On September 19, a rally inspired by the life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg drew 150 or so people in Northampton, Debby Pastrich-Klemer told the Valley Post. Pastrich-Klemer was one of the speakers at the rally. She is a leader of a group that has a web page at:
www.facebook.com/NorthamptonDems
A similar rally in Brattleboro on the same date drew 60 or so people. Ginsburg's death means abortion could be banned. One way to stop that from happening is a general strike and massive marches.
About 250 people marched for Black Lives Matter in Northampton on September 5. They also attended a rally. The Pioneer Valley Workers Center promoted the event. According to the group's web site, “The Pioneer Valley prides itself on being a hub of the local food movement which values sustainability, buying local, and fair trade, yet the jobs of those who serve food in its restaurants are characterized by low wages, few benefits, discrimination, no voice at work, and little opportunity for advancement.
On August 12 in Northampton about 75 people attended a labor rally. Candie St. Jean is a nurse at the Northampton hospital. In a speech to the people at the rally she said, “Our hospital and its corporate owner are failing to protect, support, and respect nurses. The signs outside call us front line heroes. Inside, we are struggling to provide safe patient care because the hospital is not providing adequate protection, safe staffing, and transparency as to their plans for the rising number of cases.”
About 70 people attended a Black Lives Matter rally in Keene on July 4. It was organized by Conor Hill and two other people. Hill did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The Valley Post has interviewed him in the past and will post his comment in the “comments” section at the bottom of this article.
*********
Until now, no news outlet has covered a July 1 Code Pink rally in Northampton. Dozens of people attended the rally. The rally was to protest Trump's support of Israel’s annexation of the West Bank in Palestine. More information is at www.CodePink.org.
Unless activists stop the plan, thousands of acres of Green Mountain National Forest will be logged soon. The forest is about 10 miles from Brattleboro. “They are coming hard with the chainsaws to Green Mountain National Forest,” Chris Matera told the Valley Post. “What a sorry sight it will be to look down from the top of Mount Snow and see clear-cuts instead of that beautiful intact forest we see now.”
No nation keeps such a high percentage of its people in prison as the USA. Europe's rate is a third of ours. Due to the coronavirus, the prosecutors in the counties that are home to Northampton and Brattleboro are releasing some prisoners. “I have released some due to coronavirus,” Tracy Shriver told the Valley Post in a phone interview on March 26. She is the prosecutor for Windham county, which includes Brattleboro. Shriver said she has freed “more than one and fewer than 100” people due to the epidemic.
Unless it's postponed due to coronavirus, there be a peace rally in Brattleboro on April 15. The rally will be outside 2 Main Street from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. With 4 percent of the world's population, the USA spends as much money on war as the rest of the world combined. This year the USA will spend $1.6 trillion on war. That's 47 percent of the federal budget, meaning about half your income taxes go to war. This data is from:
www.warresisters.org/sites/default/files/fy2021piechart.pdf
More information on the Brattleboro rally will be posted soon at:
CJ Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band will play at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton on February 14 at 7 p.m. CJ Chenier was born in 1957. According to his web site, he “spent his childhood in the tough tenement housing projects of Port Arthur, Texas.”
Chenier played with Ringo Starr on Paul Simon's album Rhythm of the Saints. Chenier performed with Simon on a concert tour. A video of CJ Chenier & The Red Hot Louisiana Band performing live is at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMMSv2WpYKw
They play zydeco music. This photo shows people dancing at a zydeco concert. photo by:
On February 13 in Northampton, about 25 people attended a march, with rallies before and after. They were protesting Stop & Shop’s involvement in the destruction of the Amazon rain forest. Details are available via the web site of one of the groups that organized the march: www.xrWesternMass.org. Workers at the River Valley food co-op in Northampton are union members. The below photo shows the second rally. To enlarge the photo click on it, then scroll down and click “see full size image.” photo by Hayley Berliner
**********
Soul singer Son Little will perform a concert at the Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton on January 28 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $18 plus a "service fee." In December he will play in Los Angeles. In March he will play in Paris, France. You can hear one of his songs at: