Boston, MA
Joseph Slavet, ‘fearless’ and thoughtful watchdog of Boston government, dies at 104 – The Boston Globe
In that era, “Boston politics was a struggle for the spoils of government between the Irish and the Boston Brahmins,” said former US representative Chester G. Atkins. “Joe was a significant part of moving politics beyond that to something that was professionalized, that was governed by rules and fairness, and on delivering services to everybody, not just to certain ethnic groups.”
Mr. Slavet, who also had been the first leader of the anti-poverty agency Action for Boston Community Development, was 104 when he died May 4 in NewBridge on the Charles in Dedham, where he had been living.
As a key Boston official from the late-1940s into the 1960s, Mr. Slavet was “in a lot of ways the last living link to the transition of Boston from James Michael Curley to Hynes” and beyond, said Atkins, who before Congress had served in the Massachusetts House and Senate.
“Joe was in the scrum for a long time and was always respected as being thoughtful,” said Larry DiCara, a former Boston city councilor.
“Looking back, he was fearless, even when he was on a public payroll,” DiCara said. “He let it be known when he thought something was right or something was wrong. Some might have thought of him as a bit of a scold.”
In June 1960, amid what Mr. Slavet called the “frustrating and bitter experiences with the multimillion-dollar Prudential Center and Government Center projects,” he published a detailed and concise essay in The Boston Globe, breaking down why construction was lagging.
“Many of the crises, snarls, and wrangles which have beset the two projects can be attributed to planning pitfalls,” he wrote, detailing everything from an inhospitable tax climate to “the absence of a single city agency staffed by experience professionals to pull all the pieces together, to harmonize conflicting viewpoints, and to keep things moving.”
After his leadership roles with the Boston Municipal Research Bureau and ABCD, Mr. Slavet moved into academia, first at Boston University, where he held a leadership role with the urban affairs department, and then at the University of Massachusetts Boston, where he was a senior fellow at the McCormack Institute.
“He transitioned from a player in government and quasi-government entities to being an academic and was a pioneer in the early academic programs that looked at urban crises,” Atkins said.
In those university roles, “Joe was one of the earliest, and perhaps the earliest and most comprehensive thinker, about what we call today workforce housing,” Atkins said. “A lot of his work on housing is as relevant today as when he wrote it in the ‘70s and ‘80s.”
Born in Boston on March 31, 1920, Joseph S. Slavet was a son of American-born Anna Adelman Slavet, and Dan Slavet.
In a 2007 interview for the Veterans History Project that is in the Library of Congress, Mr. Slavet said his father was born in an area that was then part of Russia, and had arrived in the United States as a teenager. Mr. Slavet said his father had been an apprentice plumber who later worked in a plumbing and hardware supply business.
The older of two brothers, Mr. Slavet graduated from English High School and was a professional musician by his teen years.
“By 15, I was in a jazz band that played in ballrooms throughout New England,” he said in the Veterans History Project oral history.
He said he used his saxophonist income from those regional gigs to pay his way through Boston University, after turning down an offer to join a nationally touring band that would have paid the equivalent of about $3,000 a week in today’s dollars.
While a BU student, he learned that Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. “When I heard that, I turned to my mother and I told her that I think my life has taken another turn,” he recalled.
Serving in the Army, he landed in Normandy, France, seven days into the D-Day invasion. A gunnery officer, he was in charge of 40mm anti-aircraft weapons.
His unit was in Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge. A few months later, the unit discovered a mass grave near a concentration camp.
“This was my first personal experience of what Hitler had done to the Jews,” he said in the oral history.
“Our officers were so enraged,” he recalled, and his unit insisted that because of their complicity with the Nazis, residents of the nearby village should remove the remains of those in the mass grave and give them all proper burials. Among those in the village there was “a lot of handwringing and denying and crying,” he said.
Back home after the war, Mr. Slavet resumed his education. Having graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history from Boston University, he received a master’s in history from BU and a master’s in public administration from Syracuse University.
He also met Muriel Vigor at a dance. They married in 1947 and raised their family in West Roxbury. Mrs. Slavet died in 2011, and Mr. Slavet had lived in the Orchard Cove retirement community in Canton before moving to NewBridge on the Charles.
Staying involved in public policy research long after his colleagues had retired, Mr. Slavet “didn’t stop working,” said his daughter Beth of Washington, D.C. “He always said he did some of his best work in his 80s.”
