Compass Issue #192

A C T I V I S T S F O R P A L E S T I N E D E M A N D –

F I F A : M O V E T H E W O R L D C U P O U T O F T H E

What can we do here, in the heart of the U S empire, inside the belly of the beast, to hasten the end of the war, genocide and carnage in Palestine and Iran? What can we do in Boston, where Democratic Mayor Michelle Wu and Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey have already made clear their complicity in the U S -Israeli genocide in Palestine by harboring Israel’s criminal consulate at City Hall Plaza and promoting its corporate arms, such as weapons maker Elbit Systems and AI investment accelerator Sheba?

One way now is to target FIFA, the World Cup corporation, which is scheduled to take over City Hall Plaza in June Not only has FIFA refused the world’s righteous demand to ban Israel from its

“beautiful games, ” it has joined the Trump real estate cabal in its illegitimate “Gaza Board of Peace,” outrageously creating a fake “FIFA Peace Prize” for the racist, warmongering MAGA president

That is why the Boston Coalition for Palestine has taken up the call of the Black Alliance for Peace and the growing Anti-Fascist Football Coalition to say: “FIFA: Move the Games out of the U S now!” and “Boycott the U S !”

We can bring the global Boycott, Divest and Sanctions [BDS] Movement that has targeted the Zionist state back to the source, to the U S itself The U S is what Martin Luther King Jr so courageously called “the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today ” What was true then during the U S occupation and genocide

in Vietnam is true now during the ongoing occupation and genocide in Palestine Every day the U S and the Zionist regime find new ways to show their depravity

Just as the U S continues to support genocide overseas, its thugs at ICE are rounding up thousands of immigrant workers This is not a country that people from around the world can safely visit Football is “the beautiful game ” that has brought together billions of people around the world It deserves better than becoming a spectacle put on by the gangsters who run ICE and FIFA for the enrichment of billionaires like Patriots owner Robert Kraft

Ajamu Baraka of the Black Alliance for Peace, who has raised the call to organize this boycott campaign, said, “it would have been obscene for the white supremacist South Africa settler-colonial state to host the World Cup Why is it

acceptable for the white supremacist, settler-colonial U S state a state supporting a racist genocide, illegal wars and carrying out domestic terrorism against residents and citizens to host the games?”

ARTS FUNDING CUT

Boston’s fiscal year 2027 operating budget includes massive cuts to departments across the city including a $1 2 million funding cut to the Mayor s Office of Arts and Culture (MOAC) – a 27% reduction from this year

MOAC is responsible for supporting and promoting local artists through grants programming, and the production and permitting of art in public places Although the $3,365,057 allotment still exceeds the office’s pre-pandemic budgets, it represents the largest cut in the office’s history

More than 150 creatives, teachers, and nonprofit leaders from across Boston’s artist community rallied before the Boston City Council on April 30 to voice their concerns and urge the council to amend or reject the Mayor s budget

In a presentation before the council, MOAC Chief Joseph Zeal-Henry shared that Boston’s creative workforce has grown by 5% since 2021 and is projected to grow by another 12% over the next decade Creative industries support the employment of 70,000 workers in Boston, who in turn generate roughly $15 billion for the local economy

As many as 18% of Boston residents report that creative industries are their primary source of income, with an additional 7 5% claiming it as a secondary source

“The proposed $1-million cut in arts funding is not just a cultural decision it’s an economic one That loss shows up in very real ways, ” said GrubStreet Executive Director Kim Dawson Ohiomoba “It shows up in fewer customers at neighborhood restaurants before and after performances and it shows up in fewer dollars circulating through small businesses in neighborhoods like East Boston, Roxbury, and Dorchester, communities where arts organizations often serve as economic anchors ”

“City funding signals that art matters Every time I go to a new foundation a new donor and they’re really excited about public art they say, is the city funding you? And I have to say, ‘yeah, they are ’ I don’t want to go to them and say the city just reduced the budget by $1-million,” said Kaye Gilbert Boston artist curator and cultural producer

Boston-based rapper, educator, and entrepreneur Oompa said Boston does not have a shortage of talent, intelligence, or hustle but the infrastructure for artists to thrive

