Ryan Caron King

Students from Naugatuck High School, along with some of their parents and supporters, staged a demonstration in town Wednesday after racist social media posts from a fellow student were revealed.

From suburban Connecticut to rural Maine, demonstrators occupied highways and town greens over the summer with banners and calls for racial justice. 

It’s been six weeks since a white Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd. Since then, thousands of people across Connecticut have taken to the streets to protest police brutality and systemic racism. Connecticut Public spoke with young Black protesters about what motivated them to speak out, their experiences with racism, and the changes they’re pushing for.

Unions and community activists in Connecticut renewed calls for the governor to establish a fund to help undocumented workers who are suffering during the coronavirus pandemic.

A car caravan paraded up I-91 from New Haven to Hartford, where protesters joined ranks with others from around the state in front of the Capitol building to hold an International Workers Day rally. Many stayed in their cars to follow social distancing guidelines -- and some joined virtually via Zoom.

Thousands lined up to collect food donations at Rentschler Field in East Hartford last week. Foodshare started the drive-through food bank on Monday and decided to extend the program for two more weeks due to an “overwhelming response” from the community. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now advises all people to wear a cloth face covering in public spaces to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, though in Connecticut, masks are not mandatory. With shortages of medical-grade masks on the front lines of the pandemic, such masks aren’t generally available to the public. Still, that hasn’t stopped people from getting creative with DIY versions. A walk around New Haven bears that out, as you’ll see many residents with a new look, doing their part to fight the coronavirus.    

When Tamara Lanier’s mother died in 2010, the Norwich, Connecticut, resident remembered a promise she made to her: to document who her ancestors were.

Lanier says she grew up hearing her mother’s stories about her great-great-great grandfather, Papa Renty, an African-born enslaved man in South Carolina.

Según el Centro para Estudios Puertorriqueños del Colegio Universitario Hunter, un estimado de 13000 puertorriqueños vino a Connecticut luego del huracán María.

El centro de socorro por el huracán, de Hartford, era donde los evacuados de Puerto Rico podían ir para buscar ayuda: ayuda para conseguir vivienda, trabajos, ropa de invierno; cualquier suministro o servicio que necesitaran para recomenzar sus vidas en Connecticut.

El recuerdo del huracán María aún vive en Carmen Cotto.

"El huracán devastó la isla," dijo Cotto. "Me devastó a mí. Devastó a mí familia. Y a todas las familias. Porque abrir la puerta y ver lo que vimos, todavía me llena los ojos de lágrimas."

Miles de puertorriqueños como Cotto dejaron sus hogares en la isla para vivir en Connecticut después del ataque del huracán María en el otoño pasado. Ahora, a medida que Puerto Rico se recupera lentamente de la tormenta, algunos están regresando a casa.

Una coalición de grupos activistas, organizadores sindicales y funcionarios electos están solicitando a la Universidad de Yale que publique y cancele sus participaciones en la deuda puertorriqueña.

Brian Rivera estaba terminando su desayuno en el lobby de la posada Red Roof en el centro de Hartford. Ha estado viviendo allí con su esposa y sus dos hijos pequeños, desde diciembre. Y no sabía aún, si tendría que mudarse pronto.

Members of Hartford’s Puerto Rican community held a rally and a candlelight vigil Friday night in front of the hotel where dozens of hurricane evacuees from the island have been living since Hurricane Maria.

Authorities say a missing inmate who escaped from the Carl Robinson Correctional Institution in Enfield may have stowed away under a state service vehicle or garbage truck.

Xiomara Vega se mudó a Connecticut desde Puerto Rico con su hija de tres años después de que el Huracán María cortara la electricidad en su casa. Trata de construir una nueva vida allá, pero no quiere olvidar su antigua vida. Y celebrar el Día de los Tres Reyes Magos, la celebración cristiana también conocida como la epifanía, es una gran parte de ella.