Letter: Support Voting Rights on MLK Jr. Day

Letter to the Editor03:30PM / Thursday, January 13, 2022Print Story | Email Story

To the Editor:

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s family has requested that there be "no celebration" on the upcoming weekend in his honor until the federal voting rights legislation is enacted.

A group of concerned citizens, in an effort to honor Dr. King's memory, met to discuss what to do. We represent a number of organizations across Berkshire County.

As a collective, we are sincerely concerned about the recent attack on the rights of citizens to vote. Voting rights are the cornerstone of Dr. King's legacy. To truly honor that legacy, we agreed that it is time to rise up to "make some good noise" to protect and strengthen our democracy by doing all we can to support and protect free and fair elections in both parties, for all people.

As reported by the Brennan Center, 19 states passed over 33 discriminatory laws in 2021 that will make it harder for Americans, especially Americans of color, to vote. Moreover, more than 440 state legislative bills in 49 states offered provisions to restrict voting access. It is up to Congress and President Biden to reverse this ominous trend.

The Freedom to Vote Act, currently before the Senate, is a comprehensive package of voting, redistricting, and campaign finance reforms that would strengthen our democracy and promote racial equity for all Americans. The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which has passed in the House, would complement the Freedom to Vote Act. It would largely prevent the implementation of changes to voting rules that discriminate on the basis of race or language minority status, and it would restore voters' robust ability to challenge discriminatory laws as established by the Voting Rights Act of 1965 but gutted in the Supreme Court decision Shelby County v. Holder.

We ask that citizens across the county join us by taking at least ONE SPECIFIC ACTION in support of voting rights to honor the memory of the Rev. Dr. King this month, and continue your support throughout this critical election year.

What to do? Telephone, text and email your legislative representatives, encouraging them to work enthusiastically at their level of government for open, fair and accessible elections. Additionally, please reach out with care to friends and family in other states to enlist their help. We have compiled resources here. We have also compiled a statement of support for election workers, to ask local leaders to adopt in action.

We also encourage everyone to attend Berkshire Community College's virtual Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Service, which will focus on voting rights in accordance with the wishes of the King family; Monday, Jan. 17, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

In this way, we envision a surge of public support for these national initiatives to maintain integrity in the voting process and the enriched support and awareness of all elections in all the United States.

With urgency and on behalf of democracy,

Berkshire County Chapter NAACP, Dennis Powell, Pittsfield

Berkshire Democratic Brigades, Michael Wise, Great Barrington

First Congregational Church, North Adams, Lynn Rhoads

First Congregational Church, Williamstown, Lynn Chick, moderator

Four Freedoms Coalition, Sherwood Guernsey, Williamstown

Great Barrington Democratic Committee, Michael Wise, Great Barrington

Greylock Together, Alexander Davis, Jessica Dils, Wendy Penner, Williamstown

League of Women Voters Central Berkshire, Ramelle Pulitzer, Stockbridge

Left Field, Alyson Slutzky, Great Barrington

Rural Freedom Network, Sherwood Guernsey, Williamstown

Williamstown Democratic Town Committee, Arlene Kirsch, Hugh L Guilderson

Williamstown League of Women Voters, Anne Skinner

Concerned citizens: Paula Consolini and Jim Mahon, Williamstown

Tags: MLK Day, voting,

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Fenton: Governor's Council Must Deliver for the Berkshires

Community submissionGuest Column
10:22AM / Friday, August 28, 2026

I am a Springfield lawyer running for Governor's Council and I am asking for Berkshire County residents to support me over an incumbent from North Adams.

Here's why: Last year I learned about staffing issues in our regional courts that I could not ignore. In 2025, it was reported that four of Western Massachusetts' 11 Superior Court judgeships were vacant, all at the same time. A few weeks later, that grew to five vacancies. This meant there were only six Superior Court judges serving all of Western Mass at a time when Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden counties had more than 100 pending homicide cases.

Those numbers were alarming to me, so I started to engage with leaders in the community who work most closely with the court system and I came to learn that these vacancies were only the tip of the iceberg here in Berkshire County.

I learned that no Superior Court or District Court judge had been appointed from the Berkshires since the current incumbent took office. As a result, there is not a single Superior Court judge who lives in the Berkshires today, and several of the District Court judges drive in from other counties to support Berkshire courts in Pittsfield, Great Barrington, and North Adams. Court staff also informed me about severe staffing shortages at the Berkshire Clerk of Courts office resulting in other counties needing to loan staff to the Berkshires just so hardworking employees can take a brief and planned summer vacation. This is not normal. These issues are a reflection of genuine problems with the Berkshire County court system and show a lack of proactive attention from our Governor's Councilor.

Instead of focusing on regional equity, I watched as the current incumbent celebrated that she has voted against the governor's nominees more than any other councilor, without much explanation as to why. Most recently, she voted against two extremely qualified former prosecutors for the Parole Board. This was despite an in-person plea from the governor and a letter of support from all the three of the district attorney's from Western Mass. Those votes do not show independence or standing up for principles, they demonstrate naivete, and an unwillingness to work with the key stakeholders.

I had seen and heard enough. I decided to jump in the race and challenge the incumbent to address these problems head-on.

I am a partner of a regional law firm. I understand our courts and the importance of having qualified, fair and hardworking judges. And I know how important it is to have judges from the Berkshires serving the Berkshires. To achieve that, you need strong relationships with the legal community and local stakeholders. You need to know how to use the power of the Governor's Council to fight forcefully for our region. And you need to be laser focused on identifying vacancies before they occur so that they can be filled quickly with local candidates.

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