Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, Walgreens is planning to close yet another pharmacy in the Massachusetts Seventh, this time on Warren Street in Roxbury, a community that is 85 percent Black and Latino. This closure is a part of a larger trend of abandoning low-income communities like the previous closures in Mattapan and Hyde Park, both in the Massachusetts Seventh. When a Walgreens leaves a neighborhood, they disrupt the entire community, and they take with them baby formula, diapers, asthma inhalers, lifesaving medications, and, of course, jobs. These closures are not arbitrary, and they are not innocent. They are life-threatening acts of racial and economic discrimination. That is why I joined with Senator Markey and Senator Warren to demand answers from Walgreens' CEO. Why was there no community input, no adequate notice to customers, and no transition resources to prevent gaps in healthcare? Shame on you, Walgreens. Having a website with talking points about health equity and underserved communities is not enough. Walgreens is a multibillion-dollar corporation that needs to put their money where their mouth is and stop divesting from Black and Brown communities. ____________________”