At 6:30 p.m. on December 10, there will be a rally for peace outside the courthouse at the corner of Main and King streets in Northampton. The rally is to cut the nation’s military budget. Almost half of this year's entire federal budget of $2.8 trillion is being spent on war. That’s according to:
www.warresisters.org/sites/default/files/FY2012piechart-color.pdf
There were rallies for justice in Springfield on March 31 and April 2. About 1,700 people attended the March 31 rally, which was the bigger of the two. The bigger rally was to support Trayvon Martin, and to protest racist police. There were similar protests around the nation. Martin was an unarmed African American teenager who was shot and killed in Florida in February by George Zimmerman. The government has failed to charge Zimmerman with any crime; he is free.
New Englanders who refuse to pay taxes that fund war will speak at a free public event in Amherst on November 4. More than half of the $2.7 trillion federal budget was spent on the military in the most recent fiscal year, according to the War Resisters League:
www.warresisters.org/pages/piechart.htm
On November 6 at noon, war tax resisters will hold a rally at the Amherst town common. The public is invited to attend.
On September 17, 19, 20, and 21, there will be rallies in Springfield and Northampton calling for better public transportation, for peace, and for justice. On September 20 in Springfield, a 90 minute rally will start at 11 a.m. at the corner of Main Street and Liberty streets. The rally will oppose a plan now in Congress to cut 35 percent of federal funding for public transportation. Details are at www.SupportTransit.org
Taxes are due on April 18 this year. Activists in Amherst and Brattleboro plan to use the occasion to educate the public. About half the federal budget goes to war. The richest Americans and biggest corporations are able to avoid paying all or most of the money they owe the government.
Protesters will hand out a pie chart showing what the government does with the money that Americans pay in income taxes:
www.warresisters.org/sites/default/files/FY2012piechart-color.pdf
About 90 people attended a peace march and rally in downtown Keene on March 19, the eighth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. The march and rally were organized by a group called the Keene Peace Vigil. More information on the group is at:
www.nhpeaceaction.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=...
More than half of the $2,650,000,000,000 federal budget was spent on war in the most recent fiscal year, according to the War Resisters League:
www.warresisters.org/pages/piechart.htm
Information on war tax resistance is at www.nwtrcc.org
On November 29 from 4 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. in Northampton, there will be a rally to call for an end to U.S. government funding of the Israeli military. The rally will be outside city hall at 210 Main Street.
Between 1949 and 2008, the U.S. government gave the government of Israel about $114 billion, according to:
http://wrmea.org/component/content/article/245-2008-november/3845-congre...
Currently, the U.S. gives about $3 billion annually to Israel, according to:
A group of Valley residents is planning to rally for peace at a display of military might by the U.S. Air Force in Westfield, Massachusetts on August 21 and 22. The public is welcome to join the peace action. Westfield is near Springfield.
"We will be reminding people at the air show that these planes are weapons of mass destruction," said peace activist Daniel Sicken of Dummerston, Vermont, near Brattleboro. He plans to take part in the peace protest.
Out of an annual federal government budget of about $2,900,000,000,000 about half goes to war. Details are at:
On August 7, about 60 people rallied at Northampton city hall to call for cuts in war funding and increases in government funding for jobs installing solar panels. Out of an annual federal government budget of about $2,900,000,000,000 about half goes to war. Details are at:
www.warresisters.org/files/FY2011piechart.pdf
Frances Crowe spoke at the event. More information on Crowe is at:
http://asteria.fivecolleges.edu/findaids/sophiasmith/mnsss233.html
Among the groups working to promote peace and solar power are www.peace-action.org and www.greenpeace.org
Most history professors never get arrested for civil disobedience. Boston University history professor Howard Zinn was arrested many times, protesting for peace, workers’ rights, and civil rights.