A Patriots Day Special: 10 Things I Love About Boston
1. A city that Embraces Immigrants
When my parents first moved to Boston, the city really took care of us. My parents were able to sign up for free ESL classes at a community college, and received food stamps until they found jobs. My grandparents receive subsidized elderly housing, a free social health center, and free maids. My grandparents even met and talked to the late Tom Menino…not during a campaign rally; he came to their apartment complex. Today, Boston attracts immigrants due to universal preschool care, affordable public transportation (2x cheaper than New York) in one of the most walkable cities in the United States, and a minimum wage of $11 an hour (for comparison, the minimum federal wage in the United States is $7.25 per hour. The latest mayor, Marty Walsh, has said that “we will not stop being a city that values and respects immigrants”
2. An Educational System that Prepares you for the Real World
While some high school students read in their textbook that African Americans were “migrants” instead of slaves (really), my AP History class was learning about Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and the Underground Railroad. When I started my freshman year of college, some students could barely understand intermediate algebra, while I already learned calculus the year before. Boston boasts some of the best colleges in the US, with not only Harvard and MIT, but Tufts, Brandeis, Boston College, and Boston University in the top 50 schools worldwide! I was fortunate to take such diverse classes in college such as: The History of Economics (including impact of Jim Crow impacts such as redlining), Game Theory (how to apply “The Prisoners’ Dilemma” to win a game of “Liar’s Poker” on Wall Street, and Venture Capital (where I developed a proposal for a brand new business of solar-powered armbands for smartphones). My classes at Boston University also prepared me to work in the real world, thanks to classes on SQL coding, using MS Access, and advanced MS Excel skills — lessons that have proved, and continue to be critical, in my professional career.
3. All Industries and Careers Lead to Boston
We’re not Silicon Valley, yet Facebook, Amazon, and Google have office locations here. We’re not Wall Street, yet some of the premier financial services companies, including Boston Consulting Company, State Street, Fidelity, Santandar Bank, and Liberty Mutual are headquartered here. We’re not Chicago, yet host retail giants, including Wayfair and Staples. We’re not New Jersey, yet boast some of the premier pharmaceuticals in the world, including Biogen and Moderna, while also having research and manufacturing offices for giants such as Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. We’re no Berlin, yet host a world-class symphony. In no city would I rather have health issues, as we boat the best hospitals, Mass General, and Boston Children’s Hospital. With 6 universities ranked in the Top 50 in the world, Harvard, MIT, Tufts, Brandeis, Boston College, and Boston University, the educational system is superb. Medicine of business, pharmaceuticals or retail, lawyers or actors or musicians, whatever interests you, Boston has it for your career.
4. The Diversity Here Helps Everyone Become a Better Person
In high school, I made friends with people from Russia, Bulgaria, Brazil, Iran, Israel, and Japan. In college, I befriended Indians, Germans, Ghanians, Italians, Ecuadorians, and Koreans. At work, I had Puerto Rican, Nigerian, Pakistani, and Chinese colleagues, and mangers born in the UK, Germany, and the Ivory Coast. I’ve had the fortune to make lifelong friends of all colors and religions, from 6 continents. I was privileged to travel to various countries, staying over at my friends and living like a local. In Boston, I can get breakfast at a Ugandan diner, enjoy Thai food for lunch, have a nice Italian dinner, and then finish off the night dancing at a Caribbean club, or downing shots at an Irish pub. Exposure to so much diversity living here has made me a better human being. It has helped me to check and overcome unconscious biases and remove stereotypes. It has opened my eyes to various cultural perspectives, how diverse people are treated differently in even the same cities. I truly believe that if I was living in most other places, I would not have been blessed with opportunities to explore different cultures and get educated on complex and multifaceted. injustices, both domestically and abroad
5. People here are Progressive…..Yet Elect Moderate Republican Governors
People here are politically engaged, but have not given in to extremism from both sides of the party. Boston most of us are fiscally responsible, with a budgetary surplus, yet provide universal health insurance. We are anti-racist, but do not stoop to destroying lives via “cancel culture”. I have gun-owning Republican friends, who believe AR-15s should be banned, and that the lax gun laws in this country is a joke. We embrace immigrants and protect refugees. While consistently being a blue state on the federal level, locally we [with a couple exceptions] elect moderate Republican governors, such as Bill Weld, Jane Swift, Mitt Romney, and Charlie Baker. This allows us to have intelligent conversations about policies, balancing out extremes, and running a functional, moderate government, that, for the most part, actually works
