Under the leadership of President Joan Cromwell, the Chelsea Black Community (CBC) has grown into a prominent and engaged organization over the past four years.
Since its founding, the CBC has attracted substantial attendance at its events and taken on a prominent role in organizing the city’s Black History Month programming each February.
The organization is now stepping into the political sphere by sponsoring a Candidates Forum scheduled for Weds., June 27, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the Chelsea Senior Center. Cromwell and the CBC have invited the five Democratic nominees seeking the Suffolk County District Attorney position—Evandro Carvalho, Linda Champion, Gregory Henning, Shannon McAuliffe, and Rachael Rollins—to participate in a panel discussion and audience question-and-answer session.
Invitations were also extended to Congressman Michael Capuano and Boston City Councilor-at-Large Ayanna Pressley, who is running for the Seventh Congressional Seat, to take part in the Congressional Candidates’ portion of the event.
According to Cromwell, Pressley has confirmed her participation. Capuano, however, informed the CBC that he will be attending a session in Washington and cannot attend.
Sharon McAuliffe, an associate dean at Bunker Hill Community College, will moderate the forum.
The decision to host the forum came after some of the District Attorney candidates approached the CBC directly, Cromwell explained. Recognizing increased public interest in the race following DA Dan Conley’s announcement that he would not seek re-election, the CBC decided to extend invitations to all five candidates.
“We wanted to be fair and unbiased, so we said, ‘why don’t we just host a candidates’ forum’ so they can all have equal time with the community to get their points across,” said Cromwell.
Cromwell, who comes from a prominent and long-established Chelsea family, noted that numerous significant issues are currently in the spotlight, including immigration, the legalization of recreational marijuana in Massachusetts, and substance abuse.
“There are so many things affecting our community that we felt it was important to educate and inform the voter that there are many candidates that are running for district attorney,” said Cromwell. “It’s a perfect opportunity for the people of Chelsea to have a conversation with the candidates, as well as to become knowledgeable about the election before they go in to the voting booth.”
The CBC has solicited questions for the forum from various local organizations, including Roca, the Youth Commission, the Chelsea Chamber of Commerce, and the Jordan Girls and Boys Club.
Caulfield will pose three questions to each candidate during the first portion of the forum, with the second half reserved for pre-selected questions from audience members.
Based on the success of previous CBC events, the Candidates Forum is expected to be professionally executed and well-attended—and Cromwell assured attendees that refreshments will be provided, a hallmark for which the CBC has earned a reputation.
“We need the public to be a part of the forum and meet the candidates,” said Cromwell. “We encourage the whole community to be there on June 27 at the Chelsea Senior Center.”