we saw that break up and this race allowed us, I think, to have a more complicated discussion of race and ethnicity.

It wasn't, there's a white candidate and one candidate of color and everybody has to get behind that one candidate of color.

That there was nuance and difference amongst these women.

I think that's real progress because we all ought to have choice.

O'Brien: Yep.

We ought to have choice, and I think it makes our candidates better.

It's going to produce stronger candidates, and that's the way it should be.

Yep.

It speaks to one of the ironies, I think, of Boston, that outsiders think, "It's run by Democrats.

It must be better here."

And when it comes to electing women and people of color, that simply hasn't been the case.

And that's because the Democratic Party only has to reinvent itself when it faces electoral instability, when they fear losing.

And they haven't feared losing until Ayanna Pressley.

Reporter: And we begin tonight with an historic upset in the race for Congress.

Boston City Councilor Ayanna Pressley defeating longtime incumbent Michael Capuano in the 7th Congressional district.

Pressley will become the first Black woman elected to Congress from Massachusetts.

[Applause] Woman: I think Ayanna's election rocked this city.

It rocked the region.

Change is on the way.

[Cheering and applause] Woman: First, you don't-- you don't challenge incumbents in Massachusetts, you know?

Yes, as a general rule, but like in Massachusetts like that's just like a non-starter, right?

And then tradition is that city councilors don't run for Congress.

And third, "Can I remind you, you're from Chicago.

"You're not actually really from here.

"It doesn't matter how many decades you spend.

People will hold that over you."

So let's make this official, y'all.

Are you ready to come to Congress with me?

[Cheering] Similar to, you know, Michelle and Kim and Andrea, they all did it by tapping in and inspiring people like me that the establishment never looked at either.

In the year 2000 when the census revealed that people of color were the majority in Boston.

I mean, that's when people started thinking like, "Yeah, we can do this."

I remember the 1983, Mel King, Ray Flynn election, and it was the first time a Black man had made it past the preliminary.

Crowd: We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

We want Mel!

Mel King for Mayor!

Mel King for Mayor!

Mel King for Mayor!

King: The city is coming together and feeling good because we are about coloring Boston beautiful.

We demonstrate in our campaign, in our approach, in our history, in our record, the politics of inclusion.

Woman: I'm mainly pushing for just not only the Blacks, but for all that are put down as far as minorities, and individuals that are poor.

OK, Mel King does represent that.

The people in Massachusetts minds have changed.

In 1980, Reagan won the state by 2,500 votes.

I get the impression there's a change in Massachusetts.

Brother Mel, I want to congratulate you for in your leadership, using the leverage of your leadership, to organize a rainbow coalition of the rejected, to pull all the people together.

[Applause] Man: Whoo!

Whoo!

Woman: Can you all speak about Mel King?

I miss Mel King.

hat a phenomenal man.

I used to see him walking-- A gentle giant.

Yes, and he always had time- Just a calmness about him.

And he would say, "Songbird, what you gonna tell me about today?"

Yep.

I said, "You know me."

"What's on your mind?"

What's on my mind?

That's it.

That's it.

Mel King.

And he would pull up a chair and sit down and could talk to you.

Woman: Yeah.

Mel King was someone who I thought was an extraordinary individual.

His home was a place that everybody knew it was there, for every Sunday, that was the place to go and sit and interface with the other activists in the city of Boston.

Mel King was an institution here.

[People chatting] Janey: I grew up knowing Mel King.

I've known him all my life.

He lived one street over from where my great-grandmother lived.

You know, I often talk about all of the ways and how Boston was different and how Black folks were denied so many opportunities and how, you know, all the ways that we were being left out as one piece of the story of growing up in the '70s and '80s.

But the other piece of the story, which I think is so powerful, are the ways that the Black community organized.

And so seeing Mel be active on so many issues in our neighborhood and in the city and then run for mayor and passing out flyers on his historic run way back when and then now here I am, it's just incredible.

Mel King.

[Indistinct chatter] Man: Mel King!

Yes, I'm a first-time voter and I voted for Mel.

Oh, Lord.

Why?

Because he's the first Black man to run for Boston.

Man: Mel King changed the dynamics of Boston.