Mr. Slavet “was generally regarded as the straightest of straight arrows,” DiCara said.
A service has been held for Mr. Slavet, who in addition to Beth leaves two other daughters, Amy Glaser of Easton and Julie of Philadelphia; four grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren.
Mr. Slavet spoke only Yiddish when he started school as a boy, and he delivered his Bar Mitzvah speech in Yiddish. Just before turning 104, he attended his great-grandson’s bris “and he spoke so eloquently there,” Beth said. “He had an incredible life.”
Through his work in public service and academia, Mr. Slavet had a career “that spanned the significant transition of Boston from a city in decline to a city that once again became a city on a hill, and he was a pioneer in the marriage of higher education and municipal policy,” Atkins said.
“To the very end Joe was calling balls and strikes, commenting on politics, calling people out who were self-serving, and praising people who were acting in the public interest.”
Bryan Marquard can be reached at bryan.marquard@globe.com.
Guerschon Yabusele not only had a successful NBA comeback, but now, he should be an interesting free agent this summer. Yabusele bet on himself last year coming off the Paris Olympics, taking a minimum contract with the 76ers.
Due to buyout rules, Yabusele wasn’t necessarily making as much monetarily in his NBA comeback attempt. Now, Yabusele is again a free agent this summer after an impressive season in Philadelphia. But instead of wondering which NBA team will sign him, he should be in line for a payday after showing what he can contribute stateside.
Speaking with HoopsHype, Yabusele broke down the free agency process and how he expects to stay in the NBA. Plus, the former Celtics first-round pick explained why he partially credits his Boston tenure for his NBA comeback.
“Even though I was not with Boston anymore, I learned so much from that season,” Yabusele said. “And it helped me for the second part of my career after that. It really pushed me. It really, like, I had that mentality of loving that basketball. Because I know I love basketball. But if you’re in a situation that you don’t play, it’s hard. I missed it. And I was like, you know what? I want to play now. I want to be somewhere where I always play, so I always try to pick the right situation now for me.”
Yabusele was picked 16th overall in the 2016 draft by the Celtics before spending two seasons in Boston from 2017-19. After he was waived by the organization, Yabusele ended up in China to continue his pro career. He said it didn’t go well, forcing him to spend roughly 1.5 months without a team. Yabusele revealed that was a wake-up call as he hoped and wished for his next opportunity.
“Going through that process and just waiting like that, I was like, no, this is — it’s impossible,” Yabusele said. “This is not what I want. A couple years ago, I was drafted first-round, pick 16. How am I in this situation? I put myself into the situation to really tell me the truth about what was not right, what would I do wrong and stuff like that. I questioned myself a lot, then I went and started working out. I was like, get that mindset that, okay, I’m gonna prove everybody wrong.”
Yabusele then got his next chance with ASVEL in his native France. He played five games with them before getting re-signed. That break allowed him to sign with Real Madrid, which is where he spent three seasons, including winning a EuroLeague title. After Yabusele starred for France on their way to the silver medal at the Paris Olympics, the attention was back on him.
Yabusele is looking for his next team once again. But this time, he should have a lot more confidence he’ll land with a new squad. The Sixers have been vocal about wanting to bring him back to the organization. Other teams could also come calling. Yabusele averaged 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 70 games last season. He also shot 38.0% on his 3-pointers as the 6-foot-8 forward fits well into the NBA game.
“I really, really want to stay in the NBA, now that I have a real reason over there I want to do some more,” Yabusele said. “Watching the playoffs, you watch those guys having fun, you always look, I want to be there. My competitor side is really pushing me to work hard this summer, try to get everything that I can to come back next season and crush it even more.”
Boston, MA
Red Sox Host Drag Show Inside Fenway Park For Pride Night, Invite Drag Queens On Field For First Pitch Again
The Red Sox welcomed drag queens to Fenway Park as part of their traditional Pride Night.
The Boston Red Sox hosted their annual Pride Night on Monday and continued their tradition of hosting a drag show inside the gates of Fenway Park while also welcoming drag queens onto the field for the ceremonial first pitch.
Ahead of what was a 10-8 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night, fans of all ages entered the gates of the historic ballpark and were greeted by a drag show on a stage built right in front of some of the concessions.