6. A State of Innovations
Look around you and marvel at how many things were invented in Bostons. Without Boston there may still not be an effective Covid vaccine, as Moderna’s was invented here, Pfizer’s is manufactured here, and Johnson & Johnson’s is researched and studied here. We are a leader in technology, first inventing typewriters and suing machines, and then upgrading to the telephone, microwave, and speakers. Enjoy the benefit of cars? The first gas-powered car was invented here, along with rubber tires. Did I mention that the World Wide Web, without which Internet would be impossible, was invented here? We started the Red Cross, invented the Iron Lung, and created the birth control pill. You a foodie? Thank us for both frozen food and the Tupperware you put it in; not to mention chocolate chip cookies and clam chowder! Are you a sports fan? Basketball and volleyball were both invented here. We were leaders in creating public services: schools, police departments, beaches, parks, the subway, and the firetruck! Way before NASA flew to the moon and beyond; it started out as a research facility at MIT. Long before Facebook became the most dominant social media platform in the world, it was started out of a Harvard University student’s dorm room. You owe us, world!
7. So Much to Do, so Little Time
One of my favorite things about Boston, is no matter the season, there is always something to do. No matter the season, I do not need to fly out to ski, or swim, or camp, or hike, or explore, everything is driveable within just a couple of hours! In the winter, if I want to go skiing, I can drive less than a couple of hours to NH. In the spring, I can do a weekend camping trip to the White Mountains or Mount Washington. In the summer, it’s the beaches at the Cape for a weekend mini-vacation, a day-long trip to Rhode Island or South MA. or a volleyball game and a quickie at the local beaches right in the city. In the auumn, no place beats leaf peeping like Vermont! I do not need to fly out to ski, or swim, or camp, or hike, or explore, everything is drivable within just a couple of hours! If I want entertainment indoors, I have so many options: Theater plays, Broadway Musicals, symphonies, sporting events, or some of the best restaurants downtown. We may not be New York, or LA, or Miami, but we know how to keep busy, and how to have fun!
8. Title Town USA
We are the best city for sports, period. The birthplace of basketball. Most championships of any NBA teams. One of the oldest and most famous baseball teams. An Original Six hockey franchise. The GOAT of the NFL played here for 2 decades. So has the most clutch hitter in baseball. In the 21st century alone, EVERY of our Big Four teams have won at least one championship. This century, our teams have won championships in 50% of the years. 16 of the last 20 years saw us playing for championships, winning 11. Boston is where legends are made, and play, whether in baseball, football, basketball, or hockey. We’ve been spoiled rotten, but what a privilege it’s been!
9. Boston Strong: Resilience, Kindness, and Perseverance
After the Boston Marathon Bombings, the true nature of MA residents was displayed. We are a city of capable, compassionate, friendly people, who look after people who are hurt, and work together to heal wounds. Right after the terrorist attacks at the 2013 Marathon, we had marathon runners run the entire route, only to keep running to donate blood. We had doctors coming into work on their days off to perform complex surgeries. At a time when too many cities in the United States kill suspects, our police managed to capture a terrorist alive, who possessed guns AND bombs, while running and hiding. Right after the Marathon explosions, we had volunteers offering up their own houses to complete strangers, who had no place to stay, or whose hotels were blocked off. We donated over $20 million collectively to help the injured and the impacted afford their recovery. The 2013 Marathon bombings demonstrated the true spirit, resilience, and compassion of this city, and I could not be prouder to live here.
10. Because “this is our fucking city”
Boston is the city that took my family in as refugees. It is the city that continues to care for my grandparents. I grew up here, studied here, work here, date here, and play here. Most of the friends I’ve made, and all of my best friends have lived here, or still live here at some point. Ex- President Barack said it best: “It’s one of America’s iconic cities. It’s one of the world’s great cities. And one of the reason(s), the world knows Boston so well is that Boston opens its heart to the world. Whether folks come here to Boston for just a day, or they stay here for years, they leave with a piece of this town tucked firmly into their hearts.”
