David Scondras (January 5, 1946 – October 21, 2020) was a member of the Boston City Council, having held the District 8 seat from 1984 through 1993. He was the city's first openly gay city council member.
David Scondras | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Scondras (ca.1984–1987) | |
| Member of the Boston City Council for District 8 | |
| In office 1984–1993 | |
| Preceded by | District created |
| Succeeded by | Thomas M. Keane Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 5, 1946 Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Died | October 21, 2020 (aged 74) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic Socialists of America |
| Spouse | Robert Krebs |
| Residence | Cambridge, Massachusetts |
| Alma mater | |
Early life
editScondras was born in 1946 in Lowell, Massachusetts,[1] and graduated from Lowell High School.[2] He received a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Harvard College in 1968 and later earned and a master's degree in economics from Northeastern University, where he taught mathematics and economics.[3][4]
Community activism
editIn 1968, Scondras moved to Fenway–Kenmore, where he worked at a neighborhood service center for the elderly.[3] In 1971 he and Northeastern University graduate nursing student Linda Beane co-founded the Fenway Community Health Center.[5] Scondras also co-founded the Symphony Tenants Organizing Project, a neighborhood advocacy group. After a deadly fire in 1976, the group began an investigation into arsons in the Symphony Road area that led to the conviction of 33 persons as part of an arson-for-profit ring.[6][7] He later organized the Committee to Save Boston following the 1982 Boston arson spree.[8] In 1972, he was part of a lawsuit that blocked urban redevelopment in the Fenway and created a precedent requiring environmental impact statements for large urban renewal projects.[3] He also lobbied for the creation of the Boston Housing Court and in 1974 chaired a citizen's advisory committee to screen candidates for a judgeship on the court.[3][9]
Political career
editScondras ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 1981, the last election when all seats were at-large.[10] He ran successfully in November 1983, winning the seat for District 8 (Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Mission Hill, and Fenway–Kenmore) and becoming the first openly gay Boston City Council member.[11][12] He was one of a few members of the Democratic Socialists of America to be elected to public office.[13]
In 1984, Scondras was the chief sponsor of the ordinance that created Boston's human rights commission.[14] In 1985, he spoke out in support of David Jean and Donald Babets, whose foster children were taken from them because they were gay.[15] In 1993 he sponsored the Family Protection Act, which allowed same-sex couples that shared basic living expenses to register as domestic partners and receive health insurance benefits and hospital visitation and bereavement rights given to heterosexual spouses.[16]
He was re-elected to four two-year terms, before being defeated in the November 1993 election by Thomas M. Keane Jr. by just 27 votes (3,649–3,622).[17][18] Leading up to that election, a tape of rambling, slurred calls Scondras made to 9-1-1 was leaked to WHDH radio host Howie Carr. Scondras stated he had been taking codeine for a broken leg when he made the calls.[19][20][21] He failed to receive the endorsement of Boston's LGBT-oriented newspaper, Bay Windows, who wrote that he was "out of step with the changing gay community."[22]
Legal issues
editIn 1988, Scondras, Chicago alderman Helen Shiller, and three others were arrested in Chicago during a protest against the city's policies on the homeless.[23]
In 1996, Scondras was charged with indecent sexual assault after he allegedly groped a 16-year-old boy in a Back Bay movie theater. Scondras was beaten by the youth and suffered a broken nose, jaw, and lost three teeth.[24][25] The charges were dropped later that year because the alleged victim refused to testify.[26][27]
In 2007, Scondras pleaded guilty to child enticement, stemming from a 2006 event in Lawrence, Massachusetts.[28][29] He was sentenced to 18 months’ probation, ordered to surrender his computer and register as a sex offender, and stay off the Internet and away from children younger than 16.[30] Scondras later sued the city of Lawrence, charging them with cruel and unusual punishment and assault and battery.[31] In his autobiography, Scondras characterized the event as "being beaten and arrested for not having sex with a boy who did not exist."[32] His lawsuit was dismissed in 2011 because it lacked sufficient evidence.[33]
Later life
editAfter leaving the city council, Scondras moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he ran an HIV/AIDS nonprofit and was active with a neighborhood advocacy group.[34] He was the author of a four-book autobiography titled Angels, Liars, and Thieves, released from 2015 through 2017. Scondras died in October 2020.[27]
Works
edit- Scondras, David (2015). The Beginning: Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 1. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1522927327.
- Scondras, David (2016). The Kiss: Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 2. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1543089905.
- Scondras, David (2016). The Coup: Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 3. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1543092721.
- Scondras, David (2017). The Long Way Home: Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 4. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. ISBN 978-1544927657.