He was a very serious candidate.

He got a lot of votes, not just Black votes, but he did come up short.

That would've changed the city tremendously back then.

Woman: The Black community is clearly not a monolith.

There are various elements to it.

First, do you agree with those who say that if you don't get 100% of the Black vote, that you are in trouble?

Obviously, for anybody to make that kind of statement, I don't think they have any understanding of either the Black community or the political process.

You never hear them saying that white candidates have to get 100% of the white vote.

I've never heard anybody say that an Irish candidate has to get 100% of the Irish vote.

Or an Italian candidate, 100% of the Italian vote in order for them to be credible.

I think that the place that that kind of question comes from is rooted in the racist nature of this society.

Jones-Henderson: His involvement in that campaign allowed a sharper light to be focused on it, those discrepancies and those deficits of the city of Boston.

And it challenged people, Flynn and others.

Man: Say, for example, Mel does not get elected.

The fact that you have the significant amount of participation in the process establishes the community as a political entity that cannot be ignored.

So in one sense, in one sense, this election is a no-lose proposition for the Black community.

[Chatter and laughter] Paleologos: Mel King was supported by Blacks of all income and education ranges and also white progressives.

And Mel King came so very close.

He was within 300 votes in the preliminary in the biggest turnout in 1983.

But it was 1983, and when you look at the other candidates-- you know, the Italians had Freddie Langone and Larry DiCara.

The Irish had Finnegan and Flynn and Kearney and Kiley.

It was an Irish step dance of politicians.

And so what happened was Mel King grew by 20,000 votes between the preliminary and the final and the winner, you know, Ray Flynn, grew by 80,000 votes.

All of those votes rotated because that was the 1983 Boston.

Miller: It felt like the Black community had higher turnout than it had at any point.

There was a coalition of Black, Latino, Asian, and white progressives and it wasn't enough to not lose by 2-1.

So, it's a long time coming, this moment here.

It was something that back then you didn't think would be possible.

[Traffic noises] Janey: Hi!

How are you guys?

How are you?

Hi, Madam Mayor, nice seeing you, how you doing?

Thank you.

Man: Mayor, you're getting a great response in Mattapan.

Thank you, thank you.

Man: Yeah, you are.

Woman: Mayor, can you put this-- Oh, more signatures.

My oldest one want her name on it.

Thank you, Mayor.

Once you are mayor, I'll never see you again.

Janey: Still mayor.

I'm mayor now.

Back to the office.

Woman: I think that a lot of the work that we're doing here is to make sure that folks know the importance, that folks know that she's currently in office but it's an acting position.

In order for us to get her in there for 4 more years, we need to make sure that we're taking that step and voting in elections that are traditionally dominated by other groups, traditional voters.

And traditional voters tend to be, you know, white, over 55.

And we need to make sure that we're switching up the folks that are voting and making sure that people that are of all ages, of all backgrounds are showing up on the polls.

I basically got involved 'cause I thought she provided the type of new leadership that we needed in Boston that would include everybody.

So I feel like this is the type of change that Boston, frankly, some people still don't want but I think it's for the better.

Woman: Who misses...?

[Group cheering] Woman: Oh.

Miss him.

We all miss him.

Who misses Walsh?

Women: Oh!

Woman: Who wants new changes?

Whoo!

OK. What are the most dramatic changes that you are experiencing?

How about violence?

How about violence?

Woman: Yeah, we don't like that.

Has it increased, you think?

We don't like violence, but we are for the police.

We are all the way for the police.

Don't stop anything with the police.

They deserve more.

Woman: Oh, of course, yeah.

See, they're here.

They come to our care- Woman: Do you believe, though, that, not to take away police, but to train police more-- Train.

Sometimes they're too violent.

They need to calm it down in a different method, a different-- Taekwondo or something.

Man: All the other candidates want to defund the police officers and she doesn't, right?

So, it's--I have 3 sons that are Boston police officers and one son-in-law, and then a bunch of nephews and nieces.

So, I have to support my family.

Woman: Another thing I wanna say.

You go by the charter schools in East Boston.

There's a big sign that says Black Lives Matter" "Black Lives..." this.

What happened to the white?

