Eesha Williams's Blog, page 104
April 21, 2016
Concert Review: Koite and Mahlasela
Habib Koite and Vusi Mahlasela and their band performed an excellent concert at the Academy of Music in Northampton April 10. Koite lives in the west African nation of Mali, where he is from. Mahlasela lives in South Africa, where he is from. The venue appeared to be almost sold out. The applause was loud and long after every song. Many people danced in the aisles.
Grassroots Victory
Thanks to hundreds of people in the Pioneer Valley and Keene who attended marches and rallies, a proposed fracked gas pipeline will not be built. The Texas corporation that wanted to build the pipeline through the Valley and near Keene made the announcement April 20.
April 14, 2016
Concert Review: Koite and Mahlasela
Habib Koite and Vusi Mahlasela and their band performed an excellent concert at the Academy of Music in Northampton April 10. Koite lives in the west African nation of Mali, where he is from. Mahlasela lives in South Africa, where he is from. The venue appeared to be almost sold out. The applause was loud and long after every song. Many people danced in the aisles.
Photo: Verizon Workers' Picket Line
This photo shows Verizon workers on strike in Hadley, Massachusetts, near Amherst, on April 14. One of the people in the photo is Jack Stankowski. He lives in Deerfield, Massachusetts, near Greenfield. He has worked at Verizon for 19 years. In winter, he often has to work on top of telephone poles. "I'm here for the working class," Stankowski told the Valley Post. "Corporations just want to take, take, take."
34 Climate Protesters Arrested
At UMass Amherst, police arrested 34 people for non-violent civil disobedience on April 12 and April 13. The protesters were calling on the university to divest from fossil fuels. More information is at their web page: www.facebook.com/divestUmass.
Protest Underway; 34 Arrested So Far
As of 3 p.m. on April 14, about 120 people were occupying the Whitmore administration building at UMass Amherst to call on the university to divest from fossil fuels. Police arrested 34 of the protesters for non-violent civil disobedience on April 12 and April 13. As of April 14, more arrests for non-violent civil disobedience were expected. More information is at www.facebook.com/divestUmass.
Rally for Peace
In Brattleboro, there will be a rally for global peace on April 18 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m., outside the food co-op at 2 Main Street. “The Obama administration has committed to renewing the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile at a cost of $1 trillion over the next 30 years,” Brattleboro rally organizer Daniel Sicken (pronounced SEE-kin) told the Valley Post. For more information, contact him atdhsicken@yahoo.comor by phone at (802) 387-2798. The event is sponsored bywww.nwtrcc.org.
April 13, 2016
Concert Review: Koite and Mahlasela
Habib Koite and Vusi Mahlasela and their band performed an excellent concert at the Academy of Music in Northampton April 10. Koite lives in the west African nation of Mali, where he is from. Mahlasela lives in South Africa, where he is from. The venue appeared to be almost sold out. The applause was loud and long after every song. Many people danced in the aisles.
39,000 Workers Strike
Workers in the Valley walked off the job April 13 as they joined the biggest strike in the USA in years. They work for Verizon and are asking the public to join them on picket lines. Some 39,000 striking workers are demanding a fair union contract. The company's CEO Lowell McAdam makes $18 million a year. But McAdam is refusing to give the workers job security or a good retirement, and wants them to pay more for health care. He wants to be able to force workers to work so far from their homes...
