Election mailers are filling mailboxes across New England this week. But one in Massachusetts stood out from the bunch, and the attorney general's office is getting involved.
The questionable pamphlet shows a hand covering a little girl's mouth and reads "Shame on you Michael Day," alleging that the Democratic state representative "voted against protecting women and children from level 2 and 3 sex offenders falsely claiming to be transgender."
Mimi Lemay's 6-year-old son, Jacob, is transgender.
"We have three kids," Lemay said. "He's the middle. He transitioned at the age of 4."
One of her children still attends school in Stoneham. The town is one of many areas that recently received the flier from the Marlborough Republican City Committee.
The bill it criticizes Day for supporting protects transgender people from discrimination in public bathrooms. Lemay believes the mailers are putting transgender people in harms way.
"What was really shocking was that this was happening in Massachusetts, where I think the education has been a little better on this topic," expressed Lemay.
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Caroline Colarusso is running against Day.
"That's not the issue," Colarusso told necn. "The issue is that the level 2 and 3 sex offenders are protected. That's a mistake."
She says the mailers simply expose Day's voting record.
"He should have joined the other 23 bipartisan Democrats that crossed party lines and said we need to protect women and children not sex offenders," Colarusso said. "Essentially, that's what his vote did."
The same mailers, with Rep. Ken Gordon's name, were also distributed.
"We shouldn't be putting people in fear in order to get a vote, and that is what this mailer was intended to do," Gordon said. "No matter how people feel about the underlying issue."
Day agrees. He's urging Gov. Charlie Baker, who signed the bill into law over the summer, to respond.
"I think the governor either has to choose to disavow this and disavow the candidates that support that tactic, or stand up and say, you know, I do support this type of thing," said Day.
Whatever results from those mailers and this election, Lemay remains optimistic.
"I feel that Jacob’s future is going to be bright," she said.
