February 4, 2021
AMHERST, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Amherst has launched a new Black Presence Initiative. The Initiative, spearheaded by the Office of Equity and Inclusion, is coordinating a series of actions designed to document and honor the contributions of Black students, faculty and staff to the campus.
One of the more visible actions of the Initiative will be the renaming of the Fine Arts Center for former Chancellor Randolph Bromery. The renaming received Board of Trustees approval in April 2020 thanks to the efforts of a Black Presence Steering Committee, which played a lead role in shaping the Black Presence Initiative. A formal ribbon cutting and celebration will take place once social distancing restrictions are lifted.
Local legislators have sent an “urgent” request to Gov. Charlie Baker that he ensure everyone in Western Massachusetts has equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine.The 11 legislators senators and representatives said they “strongly support the.
In May of last year, ProPublica health care reporter Caroline Chen reflected on the first 100,000 lives lost to COVID-19 and posed an important question: How do we stop the next 100,000? Eight months later, with 300,000 additional American lives lost and the chaotic distribution of the vaccine underway, Chen shares her thoughts on where we are and what happens next.
Jaffe: In your 100,000 lives lost piece, you wrote about questions we needed to ask at that moment: How do we prevent the next 100,000 deaths from happening? How do we better protect our most vulnerable in the coming months? Even while we mourn, how can we take action, so we do not repeat this horror all over again? It s been almost eight months since then. What are the biggest questions we need to be asking now?
A Sideways Glance with Richard Bogartz: Buddy, Can you spare a shower?
Wednesday, February 03, 2021 Here I abbreviate my Facebook friend Katie’s (pseudonym) posting: “I saw the homeless person yesterday afternoon. I stopped to see if they were there before I brought the tent and second sleeping bag. I told them I had a tent for them. They said ‘cool, but can I take a shower instead? I haven’t had a shower in ten months.’ I am pretty private and haven’t had anyone in my place since this started, but they yelled again at me, non-threateningly, ‘I can’t take a shower, is that what you are telling me?’
Area legislators push governor for equitable access to COVID-19 vaccine
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CVS Pharmacist Sandra Balbino administers a COVID-19 vaccine at Overlook Visiting Nurse Association & Hospice in Sunderland. Local legislators have sent an “urgent” request to Gov. Charlie Baker that he ensure everyone in Western Massachusetts has equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine. Staff Photo/Paul Franz
Lindsay Sabadosa
Published: 2/2/2021 6:58:10 PM
Local legislators have sent an “urgent” request to Gov. Charlie Baker that he ensure everyone in Western Massachusetts has equitable access to the COVID-19 vaccine.
The 11 legislators senators and representatives said they “strongly support the timely efforts” of the governor to create a single, standardized, user-friendly web portal; launch a phone option for reservations; deploy mobile vaccine units, especially for individuals without access to public transportation or those unable to travel; and support senior centers