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Massachusetts Jewish groups ‘unequivocally reject’ calls to boycott Newton businesses

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Massachusetts Jewish groups ‘unequivocally reject’ calls to boycott Newton businesses


Prominent Jewish community advocacy organizations say they “unequivocally reject” calls to boycott businesses in Newton, near where a Massachusetts veteran allegedly shot an anti-Israel protester who tackled him to the ground at a rally last week.

The Anti-Defamation League of New England, the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston and the American Jewish Committee of New England released a joint statement Tuesday, condemning groups making the calls to boycott.

Calls have mounted after Caleb Gannon, 31, of Newton, charged at and tackled pro-Israel demonstrator Scott Hayes, 47, of Framingham, to the ground at a rally in Newtonville last Thursday evening.

While Hayes was wrestling with Gannon on the ground, his gun went off, according to a GoFundMe that has raised more than $250,000 for the Iraq War veteran’s defense fund.

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A coalition of five Jewish organizations took exception to how Newton Police immediately arrested Hayes on charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and violation of a constitutional right causing injury – a charge dropped before Hayes’ arraignment Friday.

Gannon was charged with assault and battery on a criminal complaint within 24 hours after the incident which Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan described as a “scuffle.”

“An assault and battery that does not occur in the presence of a police officer is not an arrestable offense,” the DA said in a release Friday.

But several Jewish organizations including Americans Against Anti-Semitism, Jews Exiting the Democrat Party, Betar USA, Magen Herut Canada and Shields of David launched a push to boycott businesses in Newton and elsewhere in Middlesex County.

The coalition is also “advocating a travel warning” to the area.

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In response, the ADL of New England, the JCRC of Greater Boston and the AJC of New England, said in a joint statement that the “call to action” is being “raised by a group or groups with no apparent relationship to Newton.”

“We unequivocally reject this tactic, which seeks to place ‘blame’ or ‘consequences’ on local businesses that are not responsible for either the incident or its prosecution,” the statement reads. “Moreover, use of this tactic implicitly suggests that our criminal justice system is not capable of delivering justice through its time-honored processes.”

“We instead call on the community to join us in re-establishing dialogue and conversation,” it continues, “remembering the hostages still held in Gaza, and calling for an end to senseless violence.”

Hayes pleaded not guilty to the assault and battery with a dangerous weapon charge during his arraignment at Newton District Court. Judge Jennifer Queally set a $5,000 cash bail which he met.

Conditions for Hayes’ release are that he wears a GPS monitoring device, does not have any weapons, stays away from the victim and the City of Newton, and is confined to his home during the hours of 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily.

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His license to carry has also been suspended.

“When a decorated Iraq War veteran and an American citizen is prosecuted for defending himself against an individual who attacked him and openly supports a terrorist organization, it sends a chilling message: Middlesex County is not a safe place for anyone who values liberty, justice, and security,” Betar USA Executive Director Michael Sinensky said in a statement Tuesday.

The Muslim Justice League postponed a “Vigil for Palestine” at the Boston Public Garden Tuesday that would have included awareness around Gannon, whom the organization described as “a lifelong Newton resident and a Jew committed to Palestinian liberation.”

Newton state Sen. Cindy Cream and Mayor Ruthanne Fuller have denounced the calls to boycott city businesses.

“Boycotts will not mend division,” Cream said. “Punishing local Newton businesses for events they were not involved with is not the solution. I hope you will continue to support our local businesses as I plan to.”

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Fuller added, “The small businesses in Newton are not an appropriate target for those concerned with the charges filed in connection with this incident, nor do they deserve to be harmed.”

 

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Massachusetts

Seven takeaways from Friday’s high school basketball quarterfinals, including another Feehan thriller – The Boston Globe

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Seven takeaways from Friday’s high school basketball quarterfinals, including another Feehan thriller – The Boston Globe


There was no doubt which of Friday’s 24 MIAA basketball tournament quarterfinals served as the game of the night, as the Shamrocks rode their post prince’s 36 points and 18 rebounds to a 65-60 double-overtime win over No. 6 Bridgewater-Raynham, despite trailing by 7 midway through the fouth quarter.

That was one of two upsets on a night that saw 23 teams punch their semifinal ticket, with another 13 slated for Saturday, alongside five hockey semifinals.

