Democratic Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is under intense scrutiny after it was revealed that she compiled a list of her loudest critics and sent it to the Boston Police Department.
Some compare her tactics to those of former President Richard Nixon, who was well known for creating an “enemies list” in the 1970s.
The mayor’s spokesperson, Ricardo Patron, defended his boss in a statement to the Boston Herald. He claimed she was “harassed and physically intimidated by individuals for several months outside her home.”
These actions, he said, occurred at city functions including annual events at parks and other public gatherings.
The existence of the explosive list was confirmed through a public records request filed by Wu’s political opposition, according to the outlet. The paper said that the names were gathered “in response to a request from the Boston Police Department.”
Exactly what they intended to do with the list is unknown.
Boston mayor Michelle Wu under fire after sending list of critics and protesters to police https://t.co/JdSDXnpjqX
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 16, 2023
Many critics have protested outside of Wu’s home, and observers wondered if this was the mayor’s attempt to intimidate them into silence.
Patron revealed that several of the persons on the list are those who “repeatedly impeded the Dorchester Day Parade to harass Mayor Wu and her family and staff. He said the police response last June was to make a safety plan for the upcoming Bunker Hill Day parade.
Of course, the police are present at these events, and it is their responsibility to protect the Democratic mayor from any threat. That includes people who are not on her list of opponents who may genuinely pose a risk and are not merely a political nuisance.
Much of Wu’s opposition originated from her draconian policies during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdowns were pervasive, and many Boston businesses suffered greatly from being forced to shutter for months on end.
Several of the names listed were anti-vaccine activists and, according to the Herald, restaurant owners. Some were vaguely referenced, including the “Mendoza brothers from the North End” and “a woman with the last name of Thuy who was arrested before.”
A city ordinance was passed last year prohibiting protests outside of the mayor’s home during certain hours.
Wu was sworn in as the city’s first Asian American mayor in November 2021.
