David Scondras

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
Scondras (ca.1984–1987)
Member of the Boston City Council for District 8
In office
1984–1993
Preceded bydistrict created
Succeeded byThomas M. Keane Jr.
Personal details
Born(1946-01-05)January 5, 1946
Lowell, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedOctober 21, 2020(2020-10-21) (aged 74)
Political partyDemocratic
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Socialists of America
SpouseRobert Krebs
ResidenceCambridge, Massachusetts
Alma mater

Early life

Scondras 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

In 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

Scondras 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 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]

In 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

After 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
  • 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.

See also

References
  1. Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 1 p.12
  2. Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 1 p.6
  3. Ashbrook, Tom (October 21, 1986). "Scondras for Neighborhood Preservation". The Boston Globe.
  4. "Short Circuits". The Boston Globe. December 24, 1989.
  5. Batza, Katie (2020). Bell, Jonathan (ed.). "A Clinic Comes Out". Beyond the Politics of the Closet. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  6. Canavan, Jack (October 1, 1978). "How One". The Boston Globe.
  7. "Candidates for the City Council; David Scondras". The Boston Globe. September 16, 1981.
  8. Ball, Joanne (October 17, 1982). "Attack launched on Hub arson". The Boston Globe.
  9. Martin, Richard (October 28, 1974). "Daher sworn as second housing court judge". The Boston Globe.
  10. "4 NEW MEMBERS ON COUNCIL". The Boston Globe. November 4, 1981. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via pqarchiver.com.
  11. "A LOOK AT THE BOSTON CITY COUNCIL; DAVID SCONDRAS". The Boston Globe. November 17, 1983. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via pqarchiver.com.
  12. Krone, Mark (October 10, 2013). "Boston Mayor's Race: Then and Now". bostonspiritmagazine.com. Retrieved February 22, 2018.
  13. Democratic Left, vol. 8 no. 1 (January 1990), page 7.
  14. Goldsmith, Larry (July 7, 1984). "Boston Council Approves Rights Bill; Nearly Unanimous Vote a Pleasant Surprise". Gay Community News.
  15. Briggs, Laura (2012). Somebody's children : the politics of transracial and transnational adoption. Durham: Duke University Press. p. 247. ISBN 978-0-8223-5147-4. OCLC 748287033.
  16. Sciacca, Joe (January 28, 1993). "Council redefines family Act extends city benefits to partners". Boston Herald.
  17. "Council winner declared today". The Boston Globe. November 17, 1993. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via pqarchiver.com.
  18. "Scondras concedes; will form think tank". The Boston Globe. November 23, 1993. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via pqarchiver.com.
  19. Walker, Adrian (April 23, 1993). "Fenway residents stand by Scondras: But explanation of his actions sought". The Boston Globe. p. 26. Retrieved October 30, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  20. Canellos, Peter S. (October 15, 1993). "Tape of Scondras' calls to 911 line is leaked; police order an inquiry". The Boston Globe.
  21. Canellos, Peter S. (April 25, 1993). "Scondras places self under scrutiny". The Boston Globe. p. 29. Retrieved October 30, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  22. "Gay weekly refuses to endorse Scondras Says councilor 'out of step' with constituents". The Boston Globe. October 28, 1993. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via pqarchiver.com.
  23. "Alderman arrested at homeless site". The Times. Munster, Indiana. AP. October 15, 1988. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  24. Chacon, Richard (October 26, 1996). "Charged with sex assault, Scondras criticizes police". The Boston Globe.
  25. Anand, Geeta; Ellement, John (August 28, 1996). "Scondras a victim of gay-bashing, friend says: Former city councilor to file countercharge". The Boston Globe. p. 25. Retrieved October 30, 2020 – via newspapers.com.
  26. Mulvihill, Maggie (December 7, 1996). "Sexual assault charge dropped against Scondras". Boston Herald.
  27. Fox, Jeremy C. (October 29, 2020). "Former Boston city councilor David Scondras dies at 74". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  28. "Former Boston City Councilor Pleads Guilty To Child Enticement". mass.gov (Press release). August 21, 2007. Archived from the original on March 18, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  29. "Ex-councilman pleads guilty to teen-sex charge". The News-Press. Fort Myers, Florida. August 22, 2007. Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018 – via newspapers.com.
  30. "Ex-Hub city councilor Scondras must register as sex offender". Boston Herald. August 22, 2007. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  31. "David Scondras charges police brutality in lawsuit over 2006 teen-sex arrest". universalhub.com. October 3, 2009. Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved February 25, 2018.
  32. Angels, Liars, and Thieves, Book 1 p.5
  33. Harmacinski, Jill (March 19, 2011). "Two Lawrence police brutality cases tossed". The Eagle-Tribune. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  34. Ballou, Brian R.; Levenson, Michael (October 11, 2006). "Former city councilor is arrested on sex charge". The Boston Globe.
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