Woman: You can't say that.

Huh?

Come on!

Woman: I agree, but-- You can't say that?

What are you?

Color blind?

Woman: No, but that's-- Come on!

Reporter: A newly released Suffolk University Boston Globe Poll has Wu leading the pack with 31%.

That's 10 points above the other candidates right now.

She's followed by, in order: Janey, Essaibi George, and then Campbell.

Wu: I'm so grateful to get the chance to be together, to create together, to talk about our city together.

Boston can do big things.

When we truly decide to confront our crises, we can make anything happen here.

Man: I think Michelle Wu's ascent over the last, really, 8 years as a city councilor and steadily building a base, what's admirable about that, not only because she's an Asian woman living in Boston, but because she's a transplant, she isn't born here, and yet she's been able to build a very impressive coalition.

Woman: You know, Boston, we've made a lot of headlines as being one of the last major cities to have a-- to elect a Black mayor, right?

You know, but as an Asian-American woman, if Michelle is elected, I mean, that's-- Boston will break a barrier.

I mean, I don't think there's been an Asian-American mayor outside of the West Coast or Hawaii of a major city.

My mom lives in California and she even knows who Michelle Wu is and wondering if she's been elected mayor yet!

Wu: I grew up in an immigrant family as someone who never could have imagined even being affiliated with politics, much less on the ballot and running for office.

Politics and government always felt like it wasn't for people like my family, people who looked like us, who had our language background and cultural background.

We had moved around a couple times growing up as well.

And so, there was never a sense that I really belonged anywhere until I really got to know Boston.

I fell in love with the city starting to come and take the public transportation system, the MBTA, across the river to volunteer every weekend in Chinatown to get to know this community and the city.

And so I knew I wanted to stay and put down roots here and raise my family here.

But the jump to politics was still another big, big jump.

It really was because of what I experienced with my mom's journey with mental illness.

Myself at 23, all of a sudden, becoming a caregiver for my mom, raising my two sisters who were 10 and 16 and seeing how from every angle it felt like families like mine weren't seen, heard, valued.

The systems that had been set up were so distant, especially in those moments of need.

And...what I've now seen on this side of things is that, in fact, the very ways in which we are disconnected from government are what perpetuate the problems, the gaps, the inequities.

[Cheering] It is incredibly meaningful to me to be here with you all in this spot.

This is a place where immigrants came to find a foothold, separated from their families by the Chinese Exclusion Act, finding community in ways that they could, working long hours into the night to try to send the resources back to support their loved ones.

If there was ever a moment where we needed to tap into that spirit, it is right now.

[Cheering] O'Brien: I'm struck by how many individuals in Boston, who look like me, understand themselves still as more connected to their immigrant past than they actually are.

And so when you're mayor or when you're in these law firms of Boston and you are the power elite now, there is still an understanding of your immigrant story.

I think in Boston, at least some with that Irish and Italian influence, understand themselves as still the underdog.

Man: Yeah, yeah.

O'Brien: And so if you understand yourself as the underdog and other immigrants are coming in and they're saying, you know, correctly, "We're the underdog."

"No, I am."

And so that is just a Boston tension I see.

Watanabe: Right, but they see this immigrant past and then say to themselves, "We did it the right way and look what we did.

"And why aren't these other immigrants "doing it the right way?

Why are they sneaking in, coming in?"

O'Brien: That's right.

Watanabe: And it's a mythology about what their past in terms of what they've succeeded in and what's currently being faced.

There are lesson-- And like it happened to them, personally.

Exactly.

"We came in and we learned English and we assimilated--" and all these sort of, "Why can't you people?"

When we have new people coming into the town, a favorite word amongst the kids, "Are they liberals?"

And liberals, to me, to call you a liberal has nothing to do with how you think as far as politically.

Liberal is like a swear word almost.

You know, it's just that you're a newcomer in this town.

Man: To be fair, this is an American thing, not a Bostonian thing.

Watanabe: I know it is, I know it is, it's very much that.

But the holding on I think is something Boston.

Yeah, the Bostonian.

Yeah.

