In Deerfield, Massachusetts, near Greenfield, activists defeated a multi-billion dollar corporation on August 12. The company wanted to pave open space. “I’m relieved that Dollar General has decided not to further attempt to build in Deerfield on the site that has been in discussion for three years. There are so many positive things in the works for Deerfield, it will be a relief not to have this issue pull time and attention to it anymore,” Julie Cavacco told the Valley Post on August 13, 2021. She attended a Deerfield rally against Dollar General in December 2020.

Cavacco referred the Valley Post to a local group that fought the proposed Dollar General. The group has a web page at:

www.facebook.com/DeerfieldForResponsibleDevelopment

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In Springfield on August 24, 2021, there will be a rally. The organizers said, “Congress is finalizing the big infrastructure and recovery package, with trillions of dollars at stake. Let’s push them to invest in climate solutions, care workers, jobs, and justice.”

The 11 a.m. rally will be outside 300 State Street. One of the groups that endorsed the event has a web site at www.AriseSpringfield.org.

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In Brattleboro, according to an August 12 email from the ACLU, the group's members are urging their members of congress to, “oppose the militarization of our borders and reject the United States Customs and Border Protection agency’s proposal to build 200-foot surveillance towers in Vermont communities that are already harmed by Border Patrol’s presence. Vermonters value their privacy and are proud to live in vibrant and welcoming communities. Those values are threatened by U.S. Border Patrol’s plan to build eight, 200-foot surveillance towers in northern Vermont towns, with two more in upstate New York.”

The ACLU went on, “These surveillance towers would transform our communities, threatening the privacy and civil liberties of community members, damaging local economies, and accelerating the militarization of our region. Border Patrol is a self-styled federal para-military force, responsible for extensive, documented human rights abuses nationwide, with a corrupt and toxic internal culture and zero meaningful oversight or accountability.”