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Monday May 17

            SHOWDOWN ON K STREET

11:45am, McPherson Square at the intersection of K Street & Vermont Ave NW, Washington, D.C., the power corridor where Big Bank and corporate lobbyists scheme and scam to kill Wall Street reform and peddle corporate influence on Capitol Hill.

Click here to sign up to be there in person or join online.

We’re especially targeting the lobbyists for Wall Street’s Big Six Banks: Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo/Wachovia. From last year to today, Big Banks are spending some $1.4 million a day in lobbying and political expenses to fight legislation that would reform the financial industry and help prevent another economic meltdown. There are four Big Bank lobbyists for every member of Congress.

The AFL-CIO will webstream the rally live at www.aflcio.org, where you also can join in the discussion and leave your comments.

            Info: http://blog.aflcio.org/2010/05/13/join-us-at-the-k-street-showdown-may-17/; http://www.npa-us.org/; http://www.jwjblog.org/2010/05/showdown-on-k-street-monday-may-17th/.

 

Monday May 17

IN-FIDELITY: RALLY TO KEEP THE BANKS OUT OF POLITICS!

            Noon, Fidelity's Boston Headquarters in the Financial District, 82 Devonshire St, Boston. Over the past two years, we've seen the consequences of letting the banks set national policy. We know now that strong financial regulation is the only way to make sure our country is economically sound. But Fidelity isn't getting the message. Even though they already manage our state fund, just last year, they nearly doubled the amount of money they spent on lobbying our elected officials against financial regulation. They contributed to the campaigns of republican and democratic politicians in Massachusetts from Scott Brown to Stephen Lynch and Deval Patrick to make sure that they'll keep their say in our government. Join us on Monday to tell Fidelity that it's time for them to stop trying to get between us and our politicians – Fidelity needs to start being faithful to the principles of democracy and keep their money out of our politics! Info: Gillian Mason, gillian_p_mason@hotmail.com, or Massachusetts Jobs With Justice, (617) 524-8778.

 

Tuesday May 18 (Third Tuesday)

FRANKLIN/HAMPSHIRE HEALTH CARE COALITION

7pm, Lathrop Village Community Room, 1 Shallowbrook Ln, off Bridge Rd, Northampton. Organizing for the Massachusetts Health Care Trust Fund Bill - a universal health care system, providing universal access, a comprehensive range of physical and mental health benefits, choice of provider, quality, unified financing and cost controls, accountable governance, and stability. The Massachusetts Health Care Trust Fund will be a “single-payer” of all health care costs, statewide. Also organizing for the national alternative to state action: Medicare for All – HR 676. Info: info@fhhcc.org. Please also visit www.masscare.org and www.healthcare-now.org.

To subscribe to the WMass Health Care Action mailing list, send a blank email to healthcareaction-subscribe@lists.prometheuslabor.com or go to http://lists.wmjwj.org/mailman/listinfo/healthcareaction.

 

Wednesday May 19 (Third Wednesday)

BROWN BAG LUNCH VIGIL AT REP. NEAL’S OFFICE

Noon-1pm, 300 State St, Springfield (map). Monthly vigil in front of Rep. Richard Neal's office to stop the escalation and funding for war and support for Improved Medicare for All. Info: Tim Carpenter, tim@pdamerica.org; go to the BBLV page.

Show your Representative and your neighbors what social benefits we could have paid for if the money spent on foreign, nation-building wars had been spent building our own communities (courtesy of the National Priorities Project).

 

Wednesday May 19 (Third Wednesday)

PIONEER VALLEY CENTRAL LABOR COUNCIL

5:30pm, AFL-CIO Hall, 640 Page Blvd, near corner of Osborne Ter, across the street from the old Westinghouse, Springfield. Community and labor activist guests are welcome, but RSVP to Jon at 732-7970, mail@pvaflcio.org, or Rick at 374-1492, rbrown@pvaflcio.org.

Suzanne Bump, Candidate for State Auditor, former State Representative and Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, will speak.

 

Wednesday May 19

CLASS ACTION OPEN HOUSE & PERFORMANCE

5:30-7:15pm, followed by a Valley Time Trade orientation 7:15- 8pm, Dynamite Space, Thorne’s Marketplace basement level, 150 Main St, Northampton. Donations welcome!

•           Hear about Class Action's work: what we do, how we do it, and why we do it

•           Meet and greet community members interested in issues of class and classism, including Class Action staff and Board members

•           Enjoy an audience interactive performance, Classism Theater Dialogue, with Class Action’s Co-Founder Jenny Ladd and Friends

•           Take immediate action towards creating a world without classism by joining a new project supporting the local economy (without money!): Valley Time Trade.

Info: 413-549-1747, jerry@classsim.org.  

 

Thursday May 20 (Third Thursday)

IMMIGRANT & WORKERS RIGHTS COALITION

7-8:30pm, location in Northampton being confirmed. Organizing for comprehensive immigration reform and local issues, including Boycott Arizona campaigns; Sanctuary City campaigns; Emergency Action responses to raids; film series; know your rights training; restaurant workers project (collecting information, possible interviews). Info: American Friends Service Committee, 584-8975, office@afscwm.org.  

