Good morning,
While we usually cover the comings and going at the Massachusetts state house, with this week’s “Special Scoop” we bring you some big news from our own house: we have a new executive director!
Read on for a personal message from our incoming ED, Act on Mass alum and self-proclaimed state house nerd– Scotia Hille.
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Introducing myself
Allow me to introduce myself: my name is Scotia Hille, and I’m thrilled to be rejoining the team at Act on Mass. Yes, rejoining – if you recognize me, it’s possible that you were one of my district team members or fellow organizers during the 2021 The People’s House campaign, for which I was a regional organizer. If so: hello again! And if not, I’m very excited to get to know you in my new role as executive director.
I found my way to Act on Mass in the fall of 2020, when I was still an undergraduate studying climate policy. I was a young person terrified of the possibility of four more years without federal policy addressing the climate crisis and I took time off school that year to work on campaigns in Virginia and Maine. Like many Bay Staters (I'm originally from Natick!), I was so preoccupied with the turmoil of our national political scene that I paid little attention to state politics in Massachusetts, assuming that our “true blue” legislature was chugging along just fine.
Not so! When I found out that our legislature (at the time) hadn’t passed a significant climate bill in over a decade, I was flabbergasted. To me, this was a double failure of responsibility: both to deliver good policy to the citizens of Massachusetts and to serve as a progressive leader on climate during a time that the federal government was anything but. Activists who I respected linked the inaction to a widespread problem of transparency in the Massachusetts legislature, a finding later borne out by a 2021 report from Brown University. A week after the 2020 election, I signed up to volunteer with a small, intrepid organization called Act on Mass.
And that was that: I found my political home. During the People’s House campaign, I learned so much from my fellow organizers and volunteers who had come to AoM from all across the progressive political sphere. Everyone had stories of seeing weeks, months, and years of hard work towards popular policiescrushed by inaction in our State House. I was and remain intensely motivated by the injustices of our broken democracy, the effects of which are felt by so many communities that I know and love across the state.
It was enough for me to shift my academic focus from the international/national to the regional and local, where the phrase "all politics is personal" seems to have the most resonance. Now, I’ve spent the last two years studying urban and regional climate governance in Paris, France, finishing with my masters this June. Studying in Europe taught me to think bigger when it comes to the policy futures we allow ourselves to envision. It also taught me that no matter how delicious a fresh baguette or how functional the Parisian Metro (I miss you, Line 4), my work is here.
The Massachusetts I now allow myself to envision is a national and global leader on justice-oriented climate change policy. It is the first state to introduce Medicare for All. It has renter protections, room for migrants, and affordable homes for young people like me to build our lives in. My dream Massachusetts has bumping nightlife! And safe streets! It has economic policy that fights inequality and racial injustice. It wins the World Series again! Wait, sorry – wrong list. But for all except the last, I’m speaking of a Massachusetts with a thriving, transparent state government that works forthe people, not lobbyists, special interests, or any other friends of state house leadership. That Massachusetts has citizens that are engaged actively in the democratic process, not frustrated, demoralized, and shut out. That Massachusetts has a democracy that is built from the ground up.
It’s an enormous honor to join you in this fight as executive director of Act on Mass and I have much to learn from you. Let’s get to work.
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Missed a Scoop or two? You can find a full archive of all past Saturday Scoops on our blog.
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Syd’s Sprinkles: So long, Same Day Voter Registration
In this week’s installment of the Graveyard, we lay to rest Same Day Voter Registration.
Same Day Voter Registration (H.688) would have:
- Allowed voters to register to vote on election day
- Made it easier for people to vote
With this year being a big year for elections, having same day voter registration would’ve allowed and motivated more people to vote in elections. In our three primary elections on September 3rd, only 16.7% of the state’s eligible voters cast their votes. Granted, this was a better turnout than past primary elections, but when looking at the actual numbers, only about 841,900 out of 5 million eligible voters actually voted.
If more Massachusetts residents were registered to vote, we would see better voter turnout than we do currently. And a way to get more people registered to vote is by enacting same day voter registration.
Few people consider their voter status in times other than critical elections, so why not join 22 other states in promoting civic engagement by allowing for people to register to vote on election day?
If you would like to see changes in our state’s voter registration policies, then call your legislator and tell them that you’d like to see Same Day Voter Registration take priority in the next formal session.
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Take Action
Here are some upcoming events you might want to get on the calendar!
#FreeHer March for No New Women's Prison - TODAY Sept. 14th, 11 am
Our allies in the push to end the construction of a new women's prison in Massachusetts faced frustrating setbacks with the end of this year's legislative session, despite broad support. They're kicking off the fight for this new session with their annual rally TODAY September 14th and a march to the State House! Grab your signs and join them later today! Registration link below.
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That's all for today. I'll be back next week with my very first full Saturday Scoop, with the latest info on the many shenanigans of our dear state leaders.
In the meantime, feel free to get in touch to introduce yourself– I'd love to hear what path brought you to Act on Mass. Just like mine, your story matters to this movement, and we've got lots to do.
Until next time,
- Scotia
Scotia Hille (she/her)
Executive Director, Act on Mass
P.S. Lucky for me, Brenna is staying on board, resuming her role as Organizing Director! So don't worry, you'll hear from her again.