Eesha Williams's Blog, page 92
January 26, 2017
6,000 at Women's Rallies in Valley on Jan. 21
About 3,000 people attended a rally in Northampton and a similar number rallied in Greenfield on January 21, in solidarity with the Women's March on Washington. According to the official march web site, more than 1 million people marched in Washington, and more than 5 million people attended solidarity events around the world. The march organizers' “partners” include Planned Parenthood, the AFL-CIO, and 350.org. The web site is www.WomensMarch.com.
This video shows women singing at the Washin...
January 19, 2017
Activists: 'Healthcare is a Human Right'
About 400 people attended rallies in Amherst and Keene on January 15, declaring, “Healthcare is a human right.” President-elect Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress are planning major cuts to programs that provide free or reduced-price health care to poor people. The Amherst rally was also intended to protest plans to cut Social Security.
About 200 people were at the Keene rally and about 200 attended the rally in Amherst. The rally in Keene was organized by the Monadnock Progressive...
January 12, 2017
Two Rallies
More than 100 people attended a rally for gun control January 10. It was organized by a Brattleboro-based group and was at the Vermont statehouse in Montpelier. On January 11 in Westfield, Massachusetts, dozens of nurses and their supporters attended a rally for justice. Westfield is near Springfield. The nurses work at Noble Hospital. They are demanding fair wages and benefits, and a limit on how many patients each nurse is responsible for. The nurses have a web site at www.MassNurses.org.
January 4, 2017
Labor Rally in New Hampshire
On January 4 in New Hampshire, the day before a new, anti-union governor was sworn in, labor activists held a rally at the state capitol. The Republican governor-elect wants to make it harder for unions to exist. “The next few years are bound to be incredibly difficult, especially if these changes happen along with changes to voting rights,” Kim Schmidl-Gagne told the Valley Post on January 2. She works at Keene State College and was a leader of the successful union organizing drive among 300...
December 29, 2016
Environmental Victories
Activists in the Valley who have fought to save the environment are seeing their work pay off. Government money that exists because of their work is being used to protect land near Keene, Northampton, and Brattleboro. “It's 182 acres of land along and around the West Cliff trail,” Emily McAdoo told the Valley Post in a telephone interview on December 28. She is on the board of the Putney Mountain Association, which “recently signed purchase and sale agreements” for the land in Brookline, Verm...
