Rhode Island

David Hogg, AFL-CIO leaders lobby for competing versions of R.I. ban on assault-style weapons – The Boston Globe

Published

10 months ago

June 20, 2025

David Hogg, AFL-CIO leaders lobby for competing versions of R.I. ban on assault-style weapons – The Boston Globe

PROVIDENCE — Intense lobbying is under way for competing versions of a ban on assault-style weapons as the General Assembly sprints toward an expected finish of this year’s legislative session on Friday.

David Hogg — a survivor of the 2018 mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Fla., and a national gun safety advocate — weighed in in favor of the legislation that the House passed on June 5.

“I know that Rhode Islanders deserve a strong bill that not only bans the sale, but also the possession of assault weapons,” Hogg said in a statement. “It is this combination that equals public safety. The Senate version does not include possession, which is beyond unacceptable.”

Hogg, who was removed as a Democratic National Committee vice chair after pushing to target long-serving Democrats in safe congressional seats, sent a message to the 23 senators who co-sponsored the original bill, asking them to support the House version on Friday to ensure both sale and possession of the weapons are banned.

“Safety in our communities will only come with both,” he said, “and as Democrats, we should accept nothing less.”

Hogg was in Rhode Island in April to advocate for an assault weapons ban. “I am excited that the state is halfway there,” he said. “As a survivor of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, this issue is very important to me. We should all be concerned with Trump ruining our country and being intent on undoing federal protections related to gun safety.”

Hogg’s statement came from the Rhode Island Coalition Against Gun Violence, which is lobbying for the House bill and emphasizing that it is the only Rhode Island-based gun safety advocacy group.

The Senate version of the legislation has received support from Everytown for Gun Safety, which has said, “Compromise is a part of public policy progress, and the amended version of this bill is still a massive step forward in limiting access to weapons of war and a Rhode Island free from gun violence.”

The Senate version is backed by the Rhode Island AFL-CIO, which includes the National Education Association Rhode Island, whose leader is Senate President Valarie J. Lawson.

Rhode Island AFL-CIO President Patrick Crowley and Secretary-Treasurer Karen Hazard, issued a statement on Thursday, saying they “stand in full support of” the Senate bill and “applaud the Rhode Island state Senate for moving forward with this important piece of legislation.”

They noted that when the AFL-CIO conducted a poll in February, it found the 64 percent of Rhode Island voters supported “banning the sale and manufacture of military-style assault weapons in Rhode Island.”

“The bill under consideration accomplishes that goal,” Crowley and Hazard said. “We urge full passage of the bill by the state Senate and respectfully ask the House of Representatives to take up the measure as soon as possible.”

The Senate version of the bill is at the top of the calendar for the Senate session that is set to begin at 2 p.m. Friday.

Edward Fitzpatrick can be reached at edward.fitzpatrick@globe.com. Follow him @FitzProv.

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Rhode Island

Release of rescued bobcats by the Wildlife Clinic of Rhode Island

Published

12 hours ago

April 3, 2026

Press Room

Release of rescued bobcats by the Wildlife Clinic of Rhode Island

The Wildlife Clinic of Rhode Island rehabilitated two orphaned kitten bobcats starting last July and continuing through Monday, March 30, when the bobcats were released into the wild. Video from the Wildlife Clinic of Rhode Island and URI’s Quest Lab.

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Rhode Island

Crash closes Route 146 north in Lincoln

Published

24 hours ago

April 2, 2026

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The Rhode Island Department of Transportation reported a crash blocking all travel lanes on Route 146 north.

RIDOT posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the crash cleared shortly before 8 p.m.

Officials said the crash happened at the exit to Route 99 in Lincoln.

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Rhode Island

Who is Dolores Catania? What to know about ‘The Real Housewives’ of RI guest

Published

1 day ago

April 2, 2026

Press Room

Who is Dolores Catania? What to know about ‘The Real Housewives’ of RI guest

With the premiere of “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island”, you may be wondering exactly who you will be seeing on the screen.

Premiering on Thursday, April 2, Rhode Island’s debut in “The Real Housewives” franchise will focus on seven women from all across the Ocean State. The series will also include appearances from a franchise-familiar face: “The Real Housewives of New Jersey” star Dolores Catania.

Never seen “The Real Housewives of New Jersey”? Here’s what to know about Dolores Catania ahead of Rhode Island’s series premiere.

Who is Dolores Catania?

Born and raised in New Jersey, Dolores Catania quickly became a franchise fan-favorite after joining “The Real Housewives of New Jersey” in Season 7. While “The Real Housewives” is known for drama, Catania herself is known as a mediator on the show, often helping to keep the peace rather than choosing sides in an argument.

The 55-year-old Bravo celebrity shares two children with her ex-husband Frank Catania, who she maintains a close friendship and business partnership with. Catania is now engaged to Paul “Paulie” Connell, and she recently told Us Weekly that she plans to take wedding inspiration from another part-time Rhode Islander: Taylor Swift.

A TV personality and multi-faceted entrepeneur, Dolores Catania is most well-known for her charitable work with women’s shelters and animal rescue organizations. In 2018, fans voted her as “Miss Congeniality” across the entire “Real Housewives” franchise. Her efforts have also been recognized with honors such as the key to the city of Paterson and the Ambassador of Hope Award by Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, according to Bravo.

How is Dolores Catania connected to Rhode Island?

While Dolores Catania will be featured throughout “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island,” she is not trading her Jersey housewife life for the Ocean State. Rather, Catania joins the new series as a friend and mentor.

Specifically, Catania comes into the show as a close friend of Rhode Island “Real Housewife” Liz McGraw, a well-known Rhode Island dispensary owner whom Catania met at a cannabis convention. Together, the pair has plans to launch a line of gummies for menopausal women.

“It was a dream to have her by my side. I couldn’t imagine anything cooler than to have her here on my home turf with me,” McGraw told Bravo about filming alongside Catania. “Dolores is just an amazing friend. She understands me and I understand her. I trust her with my life.”

Although Catania did not know any of the other cast members prior to filming, she told Bravo that she became close with the entire cast.

“In a really crazy way, I felt like I knew them forever. They’re all very relatable to me. Each person, in their own way, I very much understood and felt that I fit in,” Catania said in a release.

While Catania said no state could ever come close to New Jersey, she did admit that she enjoyed filming in the “calmer” state of Rhode Island. She added that she does not feel too different from the Rhode Island housewives, saying that viewers will love them for their relatability in the same way they loved the relatability of the New Jersey housewives.

How to watch ‘The Real Houswives of Rhode Island’

The debut season of “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island” will premiere Thursday, April 2 at 9 p.m. on Bravo. After the first episode, new episodes will air weekly on Sundays at 9 p.m.

Episodes will be available for next-day streaming on Peacock. This means that the first episode will be available to stream on Friday, April 3, with new episodes available to stream on Mondays each week after that.

Watch ‘The Real Housewives of Rhode Island’ on Peacock

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