Find all of Friday’s scores here, sign up for Varsity News here, prep for New England wrestling with beat writer AJ Traub’s preview, read Bob Hohler’s latest on a Sharon football player’s catastrophic brain injury, and check out everything we wrote:

Whitman-Hanson senior Dylan Hurley got her 1,000th point out of the way early so she could focus on beating Oliver Ames in the Division 2 quarterfinals. Hurley entered Friday needing just 2 points to reach the mark, and she did so less than eight minutes into an eventual 51-47 victory.

Hurley, who is committed to Saint Anselm, finished with 17, including the tying bucket with 29 seconds left, plus two key free throws, giving her 17 points on the night and 1,015 for her career, putting her fourth in program history.

All 13 girls’ games went to chalk, but there were a pair of lower seeds winning on the boys’ side. We already covered No. 14 Bishop Feehan taking out No. 6 Bridgewater-Raynham, just two days after the Spartans eliminated No. 3 Needham. Thus far, they are the lowest-seeded team to reach the semifinals in any division across basketball and hockey, with a baker’s dozen basketball quarterfinals still to be played Saturday.

Also pulling off a quarterfinal upset was No. 6 Lynn Classical, which knocked off No. 3 Tewksbury, 68-59, in the Division 3 bracket, led by 29 points from senior DJ Reynolds and elite defense from seniors Shyheim Babb and Deshawn Rucker.

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Abby Broderick, Medfield — The sophomore exploded for 31 points and five rebounds as the top-seeded Warriors took care of business against No. 8 Norwood, 66-46.

Grace Higgins, Millis — The senior wasn’t the team’s leading scorer (Ella Maher had 17) but she made her presence known in the paint, blocking eight shots to go with 9 points and nine rebounds.

Jimmy Farrell, Masconomet — The senior captain chipped in everywhere, spreading out his impact with 17 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks in a 61-25 win over Burlington in Division 1.

Brody Bumila, Bishop Fehan — Where to start? The 6-foot-9-inch senior was absolutely dominant in a 65-60 two-overtime upset of Bridgewater-Raynham, scoring 18 of his team’s 22 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to finish with 36 points and 18 rebounds. Committed to play baseball at Texas, Bumila has 117 points and 55 rebounds over three playoff games, which have featured six overtime periods and two Shamrocks wins.

4. Hockey semifinal brackets breakdown

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Six observations as we enter the MIAA boys’ and girls’ hockey semifinals Saturday and Sunday. Find the full schedule here.

  • The lowest seeds remaining are No. 9 St. Bernard’s in Division 4 boys and No. 9 Medfield in D2 girls. No double-digit seeds made it out of the quarterfinals.
  • Only one of the top five seeds made the Division 1 boys’ final foursome, which is a 50-50 split between public (No. 4 Arlington, No. 6 Hingham) and private schools (No. 7 Pope Francis, No. 8 St. John’s).
  • The other three boys’ divisions feature 11 public schools and one private: St. Bernard’s, bringing the boys’ total to 13 publics and three privates.
  • The final eight girls’ teams include three privates, all in D1 (No. 1 Notre Dame-Hingham, No. 2 St. Mary’s, No. 5 Archbishop Williams) and five publics.
  • Of the 24 remaining teams, 18 are public and six are private.
  • Of the six divisions, only three No. 1 seeds reached the semifinals, with Catholic Memorial (D1 boys), Stoneham (D4 boys), and Westwood (D2 girls) getting eliminated. Yet five of the six No. 2 seeds are still dancing (the exception, Xaverian in D1 boys)

Milton Academy senior wide receiver Kash Kelly, who hails form Northampton, announced he will play football at Amherst. The 5-foot-11-inch, 180-pounder averaged 21 yards per catch

▪ Southern California sophomore Ellie Thomas, a Needham graduate, was selected as Big 10 Defensive Player of the Week for women’s lacrosse. She went wire-to-wire in the cage, producing a career-high 16 saves, including seven in the fourth quarter, during a 16-14 road win at Arizona State. She also picked up two ground balls.

▪ Northeastern freshman Xavier Abreu, a Phillips Andover graduate from Lynn who was the 2025 A Shot for Life Challenge champion, was named to the All-CAA Rookie Team. Abreu set the Northeastern freshman scoring record, averaging 12.3 points per game and shooting 46 percent from the field.

▪ Brandeis senior Ragini Kannan, a Westford Academy graduate, opened her season with a five-inning no-hitter of Emmanuel for her first career no-no. She struck out four and issued one walk in a 14-0 win in Clermont, Fla.

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▪ Brandeis senior Hannah Du, a Winchester graduate, make the All-Northeast Fencing Conference women’s second team for the first time. She led Brandeis with 12 wins at the NFC Meet, and finished the season with 39 victories, good for second on the team.