[Dog barking] George: Any immigrant story, it's about this "American Dream" and to, in some way, I don't know whether this would've been their dream but to fulfill sort of the promise of what dreams are is pretty special to be able to do that for my family.

My parents had two different immigration stories.

My mother came when she was really young with her parents.

My mother for all intents and purposes, grew up very American.

She grew up speaking English.

You know, her whole educational experience was in Boston.

My father came as an adult, and he was an Arab and he was Muslim and he looked a little different than a lot of people in this neighborhood here.

Identity became a big talking point in this race.

And you know, it's always been an underlying topic for me because I appreciate the privilege that I have being the daughter of a Polish woman and the daughter of an Arab man and the opportunity that gives me to exist in lots of different rooms and the challenge it presents where I don't sort of fit in anywhere.

Woman: I don't know.

Do you think people are voting based on race, like for or against?

Man: No, I think this neighborhood, given its conservative history will probably vote probably George in the election.

She'll get a lot of votes here.

So I don't think it, you know, that it's a woman order.

I think it's more of how they align politically in ideology with the candidates.

Man: I actually want Michelle Wu to win the race.

And I think if she does win, which I think she will, I don't think-- it's not gonna change this neighborhood because we all, we're not very dependent on our elected officials, for the most part, as opposed to other neighborhoods.

I mean, everybody in this neighborhood, it's an owner-occupied, most owner-occupied houses.

They all work, you know, very little crime.

Man: This neighborhood doesn't make major demands on city services.

I don't see that major changes, that any change in the mayors, who wins, is gonna impact the neighborhood.

[Indistinct chatter] Does anybody want a beer while I'm [indistinct]?

Clark: There's a program here in Boston that teaches women how to get into politics.

The number-one thing they tell you in this course is that the likability factor is high for women.

She's tending bar.

Clark: Well, what are all the stereotypes for Black women?

We're viewed as angry.

We're viewed as all of these labels.

And I think in this race, people would much rather, including some people of color, would much rather go with the white-adjacent candidate who is likable.

George: Throw that out to Ben.

Cheers!

Ha ha!

[Person clapping] Whoo!

Pretty good, Annissa.

Pretty good!

Ha!

[Laughter] Woman: Hello, Mayor!

We got a couple questions for you right over here.

Janey: How are you?

Baumgartner: It is particularly tough for Black women political leaders.

There is a kind of script that they're supposed to adhere to, a type of behavior-- one that's sort of non-confrontational, non-aggressive, non-threatening, which is not to say that Black women political leaders would be that way anyway, but it's just that they often have to think about the tone of their message.

Janey: There's a long history in this country of people needing to show their papers during slavery, post-slavery.

We heard Trump with the birth certificate nonsense.

Here, we wanna make sure that we are not doing anything that would further create a barrier for residents.

Clark: That was really tough for us on the campaign.

Not sure we fully recovered from that in some quarters.

That made national news.

Campbell: Absolutely, I was shocked.

We need to be working in partnership with them in lifting this up.

Not of course, stoking any type of fear or putting out misinformation.

Anyone in a position of leadership right now should be using that platform to build trust in the vaccine.

This is the most authentic we've seen Kim Janey, who's been a highly scripted, highly orchestrated acting mayor and candidate.

There's over a month left, and it could all be a really determining factor.

It's the one development we've really had in this race.

I wanna take a moment to address the comments about slavery and birtherism I made the other day.

I wish I had not used those analogies.

Baumgartner: I think that there probably were some Boston voters, who maybe for that reason alone, rejected the idea of Kim Janey getting a full term as mayor.

[Horns honking] Man: Hey, what's up, everybody?

Just wanted to give you a quick update here.

I'm with the wonderful Kim Janey right here, our mayor.

We're looking forward for another 4 years from her.

I just wanna show you the cool shoes.

Look at this.

These are Chuck Taylor Converse, my favorite, telling the story, the free bus, schools, fighting Coronavirus.

These are amazing.

I'm so grateful.

Thank you so much.

I truly appreciate everything.

Woman: Don't let anyone tell you that there's a division between the Asians and Blacks.

It's up to us, all of us who are here, to go out there to get your friends and your neighbors, everyone out to vote.

And who you gonna vote for?

Crowd: Kim Janey!