“This isn’t just arts funding, this is cultural economics and workforce development Restore the $1 million, but don’t just restore the budget - build an infrastructure that makes this conversation obsolete ” she said Not just more events, but more ownership of the establishments that produce them, more access to capital that allows creatives and cultural workers to scale, that makes a partnership of our relationship to our city not one of servitude ”

“The outcome of this budget cut is very simple: if people can’t sustain their lives here as creatives, they are just going to have to leave ” said local talent manager Stax Teixeira

Born and raised in Boston, Teixeira refused a job at “her dream agency ” in Los Angeles to instead enrich the local music scene She said this is the case for a lot of local creatives who could take their talent elsewhere with relative ease

“It’s unfortunate because the people in this room and the folks who couldn’t make it, they are [in Boston] by choice and that’s really powerful ”

On M 20 th il t d i t ou fav

LATINA BOHEMIAN

For Latina Bohemian, being an artist was often viewed as an abnormal and risky avenue that caused misunderstandings

Raised in a multicultural environment in Greater Boston, diversity didn’t feel strange It encouraged her to think creatively and see humans with a wider perspective Interacting with many ethnicities and cultures shaped the mindset of this first-generation creative

During the pandemic, a few years after the death of a relative, the birth of an artistic expression was rediscovered: poetry a medium that felt like déjà vu Back in high h l hil li i R&B/ l d

Now an alumnus, interest in another form of storytelling grew She began sharing unique stories about community, the arts, and entrepreneurship through journalism It led to promoting collaboration and connectivity with distinctive individuals The intersection of teamwork and communication became significant and she found that collaborators are fundamental i Bohemian is a event at Seap Brunch This founder Kris Wh h i

MASSACHUSETTS MINUTE

We’ve all been there – Whether it be educational, athletic, creative, or some other type of aspiration it’s disheartening when you feel as though those surrounding you fail to see your worth, especially when the outcomes of your sustained efforts are beginning to far exceed what you initially deemed yourself capable of achieving Local multidisciplinary artist CalvinKleinCaterpillar has felt particularly impacted by this feeling as of late with respect to his artistry This ethos is the driving force behind the recent release of his first album in two years, “bridge between the world and god*”

Entirely produced by Ko-Mai, the album is a whimsical, self-observant, and kaleidoscopic collection of songs that offers a glimpse into CalvinKleinCaterpillar’s artistic world and psyche

The previously described notion of feeling under appreciated as an artist immediately comes to a head just moments into the project’s first track “little blaq lie ” Told through the lens of pursuing a romantic relationship, the underlying tension that flows beneath this track is that of someone who never feels as though their efforts are enough No matter what CalvinKleinCaterpillar does or how hard he works at his craft, it feels as though nothing will ever satisfy the rements of others gst distorted guitar cism and vocals that en gre tive’

From there, the shifting tides of ‘bridge between the world and god*" continue with a stream of consciousness that buries its way into listeners’ ears On “ you watch and i transform (after Leslie Cuyjet),” CalvinKleinCaterpillar and Madhi trade non-chalant, unbounded raps over an unshakeable cut of hip-hop production

“postal code” furthers things with a hip-hop-rooted synth-heavy sonic structure upon which CalvinKleinCaterpillar riddles stanzas about finding one ’ s place in the world and navigating towards a sense of belonging Things eventually come to a halt with the project’s final track which features fellow Boston artist TEATEA Furnished with warped guitar riffs, an emotive concoction of vocals, and a parting sense of optimism “dark magician” is the natural segue that fosters excitement around what’s to come for CalvinKleinCaterpillar

FOSSIL

“Some fossils never get dug up, ” said River Pfaff, the frontman of the indie rock project Tall Friend

“Fossil,” their long anticipated second album, contains an earthly magic, composed of poignant guitar parts, punchy percussion, wandering bass lines, dreamy piano, buoyant vocals from Pfaff both pre- and posttransition, and a writing voice that reaches for comprehension amid the chaos of precocious early-20s confusion

While quickly becoming a recognizable name in the Massachusetts music scene, “bridge between the world and god*” undoubtedly feels like CalvinKleinCaterpillar’s most lengthy step forward yet It’s a great glimpse of what he’s capable of artistically, and offers new listeners the perfect opportunity to foray into his world If it’s your first time hearing his name, then roll the dice on this project and give it a listen It surely won’t be the last you hear from him

