The Resistance Center works against the systems of hegemony and power that create a culture of violence. By partnering with local organizations, sharing our resources, and organizing throughout Western Massachusetts, we hope to create our vision of a global peace through small actions.
Join us for a rally on January 25, 2020, the international day of action against a war with Iran and for an end to US wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
Our goal is to highlight the connections between the madness of wars and the profit made from wars and consequently the power of the Military-Industrial Complex as well as the connections between these wars and unmet urgent local social needs.
Therefore, we are planning to hold a rally outside the L3 Harris plant in Northampton on Jan 25 at 12:30 PM calling for ending US wars in the ME and Afghanistan, no war with Iran and for diverting public funds from wars and the military-industrial complex to social needs such as health care for all, housing, education, student debt and green economy.
L3Harris Technologies specializes in surveillance solutions, microwave weaponry, and electronic warfare. It is among the top ten defense contractor in the world with a revenue of US$17 billion and number of employees 50,000. See:
Plan for Saturday January 25, 2020
12:15 Transportation will be available to and from L3 Harris Technologies on 50 Prince Street from downtown Northampton. Pick up location is Main Street between Gothic and King at the end of the weekly Northampton Peace Vigil.
12:30 – 1:30 A rally outside the plant of L3 Harris Technologies on 50 Prince St, Northampton with Dr. Vijay Prashad from the of Tricontinental Institute for Social Research.
Hot tea will be served to participants.
Please spread the word and join us!
Questions: email or call us at the Resistance Center for Peace and Justice, TRC.
Email: or
Phone: 413-992-7355
The Jan 25 action is sponsored locally by the TRC and nationally by Codepink
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No War with Iran! Northampton Vigil & Speakers
Thursday, January 9 at 5PM
Northampton Courthouse (intersection of King and Main Sts)
In the wake of the Trump administration’s reckless escalation to war by ordering the assassination of Iranian General Soleimani, and threats by both the United States and Iran to escalate conflict, our community will take part in the No War with Iran day of action with cities and towns across the country. Together, we will urge restraint and that the United States avoid yet another unnecessary, costly war of choice in the Middle East. We’ve learned our lessons from Iraq and Afghanistan, Yemen and global endless war. We will not be lied into another war. We will not allow our Iranian-American and Muslim neighbors to be targeted by law enforcement. We stand united!
Reach the Facebook event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/2727553603998523
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Dear Congressman McGovern,
On November 10, a violent coup was carried out in Bolivia against Evo Morales and his administration. Morales, Bolivia’s first indigenous president, was forced to resign under pressure from the Bolivian oligarchy, the military, and outside forces such as the Organization of American States backed – no doubt – by the United States.
Indigenous and social movement leaders have been violently targeted – the head of the community radio station Radio Comunitaria was tied to a tree; right-wing mobs have burned and pillaged the headquarters and houses of indigenous leaders, various social movement leaders, and President Morales, and his civilian supporters have been attacked and sexually assaulted, among other atrocities.
The coup is an attack on democracy, freedom, and human rights. The coup comes in the wake of the recent democratic elections, which Morales won by over ten percentage points. Using a press release and reports created by the Organization of American States as evidence, the Bolivian elite initiated a process of violence, forcing Morales to resign – even though Morales agreed to hold a new round of elections and follow the steps outlined by the OAS in order to bring political peace and an end to the violence. As a long-time supporter of democracy in Central America in particular, this coup should look familiar to you. We urge you to break from the Trump administration’s for the racist coup government and take a strong stand with the poor and indigenous folks, who will most suffer most.
We believe that the and does not accurately reflect the political reality in Bolivia or the integrity of the elections. We believe that the true motive is to undermine a democratic process that puts the interests of the Bolivian people first. At the heart of the coup is not a protection of democracy, but an anti-democratic continuation of centuries of pillage that has set out to destroy an indigenous-led government in the battle for geopolitical control over Latin America. We believe that the Bolivian people have the right to choose their representatives, to participate in democratic processes without foreign or military intervention, and to live without the threat of violence inflicted by right-wing extremists.
As your constituents, we ask that you join other representatives in condemning the coup (including Ilhan Omar, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) and:
(1) Publicly condemn the coup in the media.
(2) Demand the reinstatement of Evo Morales[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] .
(3) Use the power of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission to publicly denounce the gross violation of human rights against the Bolivian people and demand the safety of the leaders and members of the Movimiento al Socialismo and all social and political movements.
(4) Initiate an investigation into OAS for their breach of ethics, trust, and the norms governing electoral observations.
Respectfully,
The Pioneer Valley Worker Center
The Democratic Socialists of America
The Resistance Center
The Western Massachusetts Venezuela Solidarity Coalition
Black Coalition for Rights – Brazil
Green-Rainbow Party Pioneer Valley Chapter
Traprock Center for Peace & Justice
Elisabeth Armstrong, Smith College
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Building Solidarity with Cuba – Ending the Blockade
Join us for an evening to celebrate our solidarity with Cuba. There will be live music, food, and a conversation with Dr. Jourdy James Heredia–a visiting Cuban economist. Learn about the current challenges Cuba is facing as the Trump administration tightens the blockade and reverses President Obama’s policy of normalizing relations with Cuba.
The United Nations General Assembly has repeatedly condemned the US blockade as contrary to the Charter of the United Nations and international law. Most recently the UN General Assembly voted 189 to 2 in favor of lifting the blockade of Cuba. The international community has denounced the US embargo/blockade because it violates international law and on moral grounds as well.
Dr. Jourdy will speak specifically about the current economic situation in Cuba; historical and contemporary impacts of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the government of the United States on Cuba; advances Cuba has made in food security, understood in a comparative and contextualized lens; and ongoing challenges in the construction of Cuban socialism given perennially hostile external circumstances.
Program
6:30 – 7:15 Getting together with live music and food
7:15 – 7:30 Introduction by the Resistance Center for Peace and Justice and the Pioneer Valley Democratic Socialist of America
7:30 – 9:00 A presentation and a conversation with Dr. Jourdy Heredia
The event will be held in the Northampton Friends Meeting House on Saturday, October 12, 6:30 PM and it is free and open to the public.
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Dr Jourdy James Heredia
Jourdy Victoria James Heredia received her PhD in Economic Sciences from the University of Havana and her PhD in Economic Sciences from the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain. She is the subdirector and lead researcher of the Global Economy Research Center in Havana, Cuba and Associate Professor at the University of Havana. She is a member of the editorial group of Cuba’s World Economic Issues Journal and of the Foreign Policy Experts group organized by Cuba’s Higher Institute for Foreign Relations. She has won the Annual Prize of the Cuban Academy of Sciences on two occasions (1999 and 2000) and the EU-LAC Foundation Prize in 2015. She has over 30 years of experience researching issues of European integration. She is the author of numerous articles in national and international journals and of two books (The Euro Zone Crisis: Economic Foundations and Lessons for Latin America; and Food Security in the the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean: The Cases of Cuba and Spain). She has lectured in universities throughout the world, including in Spain, Jamaica, Canada, Germany, China and Kenya. Dr. Jourdy James Heredia’s national tour is organized by Witness for Peace New England.