Man: The pollsters and pundits will not call this election.

The people of the city of Boston are going to turn out, they're gonna turn out big and they're going to elect Mayor Kim Janey and send her to the next round.

And then after that round, ladies and gentlemen, they're gonna send her to office for 4 years to make it happen as the strong Black historic mayor that she is.

Let's give it up for Kim Janey.

[Applause] Janey: Every single resident from every single neighborhood deserves a voice.

And we've bought into this notion that if you win, you won't win.

That's not true.

That's a false choice.

We can all win.

We can all win.

This isn't about Kim Janey.

This is about our city.

This is about the people of Boston.

[Applause] [Horn honking] On loudspeaker: Hi, this is Kim Janey, Mayor of Boston, reminding you to vote today.

It has been the honor of my life to serve as your mayor for the past 5 months, but for me to continue to use my voice as the first woman, and the first Black mayor... George: I can do upside-down, right?

Man: Definitely.

All done!

How you doing?

Great.

[Cheering] [Camera shutters clicking] [Camera shutters clicking] Good morning.

Woman: Mayor, can you comment before you go in to vote?

Janey: Oh, I'm going to vote.

Thank you so much.

Gotta get my granddaughter off to school.

[Indistinct chatter] Excuse me.

Thank you.

How are you, Mayor Janey?

How are you?

Good to see you.

Hi, Mayor Janey.

Oh, my God.

I'm so excited.

I've just been wanting to meet you for the longest-- You are so awesome.

I appreciate you.

How are you, sir?

I appreciate you, too.

Hi, Mayor, nice to see you.

Thank you so much.

Put your ballot right in.

They're trying to take pictures.

Thank you.

You're the best.

I appreciate-- I am so proud of the work you're doing.

Thank you so much.

Girl: Mommy, hug, hug, family hug!

Woman: Mayor Janey, how are you feeling this morning?

How are you feeling this morning after you voted?

Oh, I'm feeling good.

Happy election day to all.

It's an important day in the city of Boston.

Certainly hoping that we've made our case for the good work that we've done thus far.

When does the next mayor become mayor?

Is that in November or-- Well, right now, I am the mayor, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to serve and lead my city.

How does it work, though?

Whoever wins the general-- I'm gonna let you figure that out.

You can talk with your pundits, you can do your research.

Is there any question-- Right now-- Right now, I am the mayor and I certainly hope to continue to serve over the next 4 years.

Reporter: Voters are heading to the polls in Boston today to narrow down the field of candidates for mayor.

Woman: Polling has shown a really tight race in recent weeks, and it's all gonna come down to who got their voters to the polls most effectively today.

Man: Mayor Kim Janey is set to speak to supporters here in the South End tonight.

I'll step out of the way.

You can see some of the supporters here.

Woman: Um...we're gonna let everyone go home if they want to.

Um, they're gonna keep counting.

We'll just--we'll... Um...there's a lot of outstanding ballots.

We'll let people, you know...

I understand.

So, you don't know-- That's... what you're allowed to say?

That is my statement, and I'm sticking to it.

OK, well that's unhelpful.

Woman: Unfortunate.

Yeah!

Wu!

[Cheering] [Crowd chanting "Wu!

Wu!

Wu!

Wu!"]

Wu: I'm overjoyed that we are confident we've made the top two and are moving on to the election.

[Cheering] George: I'm gonna be the teacher and the mother, and the mayor, to get it done!

Crowd: Annissa!

Annissa!

Annissa!

Annissa!

Annissa!

Janey: Election night?

[Tape rewinds] Uh, at my sister's house.

I was at my sister's house.

It was kinda a little bunker.

You had family and then you had some campaign folks who were crunching numbers and watching results come in.

And throughout the day, the worry was around turnout.

Like you could feel the energy not being the energy that you want it to be.

For example, I was here and helped elect Deval Patrick.

[Cheering] I didn't feel that kind of energy.

You had some core folks who would make that analogy and say, "This is what we have to do."

But you could see that turnout wasn't what it needed to be.

And that became a worry, and that proved true as we watched election results come in.

Just a quick, when you fanned this a minute ago, it was delightful.

