Martin Walsh (Photo : Reuters)
Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh has fired a city youth worker who recently participated in a protest, which caused morning rush-hour traffic jam and delayed at least two ambulances, Boston Herald reported.
On Jan. 15, Nelli Ruotsalainen, 25, was among 11 protesters who chained themselves to 1,200-pound, concrete-filled barrels in Milton. A Finland native, Ruotsalainen lives in Roxbury and she worked part-time for the Boston Centers for Youth and Families as a youth communication specialist.
As mayor, Walsh said he has to make tough and difficult decisions and he does not consider firing the city youth worker a difficult decision because it was based on "the fact of putting the public safety of other people at risk" and not on "the fact of this woman protesting."
While he fully supports the right to demonstrate, Walsh pointed out that the protesters crossed the line after putting people's lives in danger. In particular, the mayor was infuriated because an ambulance carrying an 83-year-old car crash victim had to be rerouted from Boston Medical Center to a Brockton hospital.
"You can't put people in harm's way like that," Walsh said.
After being non-cooperative and pleading "the Fifth" at the Boston City Hall hearing, Ruotsalainen recommended to be terminated by a Labor Relations committee, city officials said.
Prior to the protest, Walsh declared in his first State of the City speech before an audience of 2,500 in Symphony Hall that his administration is focused on building new schools and using city-owned land to speed up construction of affordable homes, Boston Globe reported.
