Eesha Williams's Blog, page 2
May 16, 2025
Janitors, Other Workers Rally for a Union Contract
On May 13 in the Pioneer Valley town of South Hadley, about 100 janitors, dishwashers, other workers, and supporters held a rally. “I've worked as a cook at Mount Holyoke for seven years – it will be eight years in August,” Rich Sugrue told the Valley Post in a voice phone interview on May 16. He is one of 170 workers at the college who are members of a union, SEIU Local 32BJ.
May 9, 2025
13,000 at Northampton Rally Against Fascism, Pride Parade
About 13,000 people watched the Pride parade in Northampton on May 3. “About 2,000 people were registered in the parade,” Clay Pearson told the Valley Post on May 5. Pearson runs the group that organized the event. The group has a web site at:
The Valley Post asked Pearson, “To what extent was this event a protest of Trump's policies?”
Pearson replied, “This year Hampshire Pride partnered with Northampton Resists to make a political rally the kick off event of our fes...
May 2, 2025
700 March
About 700 people marched in Brattleboro on May 1 to protest Trump, and to fight for workers' rights. May 1 is Labor Day in China, India, Europe, Russia, most of Africa, and all of Latin America. In the US in the 1930s, and globally for as long as there have been workers, strikes have been used to create a middle class, help end apartheid in South Africa, and achieve many other victories for democracy. The Brattleboro march was organized by the groups Indivisible, 505051, and others.
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...April 28, 2025
Reggae Singer from Jamaica to Play in Brattleboro
When N.L. Dennis was singing in a recording studio with Toots and the Maytals, Bob Marley stopped by to listen. Marley praised Dennis's delivery. Today, Dennis lives in his native Jamaica and joins hundreds of Jamaicans who come to Vermont every summer in search of better paying work. Most of them work on vegetable farms and at apple orchards. Dennis works as a reggae musician.
On June 29 at noon, Dennis and the Thunderballs will play a free concert at the Putney, Vermont farmers' market. Putne...
April 25, 2025
2,000 March, Rally in Valley
About 2,000 people marched and rallied to protest Trump on April 19 in Northampton and other cities and towns in the Pioneer Valley, according to one of the groups that organized the events. The group has a web site at https://in-slwm.org. Photos and video of the marches and rallies are on the group's Facebook page.
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In Brattleboro on May 1, there will be a workers' rights march, starting at 5 p.m. outside 193 Main Street. Details are at:
April 15, 2025
Fight is On to Save 288 Acres
In the Pioneer Valley town of Williamsburg, two land trusts are working to protect a 288 acre defunct golf course from development. If they succeed it will go back to being a forest. The land trusts need donations and volunteers. Details are on the Facebook page of one of the groups, Hilltown Land Trust. The other group is the Trustees of Reservations.
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April 11, 2025
9,500 at Local Protests on April 5
On April 5, in the rain, about 6,000 people rallied in the Pioneer Valley, 2,000 marched in Brattleboro, and 1,500 rallied in Keene. They were protesting Trump. One of the groups that promoted the protests is the Center for Biological Diversity. According to the Center's web site, “The welfare of human beings is deeply linked to nature — to the existence in our world of a vast diversity of wild animals and plants. Because diversity has intrinsic value, and because its loss impoverishes society, ...
April 5, 2025
Photos: 2,000 March in Rain in Brattleboro to Protest Trump
About 2,000 people marched in the rain April 5 in Brattleboro to protest Trump. One of the groups that promoted the event has a web site at:
The Valley Post has posted many photos in the past but our "content management system" (Drupal) is not letting us post photos anymore. We are seeking donations to hire an expert to fix this problem. Meanwhile, the photos are at:
https://www.facebook.com/eeshawilliams/posts/pfbid02L5wsFkJdufkJcidwhuED...
April 4, 2025
400 Students Walk Out in Protest
In the Pioneer Valley town of South Hadley about 400 high school students walked out of classes on March 31 to protest public school funding cuts. The National Education Association (NEA) is the nation's biggest union, and a major donor to the Democratic party. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a Democrat and a member of congress from New York who, with Bernie Sanders, attracted 30,000 people to an anti-Trump rally in Colorado on March 21. Amy Foley is president of the NEA chapter in South Hadley. On ...
March 28, 2025
1,300 Rally, Five Protesters Arrested, 60 Workers Form Union
In Northampton about 800 people attended an outdoor rally to protest Trump's policies, an organizer told the Valley Post. The goal was to resist fascism. “If you’re tired of the barrage of news and want to do something, you’re not alone! We strive to mobilize, and more events are coming!” according to the organizers' web page:
www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61572916231647#
The rally was on March 9. A photo is at:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=122117806232763874&set=pb.615729...
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