Do you mind just, I don't know what you did and I just wanna get- Yeah, why don't we get another.

Ooh, yes, there it is!

This is my buddy over here.

Is it Jim?

Jim, all right.

Reporter: Wu was the first to declare victory and the top vote-getter with a third of yesterday's pathetically low turnout.

But the race for second was a close one, with Acting Mayor Kim Janey, City Councilor Andrea Campbell both trailing just a few points behind Essaibi George.

Janey: I think the people of Boston have lost out, particularly Boston's Black community.

I've heard a lot of people say now, "What's wrong with us?

"We had a Black mayor and we let her slip through our... what's wrong with us?"

You know, I am staying focused on the work.

I love my city.

I love the people here in Boston, so I'm gonna continue to focus on the work.

I'm not gonna think about, you know, a loss for our city or a loss for me personally, you know, I'm gonna continue to win.

Man: As the first woman and first Black mayor of Boston, we not only made history, but we made a difference.

And in her concession speech, Andrea Campbell focused not on her loss, but on a greater win.

The real winner tonight was actually Black women.

[Cheering] Collectively, collectively, our vote shares surpassed all others.

And what that shows is that there is an appetite indeed in this city for change, and I know my candidacy helped ignite it, and I'm proud of that.

[Cheering] Adams: What happened with the mayor's race?

I would say that it's frustrating, if it wasn't for the fact that I kinda saw it coming, which is even more frustrating.

And it's sad that people were like, the vote was split, so you're telling me that there couldn't have been two or more candidates from a community in a mayoral race?

That's scary.

Paleologos: And this is really how Annissa Essaibi George vaulted into the number-two spot.

What happened was, you had the one moderate/conservative candidate splitting the vote with 3 other progressives, really.

And, you know, ultimately, her base of moderates and conservatives stood up better as the other 3 split the progressive vote.

I can't tell you how many times I sat at a table, not unlike this, and heard people who look like me, white, Bostonian natives say, "Oh, never, it's gonna happen.

"It's never gonna happen.

You know, Blacks don't vote."

Walker: Oh, you still hear it, I'm hearing it now from Annissa Essaibi George people who are convinced that their moderate white voters are the people who really vote in this city and that other people won't show up.

Forry: Well, I think that that's their only hope.

And if turnout is as deflated as it was on September 14th, that's still a hope.

Leung: I think that's what was very surprising about the prelim, is that how low the voter turnout was.

I mean, even in our own stories where we interviewed Black voters, I mean, they just didn't-- they didn't show up.

Forry: And yet between Janey, Campbell, and John Barros, that's 43% of the vote on September 14th.

If it was consolidated with one candidate, Black candidate who was really strong, I don't see how that person wouldn't have topped the field, probably.

And even with Michelle Wu in the race.

Wilkerson: This notion that well, there shouldn't have been 3 Black people in the race 'cause you know, they split the vote.

Well, guess what?

That is an every cycle occurrence in almost every other part of this country.

And they figure it out.

It's a sorry excuse for people who don't wanna do the right thing.

That's my opinion.

The fact is that if you look at the numbers, Kim Janey did exactly what she needed to do, what we thought she would do.

She dominated the vote in our community because there was a level of support for her that was not written about.

And I'll say that's a separate piece, was not written about.

What she was not able to do was to gain any support in what I consider to be the progressive part of Boston.

None.

And the real raw way to say that is the progressive white people didn't vote for her.

For all the talk, you know, for all the flag waving, you know, they didn't vote for her.

[Applause] Thank you guys so much.

Baumgartner: One of the things I noticed both in Andrea Campbell's campaign and also Kim Janey's, is that they both talked about their own challenges dealing with racism and not just racism in the United States but racism in Boston.

And they related that to their own family histories and family stories.

And I think that was really important for lots of voters to hear, but I think that the majority of Boston voters were not ready for that racial reckoning.

Those issues around desegregation are still in place in the city right now.

So we have a lot of work to do if we're gonna be that city on a hill that everybody talks about, the great city of Boston.

We have to have structures and systems that see those folks who are unseen.

Reporter: With election day on November 2nd, he clock is ticking for candidates for mayor to win every last vote.