The Western Mass Coalition for Immigrant & Worker Rights is organizations and community members who advocate, educate, organize, and mobilize to protect the Human, Civil, and Constitutional Rights of all workers and residents in our communities. To subscribe to its mailing list, send a blank email to wmciwr-subscribe@lists.riseup.net or go to https://lists.riseup.net/www/info/wmciwr.

 

Thursday May 20 (every Thursday)

ISO MEETING

7:30pm, Campus Center, room TBD, UMass Amherst. Regular meeting of local chapter of International Socialist Organization. Info: Gary Lapon, glapon@gmail.com.

  

Friday May 21

CELEBRATE 29 YEARS OF SENIOR ACTION WITH JIM HIGHTOWER

5:30-8:30pm, Freeport Hall (IBEW Local 103), 256 Freeport St, Dorchester. $35 (fixed income $15). Every day Mass. Senior Action Council empowers seniors, builds their collective power to effect change, and wins on critical issues. MSAC serves thousands of low- and moderate-income seniors throughout the state, concentrating on affordable housing, prescription drug costs, health care, and other pressing issues. And its work brings real impacts for the generations to come. Info: 617-442-3330, MMovelle@MassSeniorAction.org, www.MassSeniorAction.org.

Transportation from Springfield is being organized. Contact (413) 543-2334, lstone@masssenioraction.org. See also May 26.

John Bennett will be honored at the dinner. John is the President of the MSAC Springfield Chapter and past MSAC President. A retired teacher, professor, and labor educator, and Pioneer Valley Central Labor Council Labor Historian, John is an active and vital member of Western Mass. Jobs with Justice. We love you, John!

 

May 21-30

            OF BORDERS & BRIDGES: COMPLEX IDENTITIES IN EDUCATION

Dynamite Space, Thorne’s Marketplace basement level, 150 Main St, Northampton. A multimedia artistic and academic exploration of how diversity and belonging are constructed and contested in public education and how this impacts people as individuals and as a nation. Themes: art for social change, teaching and learning, "nation-building", immigration, language, identity, nation, home, diversity, English Language Learners, curriculum development, multicultural education, multimodal media production. More details coming. Info: Katie Richardson, katierayrich@gmail.com.

 

Saturday May 22  

BROTHER, CAN YOU SPARE A DIME? 

3-5pm, Shelburne Senior Center, 7 Main St, Shelburne Falls. A Charlie King and Karen Brandow performance piece that includes music, dramatic readings, and wonderful photos. Using images, dramatic readings, and powerful songs, this presentation covers the 1930s including the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, the rise of labor, and the build-up to World War 2. After the 55-minute presentation, Charlie and Karen will facilitate a lively conversation with the audience. Refreshments provided. Donations for the Senior Center gratefully accepted. Info: (413) 625-2502, cbuntin@crocker.com.

            Performance funded by the Massachusetts Council for the Arts. Contact Charlie and Karen at http://www.charlieking.org.

 

Tuesday May 25 (Fourth Tuesday)

HAMPSHIRE/FRANKLIN CENTRAL LABOR COUNCIL

5:30-7pm, Northampton Fire Station Community Room, 26 Carlon Drive at King St/Route 5, Northampton (587-1148). Community and labor activist guests are welcome, but RSVP to Pres. Fiore Grassetti, 877-725-0357, org7@comcast.net.

 

Wednesday May 26 (now Fourth Wednesday)

MASS SENIOR ACTION COUNCIL – WESTERN MASS

1:30-3pm, Hobby Club, 309 Chestnut St, Springfield (739-4874). Light refreshments, 50/50 raffle. MSAC was founded in 1981 to promote the rights, well being, and dignity of all people, particularly vulnerable senior citizens. Open to people of all ages. MSAC has a proud history of effective community organizing and legislative advocacy on health care, housing, transportation, and other issues. Info: 543-2334, http://www.masssenioraction.org.

 

Thursday May 27

LEWIS BLACK AT THE 90TH ANNIVERSARY BILL OF RIGHTS DINNER

5:30pm Reception, 6:30pm Dinner, Westin Copley Place Hotel, 10 Huntington Ave, Boston. Join Lewis Black, along with artist Shepard Fairey, musician Patty Larkin, and ACLU Baldwin Award winner Congressman John Lewis at the Bill of Rights Dinner of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts. Check out Lewis' latest rant regarding Glenn Beck’s Nazi Tourette's on The Daily Show. Reply now at www.aclum.org/dinner. Info: Megan Warde, (617) 482-3170 x335, mwarde@aclum.org.

 

 

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The Western Mass. Jobs with Justice Workers’ Rights list posts opportunities for you to learn about and show solidarity with workplace and working class struggles. And these events are opportunities for JwJ members to fulfill their pledge: “I'll be there for workers' rights at least five times a year!” This is the core mission of Jobs with Justice (www.jwj.org), affirming that workers' rights are human rights.

 

To subscribe, send a blank email to workersrights-subscribe@lists.prometheuslabor.com or go to http://lists.wmjwj.org/mailman/listinfo/workersrights.

 

Western Mass Jobs with Justice

640 Page Blvd #101

Springfield MA 01104

(413) 827-0301

wmjwj@wmjwj.org

 

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