The CoupThe Coup

This book covers the second half of my tenure on the Boston City Council. It was different because a revolution had occurred: the progressives finally gained enough power to make more changes, and pass more legislation than had been possible during the first half of my stay. The second half began with a coup putting in power the Rainbow Coalition of gay, black, and female members of the council that had never had power. For nearly four decades the Council had been run by a group of white men with the same mindset, most of them from South Boston. We begin with the coup that made Boston a model of what can happen when diversity becomes dominant.