Ep 25: Paper City Politics With Israel Rivera

This week on Trippin’ on the Shoestring, cohosts Shelby Lee and Dusty Christensen talk politics in one of our most beloved cities here in western Mass: Holyoke. In recent years, it seems like there have been some big changes happening in the Paper City. Holyoke is often referred to as the most Puerto Rican city on the U.S. mainland, with around half of the city’s residents identifying as Boricuas. In 2021, the city elected its first-ever Boricua mayor, Joshua Garcia, and its most racially diverse City Council ever.

It was that same year that our guest this week, At-Large City Councilor Israel Rivera, was first elected to office. Now in his second term, Izzy sat down to talk about everything from policing to how the newly seated City Council is conducting its business.

Listen and subscribe to Trippin’ on The Shoestring on Apple, Spotify, Audible, Spreaker, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also find our podcast page on Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, or JioSavvn.

Produced by Ático Studios. Music by An Archaeologist.

The Shoestring is an independent local news outlet serving western Massachusetts. In our podcast Trippin’ on the Shoestring, investigative reporters Dusty Christensen and Shelby Lee bring you big local scoops and important voices from across the Connecticut River Valley.

The Shoestring is committed to bringing you ad-free content. We rely on readers to support our work! You can support independent news for Western Mass by visiting our Donate page.