Around the time Pfaff began to consider releasing “Fossil,” he likened the process of publication to uncovering a fossil: he could either let it bask in the sun or leave it hidden in the dirt The result is a deliberate unearthing of musical magnitude, and the release of “Fossil” is better understood within a geological timeline The eight-year delay resists modern music-industry deadlines and instead signals a deliberate reflection on the vulnerability of exposing an earlier version of oneself to a larger audience

I’ve always thought of memories as very physical, and I just thought of this album as a lost thing that I had to dig up in order to let it see the light Some fossils never get dug up, and I could either dig it up and let everybody see it or let it sit in the dirt forever That’s why I treated it like a bone and made the vinyl light, because I had the vision of the record as a physical memory I was also thinking about evolution and geological time In the music industry, people expect you to put things out on a certain timeline, and compared to a geological timeline, it all means nothing ”

In that vein, nature and animal imagery are a common motif in the songwriting of this album What role does nature play in your life?

“Nature is everything to me I grew up in a rural part of Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay Growing up, nature was my main comfort It lets you be imaginative and serves as a blank slate for channeling your own ideas of beauty I love the childlike point of view that a rock or a leaf is enough to entertain oneself I think that nature is one of the most important things in life, and the more we turn away from it, the more we lose touch with ourselves ”

“Fossil,” in many ways, acts as a junction between different periods of Pfaff’s life Writing the album shortly before undergoing medical transition, he initially resisted releasing it due to discomfort, but now, with encouragement from friends and additional vocals post-transition, “Fossil’s” release reflects a transformation in Pfaff while honoring narrative

There’s so much loss and change in this record Did you find yourself in a precarious moment while writing this album?

us as to why you chose to album Fossil.

the time when I was to think about releasing it, I starting to think about the gy of memory

“When I wrote it all, I was around 18to-20-years-old Growing up in a few unstable households, I felt like I was never given a blueprint for how to deal with anything emotionally I felt like, upon reaching young adulthood, I had to grow up very fast and pretend I had my act together while everything around me was confusing The smallest occurrences would feel like tragedies to me So, songwriting has always been amazing as a place to be honest about how huge something he urge to ys want to if you ’ re a iladelphia, ng I was hat period

m u s i c

6/5 Rick Berlin, Nickel and Dime Band, DS Scrolls @ The Square Root Cafe 8pm-11pm 21+ $10

6/6 Dorchfest 2026 Porchfest-style festival hosted by Greater Ashmont Main Street @ Ashmont-Adams 1pm6pm All Ages FREE

6/6-6/7 Someday Fest Two day festival with over 18 acts @ Warehouse XI 4:30pm-10pm All Ages FREE

6/6 That Part(y) Queer dance party featuring Mx Blaire & Mx Demeanor, Brazen, ten10billion, & Math3ca @ Greek American Political Club 6pm-2am 21+ $16 55 - $26 90

6/6 Odacova, Remow, Blinn&thebreakdown, Someday Fest Afterparty with Allston Pudding DJ @ The Jungle 8pm-11pm 21+ $10 adv, $15 dos

6/7 Both Kinds: Country & Western Will McGovern, Conor Ryan, and Sweet Petunia Band fills in for DJ Groanman @ State Park Bar 8pm 21+ FREE

6/9, 6/16, 6/23, 6/30 Allston Pudding Spring Concert Series Live concerts every Tuesday with free pizza and non-alcoholic bevs featuring Haasan Barclay, Spirit Ghost, Bowling Shoes, (T-T)b, and Jesus The Dinosaur @ Zone 3 6pm All Ages FREE

6/12 Tom Plsek Memorial

6/18 Jim Repa And FriendsJazz Nonet Eclectic mix of new jazz and Latin-jazz works @ Lilypad 7:15pm-9:30pm All Ages $15

6/20 Neptune LP Release Show, Lupo Città, There @ Deep Cuts Deli 7pm 18+ $17

6/21 Jazz Sundays: Brian Friedland / Jesse Traitt Trio @ The Square Root Cafe 7pm9:30pm 21+ $10-20

