On November 21 in Springfield, 15 activists were arrested for protesting Bank of America's decision to force poor people out of their homes. Hundreds of supporters cheered at the downtown action. Protesters were arrested for blocking the entrance to a Bank of America branch, and for refusing to leave the bank's lobby, where they held signs and chanted, "Bank of America, bad for America." Outside, people inspired by Occupy Wall Street chanted, "We/ are/ the 99 percent."

(To enlarge a photo, click on it, then scroll down and click "See full size image." photos by Eesha Williams)

On November 21, from 11 a.m. until about 2 p.m., there will be a march and optional non-violent civil disobedience in Springfield to protest banks that pay their CEOs millions while evicting poor people from their homes in the Valley. People will meet behind the Dunkin Donuts at Central Street and Main Street, Malcolm Chu told the Valley Post. Chu is an organizer with the group Springfield No One Leaves www.SpringfieldNoOneLeaves.org

The group has been endorsed by the local chapters of the:

American Friends Service Committee www.afsc.org

National Lawyers Guild www.nlg.org

and

On November 10 at 5 p.m., workers will rally in Springfield to protest a company that violated laws protecting workers’ right to form a union. The public is invited. A union election will be conducted by mail starting November 14. Ballots will be counted on November 30, said Ivette Hernandez, one of the workers who will vote on whether to join the Service Employees union Local 509.

Some 700 peaceful protesters were arrested in recent days in New York City. The Occupy Wall Street protesters’ web site says, “We are getting kicked out of our homes. We are forced to choose between groceries and rent. We are denied quality medical care. We are suffering from environmental pollution. We are working long hours for little pay and no rights, if we're working at all. We are getting nothing while the other 1 percent is getting everything. We are the 99 percent.” The protesters' web site is:

www.OccupyWallSt.org

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

Bank of America paid its CEO, Brian Moynihan, more than $1.9 million last year. Now, in Springfield, Bank of America is trying to evict a low-income family from the family’s only home. On August 29 at 12:30 p.m., activists will rally in front of the Jimenez family home at 91 Granada Terrace. The Jimenez family is asking the public to attend the rally, which is being organized by a group called Springfield No One Leaves www.SpringfieldNoOneLeaves.org

Photos of a protest in May in Springfield that was organized by the same group are at:

Hundreds of telephone and internet workers in the Valley went on strike on August 7. They work for Verizon Corporation. In 2010, Verizon's CEO, Ivan Seidenberg, was paid more than $18 million. The median Verizon worker made $33,190 last year. So Seidenberg made 547 times the median worker's pay. The workers are asking the public for support. Details are available at these web sites:

www.ibew.org

www.cwa-union.org

www.jwj.org

www.AmericanRightsAtWork.org

www.LaborNotes.org

The Valley Post will update this article as more information becomes available.

The University of Massachusetts campus in Amherst, with 26,000 students, more than 900 professors, and thousands of other workers, is one of the biggest employers in the Valley. Workers at UMass belong to several unions. Since UMass workers work for the state, it's illegal for them to go on strike. So they lobby the governor, state legislature, and the UMass board of trustees for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. The trustees are appointed by the governor.

On June 23, about 175 public school workers and their supporters attended a rally outside a meeting of the Northampton school board. They were protesting a decision by the board – also called the “school committee” -- to not raise the workers’ wages next year. Several of the workers spoke to the board to oppose the move, which amounts to a pay cut for the workers, when inflation is taken into account.

Workers at the Target stores in Keene and in Hadley, Massachusetts, near Amherst, will likely be watching the outcome of a June 17 vote by workers at a Target store in Valley Stream, New York on whether to form a union.

In 2009, the most recent year for which data were available, Target CEO Gregg Steinhafel was paid more than $13 million.

Tashawna Green has worked at the Target store in Valley Stream for more than a year. She makes $8 an hour.

“We need a living wage where we can get by,” Sonia Williams told the New York Times. She works late at night at the store.