After such a low turnout during the preliminary election, both candidates know it's about getting voters excited to head to the polls.

George: As I stated when I first announced my candidacy, first announced my candidacy, I believe in a Boston that sees inequities and injustices every single day and then tackles them head on.

So today, I'm announcing a $100 million investment for the Black community.

Man: All right!

Let's give her a hand!

That's all right!

George: Thank you, everyone.

[Cheering and applause] [Band playing upbeat tune] Man: I feel that the mayor election does kinda like connect with the people.

But I feel like a lot of people don't really know that even the mayor election is going on.

I feel like the person with the bigger poster or the bigger billboard wins 'cause you don't-- you don't see people like really connected.

I've seen somebody out on Blue Hill towards Mattapan, but they were only out there for like, I don't know, like maybe 30, 45 minutes and then they just disappear.

Like there's no real connection to whoever's running to the actual people.

And then people only show up to like the colored community when you need us!

[Upbeat music playing] Janey: All right, ain't no stopping us, y'all.

Ain't no stopping us.

we got more work to do in the city of Boston, do we not?

Crowd: Yes!

Janey: Well, I thought the same reasons I was running for mayor, because there was so much at stake, that was still true.

And who is gonna best get us to where we need to be?

Who is aligned, you know, in terms of values?

We had worked together a lot on the council.

Who's our next mayor?

Crowd: Wu!

Who's our next mayor?

Wu!

Michelle Wu.

And I would say of both of the candidates that made it to the final, you know, I think they're both good women and I've worked with both of them, but I think I was much more aligned with Wu and I felt that she would honor and continue to advocate for a lot of the things that I had been working on, and so I supported her in this race.

[Soul music playing] Man: Amen!

And this is the first time of this magnitude that we are having a Souls to the Polls in Boston.

[Applause] Janey: It is such an honor to be here standing in solidarity with clergy of our city.

I have prayed in this church.

I have organized in this church.

That is what the Black church has been, not just in Boston but all over our country.

It has been a center for organizing.

And what better way to organize than around our local election here in Boston.

But I am so encouraged to see so many beautiful faces in this crowd, folks who have taken a big leap.

I'm encouraged because it means that our city is in good hands.

Man: That's right.

Janey: So, let's continue to do this work.

We will continue to pray, but when we pray, let's move our feet.

Let's get it done.

All right.

[Cheering] [Crowd singing] Wu: Now, especially is a moment to be in solidarity with every community.

The Asian-American community must stand for Black lives.

Our struggles around language access or economic stability have come with doors opened from the hard-won, hard-fought victories of Black activists who open the doors and kept them open for everyone.

And so in this moment, it does sit squarely on our shoulders that the drive, the continued push for racial justice has to be tangible, has to be accountable, and has to be immediate and urgent.

Woman: If we are looking at it, honestly, if I was to look at the two people we have to choose from at this point, Michelle has it hands down.

Yeah, I think so, too.

Michelle has it hands down.

But Essaibi George is strong now.

The whites are gonna really rally around her to make sure that a white person gets is the next mayor.

They are, and it's gonna take the people of color to get Michelle in.

That's why Annissa is the great white hope.

Yes.

Woman: Mm-hmm, yeah.

What's up, Joe?

[People talking indistinctly] [Laughing] Crowd: A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

So, I wanna hit on a couple points.

Man: Annissa, I love your accent!

[Laughter] I love it, too!

And there's gonna be generations and generations of kids that are gonna be proud of their Boston accent.

[Cheering] Turnout is expected to be very low, the Secretary of State has predicted a low number.

That is unacceptable.

We have identified more votes than what he predicts will show up.

You know what that means?

We are going to blow this election out of the water.

[Cheering] Crowd: A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

A-E-G!

Man: Mayor Janey!

[Indistinct chatter] [Horn honking] Man: Why is this so significant for future generations, especially girls, after having the first woman to be elected as mayor?

This is my granddaughter, and this is why it's so important.

This is my 7-year-old granddaughter Rosie.

Everyone today is voting for our future.

They're voting for what kind of Boston do we wanna live in?

And I think if we want a Boston where everyone is included, a Boston that is more equitable, more just, and more resilient, we need to go with Michelle Wu.

