Last Thursday, Tufts University announced it would remove the Sackler name everywhere it appears on its campuses, because of the family's ties to the opioid crisis.

The next day, the president of Harvard, who was previously the president of Tufts, said nope, doing what Tufts did would be "inappropriate."

Lisa Gualtieri photographically captured this freedom-seeking pachyderm this morning.

It is, of course, a statue of the college mascot, Jumbo, looking like he's making a run for it because of some construction fencing behind him. Read more.

The Tufts Observer recounts the university's long history of taking opium-linked money, from donations from a member of the Cabot family to the building named after the couple who gave us OxyContin.

The Tufts Daily reports Tufts has seen nine mumps cases since Oct. 28 and that other colleges in the area are also reporting cases of the contagious disease. Harvard, Tufts and BU had mumps outbreaks this past spring.

Peter Morency reports the entire Tufts campus in Medford lost power around 11:30 a.m.

The city of Somerville issued an alert shortly after 8 a.m.: Read more.

When James Witkowski, 42, was sentenced to 18 months in jail last summer for violating the terms of an assault-and-battery conviction - following earlier convictions that included drug distribution - he had to supply a DNA sample.

The sample matched DNA found on the body of Lena Bruce after she was raped and suffocated in her South End apartment on July 12, 1992. Read more.

In the latest Somerville Neighborhood Newscast, learn about the new affordable housing development on Washington Street, get the latest on a pro-divestment sit-in at Tufts, find out why Rep. Denise Provost is “appalled” with the trade deals being made in Washington, learn about the Tufts protests to support part-time janitors, go to the Boston Marathon with the Somerville Road Runners, learn more about the heroin and opioid epidemic and go to the city’s spring clean-up.

Oct. 21, 2014 - Visit the Kiley Barrel site, march with the Emperor Norton's Stationary Marching Band, learn how Tufts is trying to improve its treatment of victims of sexual abuse, see what's up with the Union Square "Community Benefits Agreement," and explore the taxi-Uber conundrum. These stories and more on Somerville Neighborhood News #25. Check out other episodes at www.somervilleneighborhoodnews.org.
Somerville Neighborhood News is produced by the volunteers, interns and staff of SCATV.

by Jane Regan

Somerville, MA, September 23, 2014 – Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) wowed a crowd of some 500 students, faculty and neighbors on September 15 with stories from her youth, but she also issued dire warnings about the big banks, the lack of investment in education and the “hollowing out of the middle class.”

The senator was also protested by those who came to criticize her stand on the most recent chapter of the Israel-Gaza conflict. Once inside, however, Warren seemed to back away slightly from statements she made in August, saying that Palestinians had a right to self-defense.