Ty Bellitti grew up in Newtown Court, a housing project in The Port, and has mostly fond memories of it. But he also understands why community residents got so angry at city officials for calling Cambridge a “safe city” at a meeting last month.
“I personally had a very beautiful upbringing, but it wasn’t without danger, it wasn’t without fear,” Bellitti said. He is co-founder of My Brother’s Keeper, a nonprofit that works to address opportunity gaps for boys and young men of color. He said The Port has always faced problems with violence, including gun violence.
Residents at a July 8 community meeting lambasted city officials for claims that Cambridge was safe, which many felt didn’t capture the experiences of Black and brown people. The Port has the highest population of Black residents out of all the neighborhoods within Cambridge, according to a 2023 neighborhood statistics profile done by the city, which placed its Black population at almost 30%…