Letter: Abortion Is Health Care

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To the Editor:

Seventy percent of Americans support safe and legal abortions. Abortion is health care, and is a basic human right that has been protected by Roe for the past 50 years. Yet this right has been rescinded by six radical, ultraconservative Supreme Court judges, three of whom were appointed by a president who failed to win the popular vote.

Maybe that 70 percent got too complacent and took this right for granted. But the lesson is learned: No constitutional right is safe any longer. Many of us are outraged by the court's decision that does not even allow for abortion in cases of rape or incest.

But if we want our rights restored, outrage alone is not enough. We must do all we can to mobilize the vote for pro-choice Democratic candidates this November and in November of 2024 to keep Democrats in control of Congress and ensure that abortion rights are protected. If Republicans take back Congress in November, we face the dire prospect that they will enact a federal ban on abortion, criminalizing the procedure nationwide, and that other reproductive rights, such as access to contraception and the right to marry whom we choose, will be under attack.

In the meantime, if you want to join the fight, visit the Berkshire Brigades Facebook page.

Louise Farkas
Pittsfield, Mass.

Farkas is a member of the Berkshire Brigades steering committee. 

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Adams Man Convicted in Murder of Stephanie Olivieri

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An Adams man was found guilty in the 2019 murder of 32-year-old Stephanie Olivieri, a Pittsfield native and mother of two.
 
A jury found Tyler Sumner, 30, guilty on Friday of murder in the first degree and possession of ammunition without a Firearm Identification Card.
 
The trial was held in Berkshire Superior Court. Judge Francis Flannery will schedule sentencing.
 
"Today justice was served in the tragic death of an innocent bystander, Stephanie Olivieri; however, this guilty verdict will do nothing to bring her back," said Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue. "Tyler Sumner murdered Ms. Olivieri while she sat in a car filled with gifts and decorations for her child's birthday. She was preparing to celebrate a wonderful event when her life was ruthlessly cut short."
 
Olivieri, who had been living in Yonkers, N.Y., was found sitting in her running car on Columbus Avenue when police responded to reports of masked men near South John Street and heard gunshots on the way.
 
The officers found Olivieri gasping for breath and blood running down the right side of her head. She was treated by emergency medical services and then transported to Berkshire Medical Center, where she was later pronounced dead. The Chief Medical Examiner found the cause of her death to be a homicide caused by wounds sustained from a bullet to her head.
 
Multiple individuals testified that they believed Sumner was targeting an individual living in the area of the shooting and that Olivieri was not the intended target.
 
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