7. Basketball leaderboard

Brody Bumila, Bishop Feehan, 36

Abby Broderick, Medfield, 31

Anna Freeman, Medway, 29

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J’Dore Reece, Renaissance, 29

DJ Reynolds, Lynn Classical, 29

Josh Roux, Andover, 27

Mollie Mullen, Bishop Feehan, 26

Lily Denomme, Douglas, 23

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Cece Levrault, Apponequet, 23

Logan Volkringer, Plymouth South, 23

Caprese Conyers, Pittsfield, 22

Addie Harrington, Frontier, 22

Ryan Nikiforow, Millbury, 21

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Rolky Brea-Arias, St. Mary’s, 20

Thomas Denton, Andover, 20

Dylan Hurley, Whitman-Hanson, 20

Maliah Pierre, Whitman-Hanson, 20

Brody Bumila, Bishop Feehan, 18

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Lamar Valentina Jr., West Bridgewater, 15

Thomas Denton, Andover, 12

Tyrese Wanliss, Roxbury Prep, 12

Avery Teixeira, Bishop Feehan, 11

Tamia Darling, Cathedral, 10

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Jag Garces, West Bridgewater, 10

Emma Smith, Bishop Feehan, 7

Jimmy Farrell, Andover, 3

Naya Annigeri, Medfield, 5

Mollie Mullen, Bishop Feehan, 4

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Grace Higgins, Millis, 8


Brendan Kurie can be reached at brendan.kurie@globe.com. Follow him on X @BrendanKurie.





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163 surrendered rats seek new homes in Massachusetts

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163 surrendered rats seek new homes in Massachusetts


Attention all non-traditional pet lovers! A non-profit organization in Massachusetts received a boatload of pet rats in need of new homes. 

An individual in northeastern Massachusetts surrendered 163 rats in early February. That’s almost 60 percent more than the total number of rats that were adopted from the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals-Angell (MSPCA-Angell) in 2025 alone. 

“A well-meaning person got into a tough spot, and we were able to help,” Mike Keiley, Vice President of the MSPCA-Angell’s Animal Protection Division, said in a statement. “As a humane law enforcement department, we want to work with people who love their animals to make sure those animals are getting the care they need.Sometimes that means helping with resources, other times it means facilitating a surrender, which was the case here.”

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MSPCA-Angell must have also found itself in need of a hand, because the sheer size of the rat surrender prompted the organization to request support from adopters as well as other animal welfare organizations. Ultimately, MSPCA-Angell kept 53 rats, increasing the total number of rats the organization is caring for to over 70, which is almost 75 percent of all the rats they adopted out last year. 

Massachusetts’ Dakin Humane Society, Lowell Humane Society, Berkshire Humane Society, and the Animal Rescue League of Boston, and New Hampshire SPCA and the Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire also took in rats from the surrender. 

“Taking in so many of one kind of small animal or bird really taxes resources,” Keiley said. “It pulls our attention to accommodating one species when we’re caring for so many at the same time.This kind of surrender wouldn’t be possible without the amazing support we’ve received from other shelters—and we’re hoping we get a similar level of amazing support from the community!”

MSPCA-Angell’s plans to bring the rats to their four shelters—Boston, Salem, Methuen, and Centerville—despite the fact that the Salem location normally only hosts cats and dogs. This surrender was so big that the organization had to use every location. 

So if you’re looking for a pet rat—or just a small furry animal—now is your time. Keep an eye on the websites of MSPCA-Angell, Dakin Humane, Lowell Humane, Berkshire Humane, ARL Boston, NHSPCA, and ARL New Hampshire for information on where there are rats up for adoption, and stop by during open hours to adopt the next member of your family. 

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“Rats have a bad reputation, but they actually make really great companion pets,” Keiley pointed out. “They’re smart and clean. They also form deep bonds with their owners,” he continued. “We’re hoping that rat lovers—and anyone looking for a less conventional small pet—comes out and gives these great animals the happy homes they deserve!”

 

2025 PopSci Best of What’s New

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Margherita is a trilingual freelance science writer.




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School closings and delays for Massachusetts on Friday, March 6

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School closings and delays for Massachusetts on Friday, March 6


Several school districts in Massachusetts have delayed the start of classes for Friday, March 6 because of a mix of sleet, freezing rain and snow.

Take a look below for the full list of school closings and delays.

The list displays all public schools in alphabetical order, followed by private schools and then colleges and universities.

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Delays on this page are current as of

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