It's a historic day that we are going to have a passage of power from a woman to another woman.

This is a great day in the city of Boston.

Thank you, everyone.

Thank you.

Man: Whoo!

Wu: What were you for Halloween?

Wonder Woman.

Wonder Woman, of course.

You're a Wonder Woman.

Of course!

I shouldn't have needed to even ask.

Ha ha!

Janey: How about the boys?

They were Transformers.

OK. For transformative change.

Hey, now!

There you go.

["Rumbo Plenazo" playing] [Singing in Spanish] Cantala, cantala [Indistinct] Cantala, cantala [Indistinct] Yeah!

Cantala, cantala [Indistinct] Cantala, cantala [Indistinct]... [Cheering] George: Don't ever forget that I'm from Boston.

[Cheering] I love having all of you in this room.

What a tremendous sight for sore eyes.

I wanna offer a great big congratulations to Michelle Wu.

She is the first woman, the first person of color, and as an Asian-American, the first elected to be mayor of Boston.

[Applause] I know this is no small feat.

You know this is no small feat.

I want her to show this city how mothers get it done.

And I'm gonna teach her how to say it the right way.

BTS: Watch me bring the fire and set the night alight Shinin' through the city with a little funk and soul... Wu: Well, good evening!

[Cheering] So, one of my sons asked me the other night if boys can be elected mayor in Boston.

[Laughter] Man: Whoo!

They have been, and they will again someday, but not tonight.

[Cheering and applause] Boston has spoken.

[Applause] We are ready to meet this moment.

We're ready to be a Boston that doesn't push people out, but welcomes all who call our city home.

[Cheering and applause] Mayor Janey.

Where is--Mayor Janey?

[Applause] To Mayor Janey... my forever sister in service.

[Applause] Thank you for your friendship and partnership.

Thank you for leading our city and blazing this trail.

[Applause] Baumgartner: It's tough in Boston to be a politician of color, to be a woman of color, but I do think that--I'm still hopeful, I don't know why, I'm still hopeful somehow.

[Laughs] O'Donnell: I'm so thrilled that Kim Janey got to serve as mayor.

That was just a thrilling moment to me to see that happen.

I mean, that to me, in and of itself, is worth electing Joe Biden president, so that Marty Walsh could be pulled down to Washington and that could happen.

Man: You know, it was nice having a Black mayor for a little while, you know?

Ha ha!

It was--you know, it was aspirational, you know?

It was good stuff.

Well, somebody that you personally know sitting in that seat.

Yeah, yeah.

Gibbs: Like, Kim bust moves.

Talbot: It was wild, man.

And she made the most out of it.

And I think--I think she made a lot of people proud.

Mm-hmm.

Clark: Right now on the face of it, we get to say she was the first woman mayor.

She was the first Black mayor.

Clearly there are accomplishments during the pandemic.

I think the history, though, will be around the differences that she made for the unseen and the unheard.

Kim Janey is not going away.

She loves her city and she is destined for further greatness, for further voice.

So, I think her future is bright and Boston's future is brighter because of Kim Janey.

[Applause] Janey: Good morning, everyone.

Crowd: Good morning.

Good morning, good morning.

Our living legend is here with us.

[Applause] I had a front-row seat when you ran for mayor in 1983.

[Cheering] And I was just a teenager.

And as a teenager, passed out flyers on your historic campaign.

Never would've imagined that decades later that I would become the first Black mayor of our city.

[Cheering] We've made a lot of progress over the last 8 months, over the last few years, over the last few decades because of you, Mel, because of you and the path that you have paved for all of us.

I stand on your shoulders, Mel King.

[Applause] I stand on your shoulders.

We stand on your shoulders.

We stand on your shoulders.

[Cheering] We love you so, so much, and I am forever grateful.

Thank you so much.

[Applause] Wu: The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.

Man: The Embrace Memorial is a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King and their love.

They met here in Boston and embraced each other and that love kind of sent a ripple effect across space and time.

Wu: In this partnership that changed the world forevermore, we embrace everyone who finds their way to Boston.

[Cheering] "A Boston Revolution" is available with PBS Passport.

and on Amazon Prime Video