According to news reports, the US Olympic Committee has finally thrown in the towel on a highly controversial and locally unpopular 2024 bid to host the summer games in Boston. Back in January, ACLU of Massachusetts executive director Carol Rose and I penned an op-ed for the Guardian, in which we warned about the many civil liberties issues raised by events of such magnitude. We wrote that, especially at a time when black and brown youth all over the country are mobilizing to demand justice and respect from the state, handing over policing and surveillance powers to unaccountable federal (or even private) entities would be a dangerous move.

Now we don't have to worry about that, or the other special surveillance and policing problems raised by so-called National Security Special Events like the Olympics.

But that doesn't mean our struggles are over. Instead, we can get back to focusing on what matters most to people in Massachusetts and Boston.