On February 8, about 200 nurses at the Greenfield hospital voted to authorize a strike. This does not necessarily mean they will go on strike; it means their elected union leaders have the power to call a strike.

Donna Stern is a nurse at the hospital. “Nurses are being pushed beyond our ability to safely care for our patients,” she said. “If we have too many patients at one time, how can we provide high-quality care? If we work 12 hours without a break or are forced into illegal, mandatory overtime, how can we be sure our patients are getting the best possible care?”

On April 27 in Brattleboro, there will be a march and rally in solidarity with survivors of domestic violence. More government funding is needed to provide homes for survivors who can't afford to pay rent. The event starts at 6 p.m. at the Brattleboro town common, on Park Place between Linden Street and Putney Road. Vermont Senator Becca Balint will speak at the rally.

More information is at:

www.facebook.com/events/144625839397034

Activists have arranged buses from the Valley to the Women's March on Washington, set for January 21, the day after the inauguration of president-elect Donald Trump. More than 100,000 people have said on Facebook that they will march. Men are welcome to attend.

One in three women in the United States will be sexually assaulted at some point during their lives. On March 1 at 4 p.m. in Amherst there will be a rally against rape, Zoë Talkin told the Valley Post. She is an organizer of the event, which will be outside the UMass Student Union building.

According to the event's Facebook page, 527 people were planning to attend as of February 23:

www.facebook.com/events/145443175618334

When will the first woman be elected president? Experts say a good way to make that happen soon is to elect more female governors and members of Congress. On October 25 former New Hampshire senate majority leader Maggie Hassan www.MaggieHassan.com announced she is running for governor. She is a Democrat and a lawyer. The election is about a year from now.

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photo of Maggie Hassan from www.MaggieHassan.com

A recent incident on a Pioneer Valley Transit Authority bus has set off a surge of advocacy efforts in support of the right of mothers to breastfeed in public places. On June 16, a PVTA driver asked a woman to stop nursing her baby daughter. When she refused, he insisted that she, the baby, and her 7-year-old son get off the bus.