Legal community looks to lend a hand to Gateway Cities - South Coast Today

The Massachusetts Bar Association held a forum at UMass School of Law to identify ways the legal community can help old industrial cities outside Boston that struggle with high rates of unemployment and other social problems.

Panelists described Gateway Cities' predicament and existing revitalization efforts.

Benjamin Forman, researcher director at MassINC, a think tank that first identified the cities, gave a background presentation, noting the difficulties — a tendency to focus on Boston over other cities — and the opportunities in the smaller cities — existing infrastructure and under-utilized labor force.