Caught off guard

Also: The climate goals Mass. has to meet by 2025 and 2030; pros and cons of the four-day work week [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  July 6, 2022 🌤️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 85. Good Morning Boston, Good news: it's already Wednesday — and now I'm feeling [a little jealous of Swampscott town employees](. Here's what's on our radar today, from the latest local news to an in-depth look at whether the four-day work week is as good as it might seem: - Officials say that local police were caught off guard by the weekend march through downtown Boston by roughly 100 members of the white supremacist Patriot Front group. And while they're working to be more prepared for future demonstrations, WBUR's Walter Wuthmann [reports that it's an open question whether any of the marchers will face charges]( for their brief parade through the city. - Investigators are reviewing videos of [an alleged assault by the group that injured a Black man near Copley Square](. However, their face coverings are making it hard for police to make any identifications. Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins also said officials will prosecute any threats made by the group (though it's unclear if any have). - Why were officials surprised? FBI agent Joseph Bonavolonta noted that the First Amendment protects even "vile or repugnant" forms of speech at times, limiting officials' ability to monitor or track groups based solely on their political ideology. - Following Massachusetts' footsteps, Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee signed [an executive order Tuesday]( aimed at protecting abortions for out-of-state residents following last month's Supreme Court decision. - The order forbids state agencies from assisting out-of-state investigations into abortions performed in Rhode Island. It also ensures that individuals will not be extradited, nor will local providers be punished, for performing abortions. [According to The Boston Globe]( McKee said last week that he was modeling the order after [the similar one signed by Gov. Charlie Baker](. - Have you noticed that pain at the pump easing slightly? According to AAA, the average price of gas in Massachusetts has dipped to [$4.83 a gallon]( down [more than 20 cents in the past three weeks](. In fact, the price is below $5 at roughly four out of every five gas station in the state. According to GasBuddy, there was even a station in Boston selling gas for $4.39 a gallon over the holiday weekend. - What's behind the decline? AAA spokeswoman Mary Maguire says a dip in the demand for gasoline ([perhaps due to the sky-high prices and recession concerns]( relieved some pressure. But don't expect the trend to keep going at this pace; Maguire says July is typically the heaviest month for demand due to increased travel, "so this trend of easing prices may very well be short-lived." - A portion of Congress Street in Boston will close for nearly two months starting next week — and the block will look very different when it reopens. That's because crews are resuming the demolition of the Government Center parking garage to make way for [a massive new building]( that will take its place hanging over the street. - Beginning Monday, the block of Congress Street between New Chardon and Sudbury streets will be closed until Labor Day. That means cars and pedestrians will be [detoured around the block](. P.S.— Cincinnati, Chicago, St. Louis... Amesbury? Did you know the small Massachusetts city was once [one of the nation's top carriage manufacturers]( The Amesbury Carriage Museum is working to bring that history to light by treating the entire city as a historical artifact. Their leaders [talked to Radio Boston about the unique approach](. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Planting 1,000 wildflowers to restore a biodiversity hotspot on Martha's Vineyard]( Volunteers are working to restore Bamford Preserve, a rare sandplain grassland on Martha’s Vineyard. Sandplain grasslands are biodiversity hotspots found only along the northeast Atlantic Coast. [Read more.]( [Planting 1,000 wildflowers to restore a biodiversity hotspot on Martha's Vineyard]( Volunteers are working to restore Bamford Preserve, a rare sandplain grassland on Martha’s Vineyard. Sandplain grasslands are biodiversity hotspots found only along the northeast Atlantic Coast. [Read more.]( [What Massachusetts' climate plan says the state has to do by 2025 and 2030]( Decarbonizing the Massachusetts economy is no easy task. It involves dozens of programs, policies and other moving parts that must be deployed simultaneously. [Read more.]( [What Massachusetts' climate plan says the state has to do by 2025 and 2030]( Decarbonizing the Massachusetts economy is no easy task. It involves dozens of programs, policies and other moving parts that must be deployed simultaneously. [Read more.]( [More companies are trying out the 4-day workweek. But it might not be for everyone]( For some workers, the four-day workweek has been a dream and helped restore their work/life balance. Others say it doesn't create as much flexibility as it might seem. [Read more.]( [More companies are trying out the 4-day workweek. But it might not be for everyone]( For some workers, the four-day workweek has been a dream and helped restore their work/life balance. Others say it doesn't create as much flexibility as it might seem. [Read more.]( [Highland Park suspect's online history reveals a fascination with violence]( The 21-year-old apparently made music videos about shootings, and posted thousands of times to a message board dedicated to sharing graphic photos and videos of violence. [Read more.]( [Highland Park suspect's online history reveals a fascination with violence]( The 21-year-old apparently made music videos about shootings, and posted thousands of times to a message board dedicated to sharing graphic photos and videos of violence. [Read more.]( [The first Gen Z candidates are running for Congress — and running against compromise]( As the first few Gen Z candidates navigate runs for Congress, questions remain over how coming of age during intense national political division will shape Gen Z candidates' approach to politics. [Read more.]( [The first Gen Z candidates are running for Congress — and running against compromise]( As the first few Gen Z candidates navigate runs for Congress, questions remain over how coming of age during intense national political division will shape Gen Z candidates' approach to politics. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - From Microsoft to Nike to Tesla, a number of companies have said they'll cover travel expenses for employees who have to go out-of-state for an abortion in the wake of the Supreme Court's ruling last month. But as NPR explains, there are [different ways such a process might work](. - Marwa Bacare, a rising Boston seventh grader, [writes in this commentary]( about the impact of growing up without Muslim girls as literary heroes. - In the making years before the recent end to the constitutional right to an abortion, a new exhibition at the MassArt Art Museum [features 200 objects that explore the history of human reproduction]( from IUDs to speculums to baby monitors.  What We're Reading 📚 - Unsettled ([The Verge]( - The lore of ‘CODELs’: How foreign travel helps Congress at home ([Politico]( - 76 Fake Charities Shared a Mailbox. The I.R.S. Approved Them All. ([The New York Times](  Tell Me Something Good [Brayan Bello, most fascinating Red Sox pitching prospect in years, could make an impact (NBC Sports)]( With Bello set to make his MLB debut Wednesday, John Tomase explains what all the hype is about regarding one of the most highly-touted pitching prospects in recent Sox memory. [Read more.]( [Brayan Bello, most fascinating Red Sox pitching prospect in years, could make an impact (NBC Sports)]( With Bello set to make his MLB debut Wednesday, John Tomase explains what all the hype is about regarding one of the most highly-touted pitching prospects in recent Sox memory. [Read more.]( Before you go: Twitter [as a force for... good?]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news   Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. Unsubscribe from all WBUR editorial newsletters [here](.  Interested in learning more about corporate sponsorship? [Click here.]( Copyright © 2022 WBUR-FM, All rights reserved.