The Red Sox and their Pride-themed logo on X shared a video of various men dressed in drag dancing for fans before the first pitch of the contest.
Speaking of the first pitch, the drag queens who participated in the show, as well as individuals representing various LGBTQ+ causes and organizations in Boston, were welcomed onto the diamond with the stadium’s announcer urging fans in attendance to applaud them.
“We know that visibility and inclusivity in sports not only affirm the right of everyone to participate and along, but also enrich the spirit of competition and camaraderie,” the announcer said over the stadium’s loudspeakers.
“When teams, front offices, and fans come together to create welcoming environments, everyone can thrive and we prove that we are all better when we stand together.”
The Boston Legacy Football Club of the NWSL, the Boston Fleet of the PWHL, Boston Common Golf, the Boston Bruins, and Boston Celtics were all mentioned as having representatives on the field for the ceremonial first pitch.
The Red Sox have welcomed drag queens to Fenway Park for their annual Pride Night dating back to at least 2022, according to archived Getty Images.
A pre-game ceremony is held in recognition of Pride Heritage before a game between the Boston Red Sox and the Oakland Athletics on June 15, 2022. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
The Red Sox promoted Pride Night leading up to the game with an exclusive ticket purchasing offer where fans would receive a Red Sox hat in Pride colors while also inviting them to attend a Pride Party – presumably the drag show – inside Fenway Park prior to the game starting.
Boston, MA
Opening statements expected in trial of Irish firefighter charged with raping woman at Boston hotel – The Boston Globe
Superior Court Judge Sarah W. Ellis is presiding.
Seven jurors were chosen on Friday, and on Monday, several more were seated for a total of 15. Opening statements are set to follow later Monday, officials said.
Crosbie is accused of raping a woman while she slept in March 2024, when he was in Boston to participate in St. Patrick’s Day parade with fellow members of the Dublin Fire Brigade.
Crosbie was originally scheduled to leave the United States after the parade on March 19, officials have said. But after Crosbie spoke with police on March 15, he went to Logan International Airport for a 10:10 p.m. flight bound for Ireland, officials said.
He boarded an earlier flight at 7 p.m., but was pulled off the airplane by State Police and arrested, officials said.
Prosecutors allege that Crosbie raped a “female stranger” at the Omni Parker House hotel in downtown Boston on March 14, 2024.
The woman, 28, had gone to dinner with coworkers at The Black Rose, a pub near Faneuil Hall, and met a man, Liam O’Brien, along with his fellow Irish firefighters, according to prosecutors and court records.
The woman told police on March 15 that she agreed to return to O’Brien’s room, which he was sharing with Crosbie, at the Omni Parker House.
Video shows that around 11:30 p.m., the woman left a restaurant with O’Brien and returned to the room, prosecutors said.
The pair had a consensual encounter in the room, according to prosecutors. O’Brien then fell asleep on one of two beds in the hotel room, and the woman went to sleep on the other bed, prosecutors said.
Crosbie left the hotel at 11:55 p.m., according to hotel security video, and swiped his key card back into the room at 1:55 a.m., prosecutors said. At some point in the night, the woman woke up as Crosbie was allegedly raping her, according to a police report.
The woman “tried to push the male off” and she said “What are you doing? Stop!” the report said. Crosbie said “this guy is sleeping, I know you want this. He fell asleep,” the woman told police.
The woman left at 2:15 a.m., 20 minutes after Crosbie entered the room, prosecutors said. She messaged a friend to say she had been assaulted and went to a hospital, where she spoke with police.
At a hearing in August, prosecutors requested a DNA swab from Crosbie for “comparative testing” A genital swab from the woman revealed male DNA, prosecutors said in court documents.
“In this case, a known DNA sample from the defendant will produce evidence relevant to the question of his guilt,” Assistant District Attorney Erin Murphy, chief of the domestic violence and sexual assault unit, wrote in court papers.
Crosbie objected to providing a sample on grounds of unreasonable searches and seizures, court filings show.
“My client is not concerned about what the DNA is going to return or say,” Reilly said at the time. “He is adamant that he had no physical contact with her.”
The status of the DNA testing wasn’t immediately clear on Monday.
Material from previous Globe articles was used in this report.
Ava Berger can be reached at ava.berger@globe.com. Follow her @Ava_Berger_.
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