BOSTON – Liquor licenses are some one of the largest hurdles for restaurant owners to clear. Data out of Boston shows a deep racial disparity between those who have them.

It’s been described as an antiquated system. The state controls the number of liquor licenses granted to Boston businesses and due to a secondary market, they can often be resold for more than $500,000. 

Right now, there are roughly 1,400 liquor licenses in Boston and according to State Senator Liz Miranda, 2% belong to businesses owners of color.

On Monday, the Massachusetts Senate agreed on a bill that would bring reform to the current system. If it passes, the bill would grant an additional 264 liquor licenses that would be phased in by zip code over several years. The free licenses would need to be applied for and some will be deemed as non-transferable, under the current bill.

“Disparities send a clear message”  

Boston City Councilor Brian Worrell has been working with the state on this for over a year. “We already know the amount of money it takes to start a business, especially a restaurant,” Worrell said. “So, $600,000 is a burden to restaurant owners, especially those who are Black and Brown.”

Worrell said Mattapan has six liquor licenses and Blue Hill Avenue, a main thoroughfare in the city, has just six on its route.

“So, when you compare that to other neighborhoods that have 80 like the Back Bay, the disparities send a clear message,” Worrell said.

Boost for business, neighborhoods  

Andre Williams has owned and operated his Cool Shade restaurant in Dorchester for two years. He has been trying to get a liquor license since before the doors even opened.

“Liquor licenses are expensive so a lot of people can’t’ afford it,” said Williams. “Maybe it’s the community that we are in. If we had a liquor license it would revitalize our neighborhood. It would also boost business for local restaurants here in Boston.”

The House has its own version of this bill. The two chambers are set to come together to discuss in a committee meeting scheduled for later this week.

Conversations about Haiti typically center the island’s political collapse, asylum-seeking people, and generational loss of knowledge. However, by shifting the context, space is created for nuance and agency.

Thousands of Haitians are establishing homes in Greater Boston, making up nearly six percent of the city’s immigrant population in 2021; Haitians are the fifth-largest immigrant group. As the community continues to flourish, the country’s cuisine offers familiarity, healing, and the opportunity to reclaim a rich culture.

Haitian restaurants began taking root in Boston in the 1980s, with one of the first being Le Foyer Bakery. Moments like this in Mattapan and across the country demonstrated necessary milestones that helped dismantle the idea of Caribbean cuisine as a monolith, making it easier for immigrants to find culturally relevant food from their respective islands.

Now, Haitian food can be found in practically every neighborhood, representing different generations and parts of the country’s culture. These spots build camaraderie, supply arguably some of the best meals in Boston, and carry on legacies. Scroll below to find a list of restaurants that exemplify the spirit of Ayiti (the native name of the island) in Greater Boston.

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Boston police officers arrested a 23-year-old man seen holding a loaded firearm outside Dorchester District Court on Friday, police say.

Police officers arrested Roberto Valladares at around 10:38 a.m. near the intersection of Washington Street and Tremlett Street for firearm related charges, according to a statement from the Boston Police Department.

Officers had exited the courthouse and were waiting to participate in a court proceeding when they saw Valladares pointing the firearm at people in front of him before securing it in his waistband and continuing down Tremlett Street, the statement said.

Valladares ran across Washington Street toward West Tremlett Street after they commanded that Valladares drop the gun, authorities say. 

Officers chased Valladares into a fenced private yard where he “ran towards the back of the yard, and with a throwing motion, launched the handgun over a chain link fence and immediately faced Officers in a fighting posture disobeying all commands,” police said.

Officers reported recovering the firearm — a Glock 19 loaded with one 9mm round in the chamber and 11 rounds loaded in the magazine — and arrested Valladares, who is expected to be arraigned in District Court for the charges of possession of a large capacity firearm, carrying a loaded firearm without a license, carrying a firearm without a license, unlawful possession of ammunition, and assault with a dangerous weapon.