Sunday, November 28, 2021 View web version
Today's Headlines
Page one

Higher Education

‘It’s baffling that they exist’: Some students call on UMass to rein in fraternities, sharing disturbing experiences

Critics say the 15 organizations represented by the Interfraternity Council, which are all-male and predominantly white, have cultivated an exclusionary and at times dangerous culture. Continue reading →

After the boom

At the top, a generational shakeup unfolds as boomers begin to step aside

While the baby boom generation still retains most of the top posts at key power centers, their numbers have been steadily shrinking. Continue reading →

Arts

For the MFA, Benin Bronzes are a troubling gift

The MFA must decide how to handle the 32 precious Benin Bronzes, looted from what is now Nigeria in 1897 and promised to the museum by a private donor in 2012. Continue reading →

Boston Mayoral Race

Worlds apart politically, Baker and Wu begin to forge relationship

The future of the city that is New England’s economic engine rests on the relationship between the Boston mayor and the Massachusetts governor. So far, there isn’t much of one: Aides say Baker and Wu don’t know each other well. Continue reading →

Politics

In Kevin McCarthy’s 8-hour tirade, a rambling attempt to show he can lead the rancorous Republicans

The angry, pugilistic rant against President Biden’s roughly $2 trillion social spending and climate bill also looked much like an audition for House speaker. Continue reading →

The Nation

Nation

As COVID infections spread, nursing homes lag behind on the rollout for booster shots

Booster programs have taken on more urgency given that nearly 4,000 new COVID cases are reported every week in nursing homes, according to federal data, and experts say many of the case clusters are occurring in homes that have yet to administer the extra doses. Continue reading →

Politics

Blaming COVID: Biden sees common culprit for country’s woes

Biden’s team views the pandemic as the root cause of both the nation’s malaise and his own political woes. Finally controlling COVID-19, the White House believes, is the skeleton key to rejuvenating the country and reviving Biden’s own standing. Continue reading →

Nation

A tree that was once the suburban ideal has morphed into an unstoppable villain

The Bradford pear is towering and robust and, in the early spring, has white flowers that turn their limbs into perfect clouds of cotton. Continue reading →

The World

World

Brazil’s president Lula is staging a comeback. Can he bring the country along?

The former shoeshine boy who rose to the presidency left office a little more than a decade ago with rock star popularity, the embodiment of a nation that appeared to be on the cusp of greatness. Now Lula, as he is universally known, is back. Continue reading →

World

Iran forcefully clamps down on protests against growing water shortages

For two weeks the Iranian government tolerated growing protests over scarce water supplies in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, watching them grow as restaurants served demonstrators free soup and barbers offered free haircuts. State television even aired interviews with farmers discussing their grievances. Continue reading →

World

Germany confirms 2 cases of the Omicron variant

The highly mutated new coronavirus variant known as omicron is present in Germany, according to the health ministry for the state of Bavaria, which confirmed that two people infected with the new variant returned from a trip to South Africa this past week. Continue reading →

Editorial & Opinion

EDITORIAL

Free-bus experiment could lead to something bigger

The road to Mayor Wu’s campaign promise to make Boston’s public transit entirely fare-free starts with this small pilot. Continue reading →

LETTERS

Holden Caulfield still speaks to us

You see the sweetness of this young man who has nowhere to express his own grief and, as a teenage boy, doesn’t know how to do it. Continue reading →

LETTERS

Disrupting the death business

More transparency in consumer costs was legislated in the 1970s. Those changes did not come about on their own. They were hard-fought and they resulted from years of agitation by consumers. Continue reading →

Metro

Health

‘A place that’s mine’: Statewide collaboration could offer lessons for housing the homeless at Mass. and Cass

As Boston grapples with the tent encampment near the intersection, advocates say programs like Pay for Success could make a big difference in the crisis there. Continue reading →

Crime & Courts

Father of suspect in Middlesex Fells assault says his son has battled mental health problems for years

In hindsight, Harry McCue said, “Obviously something was still there that I didn‘t see.” Continue reading →

Metro

Stores saw a boost from shoppers on Small Business Saturday

Even businesses that survived the pandemic are fragile, and they are now confronting a trifecta of new challenges in the form of inflation, supply chain issues and worker shortages. Continue reading →

Sports

Soccer

Carles Gil is the Revolution’s man with the golden foot — and the possible Major League Soccer MVP

Gil's playmaking has the Revolution on a roll as they enter the playoffs, and he is even starting to get recognized around town. Continue reading →

dan shaughnessy

Recalling some great Boston ‘duende’ moments, and other thoughts

Readers did not disappoint when we requested their submissions, which included Ray Bourque, Roger Clemens, Bob Cousy, and others. Continue reading →

Ben Volin | On football

It’s after Thanksgiving, so that means the season starts now for the Patriots

One of Bill Belichick's favorite sayings is especially appropriate this season, with 11 AFC teams at 6-5 or better. Continue reading →

Business
Ideas

IDEAS

I read more news than anyone. Trust me, people are better than we’re led to think.

Some of the most pernicious misinformation preys on the human tendency to imagine that other people are monsters. Continue reading →

IDEAS

When pets kill

I was viscerally reminded of our cat’s catness when he bumped off another animal in the house. How was I supposed to feel about him now? Continue reading →

Obituaries

Obituaries

Kariamu Welsh, pioneer of African dance studies, dies at 72

An early scholar of African diaspora dance who was professor emerita of dance at Temple University in Philadelphia and the artistic director of her own troupe, Kariamu & Company: Traditions, Kariamu Welsh was part of a cohort of artists and academics who were using dance to tell stories about the Black experience. Continue reading →

Arts & Lifestyle

Music

June Millington: Now you see her

The onetime member of the pioneering all-female band Fanny is seeing her contributions to rock and to women’s music finally get their due. Continue reading →

Music

Boston Lyric Opera plans metamorphosis for ‘Madama Butterfly’

The Butterfly Process, an emerging educational initiative, aims to address stereotypes in Puccini’s opera and beyond — with modern, multiracial audiences in mind. Continue reading →

QUICK BITE

Long-awaited Persian spot Café Vanak finally opens in Belmont

Halal Iranian and Middle Eastern specialties are on the menu, with many kebabs and perfect rice with a splash of saffron. Continue reading →

Travel

TRAVEL

In N.H., Villa Hygge wants to be your happy place

The cultural obsession with hygge is understandable, considering Scandinavians regularly rank as the happiest people in the world, and Mari Corbett seems like no exception. Corbett built the hotel in hopes of sharing her Finnish ways with an American audience. Continue reading →

TRAVEL

US travelers can finally visit this new Whistler hut — if they can handle the trek to it

The Kees and Claire Hut, a wilderness hut in British Columbia’s Spearhead Range, is now open year-round. Continue reading →

Real Estate