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BOSTON CHINATOWN ORGANIZES REFERENDUM
ON LIBERTY PLACE
8 /1/02
The Chinese Youth Initiative has been door-knocking housing
projects. The Golden Age Center has organized meetings. The Chinatown
Resident Association has organized counter-meetings. Landlords have threatened
their tenants.
What's going on? Chinatown is organizing what the City Development agency,
the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA), won't give them: a say in the
neighborhood where they live. Despite a lengthy process, the BRA has always
acted, in the words of one abutter, as "spokesmen" for the developers.
The grassroots organizations within Chinatown are holding a referendum
on whether the Liberty Place Development should occur within the boundaries
and against the guidelines of the Chinatown Master Plan. Chinatown has
held a similar referendum in 1993 to vote down a proposed garage supported
by the BRA.
Recognizing the basic democracy that the residents should have, the American Friends Sevice Committee and the League of Women Voters have volunteered to coordinate the referendum. The Boston Globe has editorialized that "city officials should wait for the results before making any decisions."
Because of the support for the referendum, pro-Liberty place groups, particularly land owners and city administration hacks, have been organizing furiously. The disingenuously-misnamed Chinatown Neighborhood Council (the large majority live outside the city) held a fiery meeting with the American Friends Service Committee and called for postponement of the referendum.
The organizations who called for the referendum were the
Chinese Progressive Association,
Campaign to Protect Chinatown,
Asian American Resource Workshop, and
the Chinatown Resident Association. Those wanting to help may contact
them through their websites. The referendum will be held over two days,
August 2nd and 3rd and is open to all residents of Chinatown.
Campaign
to Protect Chinatown photo
Related Links:
Chinatown Says "Respect the Masterplan" - 1/22/02
Liberty Plaza Developer Will Change Plan - 2/5/01
