Residents across Greater Lowell and beyond are expected to participate in the nationwide Hands Off! protests on Saturday, joining roughly 1,000 demonstrations across the country in opposing policies from President Donald Trump and his adviser Elon Musk that organizers say threaten essential services, civil rights, and democratic institutions.
Immigration
Tufts University graduate student arrested by ICE has case moved to Vermont
The federal case against the Turkish Tufts graduate student arrested last month by ICE agents while walking down the sidewalk has been transferred to Vermont from Massachusetts.
Number of families, migrants in Massachusetts shelters down 30%, data shows
The number of families in taxpayer-funded emergency shelters has started to decline after hitting a peak of more than 7,600 households in July 2024, which providers who serve the system say is because of restrictive policies that have been put in place over the past year.
Mass. spending on shelters housing migrants, locals hits half a billion in FY25, data shows
Gov. Maura Healey’s administration has already spent more than half a billion dollars this fiscal year on taxpayer-funded shelters housing migrants and local families, according to public data, though state officials contend the number of new arrivals in the system is decreasing.
Security scrub of Massachusetts emergency shelters finds flaws
Safety policies for state-run shelters are inconsistent, security presence at sites vary “significantly,” and a lack of coordination between state officials, providers, and police hinders the ability to share information about residents’ backgrounds, a report released Friday said.
Mass. Senate debate on taxpayer-funded shelters reveals spilt among Democrats
Senate lawmakers passed a $425 million spending bill Wednesday that shuttles money to cash-starved emergency shelters after an hours-long debate that showed cracks among Democrats over universal background checks and an independent review of state spending.
