SOMERVILLE — Once beloved as a lively Boston suburb, Somerville has been transformed into a lawless slum under its progressive mayor. What used to be family nights out and bustling Davis Square cafes has collapsed into an open-air drug den of vagrants, addicts, and chaos.

The decay is no secret to locals. In a widely shared anonymous Facebook post, a furious mother recounted how her two children were showered with glass after a panhandler’s bottle smashed against the pavement outside CVS in Davis Square. Her young son had to be rushed to urgent care.

“There was glass all over my toddler’s leg,” the mom wrote. “The bottle shattered and hit both my kids. I screamed at the guy but he kept walking.”

This is the daily reality for families trying to navigate Somerville in 2025. Parents can no longer trust their children will be safe walking across the square without being caught in a fight between addicts or tripping over used needles.

Meanwhile, Mayor Katjana Ballantyne has been busy bragging about equity programs, Green New Deal talking points, and her bike lane empire. Somerville has managed to paint miles of fresh asphalt for cyclists while ignoring the collapse of its public spaces into junkie playgrounds.

Progressives in City Hall gush about “equity” and “inclusion,” but the only thing being included in Davis Square are addicts, brawlers, and vagrants. Families and longtime residents have been excluded from their own neighborhood — shoved out by disorder, violence, and fear.

Davis Square once represented the best of Boston’s inner suburbs. Today it represents the failure of progressive politics: bike stripes on the pavement, needles in the gutter, and children bleeding from broken glass.

Under progressive leadership, Somerville hasn’t moved forward — it’s fallen apart.