6/24 Contracharge, Cartridge, The Blind, D O D @ O'Briens Pub 7pm 18+ $18 60

6/26 The Femmes – Pride Party Full horn section, three lead singers, and live music from LGBTQ+ artists @ Crystal Ballroom 8pm-11pm All Ages $28 50

6/27 Kidnap The Martian, Lost My Balance, DVD Extras, Spleeny @ Midway Cafe 8:30pm 21+ $10

6/30 Haasan Barclay’s Four Leaf Clover Release Show With ET and Valeria Orrantia @ Zone 3 7pm All Ages FREE

film

6/20 Queer Double Feature Screening of Twilight's Kiss (Suk Suk) and All Shall Be Well, both by Ray Yeung @ PAO Arts Center 3pm-8pm All Ages FREE

6/28 BLACK: Narratives in Boston’s Black Queer & Trans History Documentary that highligh h h d

literary art

6/10 Author Talk: An Evening With "Baldwin: A Love Story" Author Nicholas Boggs Boggs speaks on his biography of James Baldwin in celebration of both Pride Month and Juneteenth @ Boston Public Library (BPL) 6pm-7:30pm All Ages FREE

6/27 Pride Book Fair: Out On The Shelves Books and goodies for sale, local vendors, a color book station, and local drag performers At 7pm the 18+ party begins @ Connexion 10am-10pm All Ages FREE til 7pm, $20

6/27 Roxbury Poetry Festival Workshops, panel discussions, poetry slam, and keynote address and conversation with Kwame Dawes @ Bruce C Bolling Municipal Building 10am-10pm All Ages FREE

performance

6/5 Yes & Everything: Midsommar(ville) Yes & Everything is a raucous, highenergy variety show featuring well variety acts! It's just super special, it really is @ The Loov 7:45pm-10:15pm All Ages $20

6/6 Pride Kickoff

W/MegaGoneFree featuring ZORA, jhe, and TEATEA @ Crystal Ballroom 8pm All Ages $24 95

6/12 Boston US Air Guitar

Qualifier 60 seconds of pure, invisible rock glory

Opportunity to watch or walkon and compete @ Deep Cuts Deli 7pm 18+ $13 60

6/12 A Gay Old Time Monthly vintage drag show hosted by Christmas Carol @ Midway

community

6/3 Reading Between The Stones A panel on Edmonia Lewis through an LGBTQ+ lens with Angela T Tate, Arielle Gray, Giselle Byrd, and theo tyson @ Museum of African American History 6pm-7:30pm All Ages FREE

6/4, 6/11, 6/18, 6/25 Queeraoke Critically acclaimed karaoke and one of the longest running queer nights in New England @ Midway Cafe 8pm 21+ $8

6/7 Community Crossword Crossword club curated by Bing Broderick and Lin Flores @ Just Book-ish 11am12:30pm All Ages FREE

6/10 Sewcial Club Monthly fiber arts co-working and social night All skill levels welcome @ Artisans Asylum 7pm-9pm All Ages FREE

6/11 Boston Robot Hackers Monthly Meeting Folks passionate about robotics; hardware and software, professionals and students, experts and beginners @ Artisans Asylum 7pm All Ages FREE

6/13-6/14 Dorchester Open Studios Featuring slip-casting, papermaking, blacksmithing, painting, and more @ Humphreys Street Studios (HSS) 12pm-5pm All Ages FREE

6/19 W Junete fair, fo DJ set perfor Conte All Ages FREE

6/19 Freedom Cookout A Juneteenth celebration of Black freedom, community joy, and ancestral honor @ ShirleyEustis House 11am-5pm All Ages FREE

6/20 African Festival Lowell 2026 Annual celebration of African culture with performers, food, attire, and more @ Sampas Pavilion 11am All Ages FREE

6/20 Love In Bloom Queer variety show, Tara Dikhof DJ set, and block party benefitting Boston GLASS @ South Street Farm Somerville 4pm-7pm All Ages FREE, Suggested donation: $15-20

6/25 Ujima Cafe: Clean Energy Joined by Boston Center for Community Ownership, local professionals share insight into cooperative economics @ Fresh Food Generation 5pm All Ages FREE

