Franklin County Continuing the Political Revolution
A progressive organization based in Franklin County, Mass.
In case you were unable to join us for Part 1 of our Zoom-based General Assembly, you can use the links below to see/hear/read what you missed:
Screen Share with Speaker View (video)
And to register for our General Assembly, Part 2, which will be this coming Thursday evening, May 21, at 7:00 PM, please use this link.
Agenda
1) Financial report and Membership renewal
2) Election of the Coordinating Committee. The following people were nominated. Dave Cohen, Susan Worgaftik, Patti Williams, and Doug Selwyn. You can read their statements here.
3) Speaker from Extinction Rebellion . This is one of the most exciting groups fighting climate change. See some of what they have been doing lately all over the world here.
Adrie Rose, Co-Chair of Extinction Rebellion Western Massachusetts, will talk with us about their take on the climate crisis and why they do what
they do.
4) Report on the Greenfield Elections
5) The Politics of Palestine in the Current Moment: Joe Levine is a Professor of Philosophy at UMass and an organizer with Western Mass Jewish Voice for Peace (and an FCCPR member). He will talk with us about The Politics of Palestine in the Current Moment. Here is a recent Opinion piece Joe had in the New York Times.
6) Announcements
September 20, 2019 is a global day of “strikes” to highlight the need for quick and dramatic action to prevent the worst impacts of climate change. Led by young people in organizations such as Sunrise and Extinction Rebellion, rallies and other strike activities will be taking place all over the country and around the world, including a very large march and rally in Boston, and our own in Greenfield. This strike will lead to ever-larger actions over the next year to force politicians to confront the realities of global warming. But it all starts Here and Now!
FCCPR is urging all our members to participate in one of two ways:
Want to do more?
Please direct questions and other ideas to Bob Armstrong (bobarms@gmail.com) or Ferd Wulkan (ferdwulkan@gmail.com)
Members of FCCPR Peace Task Force joined with Traprock Peace Center and others along the riverbank Tuesday afternoon at Unity Park in Turners Falls to honor the victims of the nuclear bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. STAFF PHOTO/DAN LITTLE
For people and communities concerned with peace, August 6 and 9 are special days, as people around the world remember the first use of atomic bombs, by the US against Japan in 1945. They call for the phase-out and abolition of nuclear weapons, world-wide. The FCCPR Peace Task Force and the Traprock Center for Peace and sponsored an event in at the Unity Park Riverfront in Turners Falls.
“Greenfield has an important preliminary election coming up on Tuesday, Sept. 10. Three mayoral candidates will appear on the ballot, but only two will move on to the general election on Nov. 5. My name is Sheila Gilmour and I look forward to earning your vote.”
Source: The Recorder – ‘I’m running for mayor because Greenfield is ready for new leadership’
FCCPR is co-sponsoring locally Lights for Liberty’s national call to action to protest the kidnapping, child abuse and other atrocities at the border. Friday, July 12, 7-9 p.m. on the Greenfield Common. Bring a light or a cellphone or the candle.app. (Before the 7 p.m. Lights for Liberty vigil on the Greenfield Common, consider joining protesters at 5:30 p.m. at Greenfield Jail and Immigration Detention Center.)
After considering the candidate responses and comparing them to the recently published Franklin County Continuing the Political Revolution (FCCPR) political platform, the Greenfield membership voted to endorse Precinct 6 City Councilor Sheila Gilmour for mayor.
“We were particularly struck by Councilor Gilmour’s plans for reviewing city staffing needs and her interest in working closely with the FRCOG on regional issues,” said David Cohen, FCCPR Greenfield chairman.
FCCPR’s Women’s Rights Task Force is pleased to sponsor a dance party in celebration of women and the power we have in the electorate.
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
6:30 p.m.
Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center, 289 Main Street, Greenfield
Musical performances:
ZoKi – “Folk rock fused trio”
SheSaid “Our all-female band plays original tunes drawing from traditions of blues, rock, jazz, and country music infused, at times, with a bad ass, punk vibe!”
Samirah Evans “Sultry…silken…smoking hot vocals” of jazz and blues
Tickets: $10-$50, per ticket, suggested donations, with no one being turned away for an inability to pay.
For ticket information, please Hawks and Reed’s website at https://hawksandreed.ticketfly.com/
Or email Maryelen Calderwood <maryelen.calderwood@gmail.com> or Sara Seinberg <coachseinberg@gmail.com>
In June of 1919, Congress passed the 19th Amendment, which states, “the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” This was a powerful victory, and we celebrate it as a great beginning when white women were granted access to ballots and to a voice. Black women were granted the right to vote 46 years later, in the 1965 Voting Rights Act. And ten years after that, in 1975. Legendary Congresswoman, Barbara Jordan of Texas, fought to have the rights of “minority language” voters included as well. On June 19, 2019, we will honor all women and their contributions to political, religious, social and economic justice and gender equality, as well as our ongoing struggle to demand equality for all women.
All funds raised will benefit FairFightAction, which seeks to ensure “free and fair elections.” https://fairfightaction.com/
