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<p class=MsoPlainText>Dear friends,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>This is our annual letter to our Members, subscribers,
and quite a range of activists, performers, historians (professional and
amateur), and folks who have shown an interest in Western Mass. People’s
History, including the dozens of good-hearted folks who aided and/or abetted
our previous “Voices” performances (October 2005 “People's History”
event with Howard Zinn; May Day 2006, 2007, and 2008 adaptations of that script).
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>Please forward to friends you think might be interested.
I have specific questions for you (and your friends) at the end, including
whether you want to continue on this list for May Day 2009. <u>It is an
Opt In list, so I need you to Reply.</u><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>Western Massachusetts Jobs with Justice traditionally
celebrates International Workers Day. The event is also a fundraiser for
WMJwJ. There are suggested donation ticket prices, but no one is turned
away for lack of funds.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>Lately we’ve produced “Voices of Working
People's History” – readings, music, and slides that tell the origins
of International Workers Day in the US in the 1880s and carry its themes up to
the present.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>However, this year we will build the event around a visit
by <b><i>Stewart Acuff</i></b>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>Stu is Special Assistant to the President of the AFL-CIO,
National Jobs with Justice Board Member, former AFL-CIO Organizing Director, former
Service Employees International Union (Texas, Georgia) and Central Labor
Council (Atlanta) officer, and a former community organizer in Missouri, Texas,
Tennessee, and New Hampshire for organizations affiliated with ACORN and
Citizen Action. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>He is a stirring speaker (<a
href="http://www.youtube.com/results?search_type=&search_query=Stewart+Acuff&aq=f">you
can watch many of his speeches at YouTube</a>) and will focus us on an economic
recovery that puts Main Street before Wall Street, passes the Employee Free
Choice Act and restores workers’ right to organize, ensures health care for
all, creates good green jobs, and holds bailed out banks accountable to the
people.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>The program will still include lots of music. But
this year the idea is to have the singer-songwriters who participate perform <i>their
own songs</i> on those issues (and sell their CDs).<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>So, some specific questions:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>1. Would you like to be in the program? <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>2. Would you work on a committee?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>-- Organizing? (primarily the Chairs of the other, work
committees)<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>-- Program? <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>-- Publicity? <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>-- Bake Sale? <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>-- Day-of Volunteers?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>3. For our first meeting, how’s Thursday March 5,
7-9pm? We’ll get a place convenient for most people who can
come. Not everyone need come, but a lot of people need to help! <b><i>RSVP!</i></b><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>4. Do you want to stay on this [May Day 2009] list?<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>Please let me know!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText>In solidarity,<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><i>Jon</i> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>Jon Weissman, Coordinator<br>
Western Mass Jobs with Justice<br>
640 Page Blvd #101<br>
Springfield MA 01104<br>
(413) 827-0301 <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify'>Founded in 1987, <a
href="http://www.jwj.org/">Jobs with Justice</a>'s mission is to improve working
people's standard of living, fight for job security, and protect workers' right
to organize. We believe workers' rights are human rights and to be successful,
we have to be part of a larger campaign for economic and social justice. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='text-align:justify'>To that end, "J with J"
has created a national coalition and a network of local coalitions that connect
labor, community, student, and faith-based organizations and activists on
workplace and community social justice campaigns. Western Mass JwJ
– founded June 5, 1993 – is now a coalition of almost 60
organizations. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>WMJwJ publishes the following mobilization emails:<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>[Workers' Rights] 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: <a
href="http://www.jwj.org/pledge.html"><span style='text-decoration:none'>"</span>I'll
be there for workers' rights at least five times a year!<span style='text-decoration:
none'>"</span></a> This is the core mission of Jobs with Justice (<a
href="http://www.jwj.org/">www.jwj.org</a>), affirming that workers' rights are
human rights. To subscribe, send an email to <a href="wmjwj@wmjwj.org">wmjwj@wmjwj.org</a>
with a Subject of "Subscribe Workers' Rights". <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>[Health Care Action] posts events and information that
support the large and vibrant Western Mass. movement for health care justice.
Nationwide, Jobs with Justice (<a href="http://www.jwj.org/">www.jwj.org</a>)
has prioritized Health Care as a basic human right. To subscribe, send an email
to <a href="wmjwj@wmjwj.org">wmjwj@wmjwj.org</a> with a Subject of
"Subscribe Health Care Action".<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>[People's History] posts events and other information related
to a people's history of Western Mass. To subscribe, send an email to <a
href="wmjwj@wmjwj.org">wmjwj@wmjwj.org</a> with a Subject of "Subscribe
People's History".<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal>[Solidarity Calendar] posts other events of interest to the
Western Mass. coalition. To subscribe, send an email to <a
href="wmjwj@wmjwj.org">wmjwj@wmjwj.org</a> with a Subject of "Subscribe
Solidarity Calendar".<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoPlainText><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p>
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