6/25 Roll Call Skate Party A nostalgic night with DJs, drinks, and food to benefit BAMS FEST programming @ Chez Vous Skating Rink 8pm All Ages $20

6/14 Move The City: Cultural Expression As Civic Dialogue d @ p e ht ty

6/12 Heading For Extinction Talk With Potluck Conversation about climate and ecological breakdown, government and corporate impact, and a potluck dinner @ Spontaneous Celebrations 6:30pm-8pm All Ages FREE

6/20 The People's Coalition Activism Workshop Queer activism workshop on challenging international power structures and domestic capitalism @ The Pryde Community Center 12pm-4pm All Ages FREE

TRASH IS TRAGIC

my friend Evan and I were having a porch beer. It was trash day eve and Brighton's blue and black toters were lined up along the street, hard to tell apart in the twilight.

Evan is quippy sometimes. "Recycling is a psy-op. I do the weekly ritual of taking the bags out to the curb and pretending that one bag is going to hell and one bag is going to heaven, and they're not just both going to the same place. It's like sending a dog off to the farm. All of this plastic is going to go to a recycling center where it will be lovingly sorted by nice people who all have union benefts."

In 2018 news broke that Big Oil knew that plastic recycling wasn't possible at large scale, knew this for decades, and deliberately promoted recycling so that single-use plastics would be less controversial. (Petroleum is the main ingredient in plastics, yay.) I'm pretty sure the level of corporate conspiracy contributed to my frst insomnia bout in 2019.

I'm the "Can I Recycle This" guy for most people I know. A few years after that porch beer, another friend, also named Evan, asked me,

"So is it worth it to wash out every fruit or yogurt container and put it in the blue bin, or am I just wasting time?" I said, “I didn't know, but if you have the energy it was probably better safe than sorry.”

I am in full-on spoon budget mode these days thanks to extreme fatigue from a chronic condition. "The Spoon Theory" was written by disability activist Christine Miserandino in 2003 and uses the symbol of a handful of spoons to represent the limited amount of energy a disabled person has in a day. Taking a shower uses up one spoon, putting on clothes another, eating a meal yet another. As a disabled person you have to plan your actions very carefully and be constantly aware of your condition so that you don't overextend yourself. If you use up too many spoons, you might need to use a "knife" to survive. Knife Theory was developed by other disabled folks as a kind

When I am low on spoons, one of the things I struggle with most is dishes. Blessings and utmost thanks to my patient and thoughtful housemate. You know who I wish would do my dishes for me? ExxonMobile. Yet still I catch myself 5 minutes into fngernailing the paper label off of a hummus tub because I have been trained that recycling properly is a direct manifestation of how much I care about the earth and its life.

My friend Anna has been hearing my dishes woes with respectfully-withheld horror. A couple nights ago she suggested paper plates again. Many disabled people keep paper plates and plastic cutlery around so that if they run out of metaphorical spoons to do the dishes, they can still eat. Eating is one of the most important actions because it gives you energy and allows you to take medication. Not eating is not an option.

Plastic makes me cringe in all pockets of my being. I'm going to buy some paper plates frst and see if I can work my way up to disposable utensils... I suppose I could get bamboo ones, but they cost a lot more. The idea that some waste is acceptable, even necessary, is tough for me to swallow. However, I know that I'M not disposable. Nobody is, and we all need us.

MEET THE ARTIST

Shaina Lu 呂明穎 (she/her) is a queer Taiwanese-American artist interested in the intersection of art, education, and activism. She creates community art for social change through conversation with local youth, residents, and grassroots organizers. You can see her public art throughout Boston’s Chinatown, where she works, and in Malden, MA, where she lives. In 2023, the Massachusetts AAPI Commission honored Shaina as an Unsung Hero for her work as an artist and organizer.

Shaina has worked in education since 2012, both as a public school teacher and as a program director in a community-based organization. As an educator, Shaina develops project-based learning experiences for young artists to draw knowledge and inspiration from their communities and to use art as a tool to effect social change. She currently works with young artists and makers in Boston’s Chinatown.

Shaina also writes and illustrates for a more just and liberated world. She is the author and illustrator of Noodle & Bao (2024, HarperCollins Quill Tree), a middle grade graphic novel about food, family, and fghting against gentrifcation. She is cur-