WERU News Report 12/16/14

Producer/Host: Amy Browne

Segment 1: Elves from the Community Union of Ellsworth and Hancock County paid a visit to Fairpoint strikers in Bangor yesterday, on Day 59 of their strike, dropping off a gift in solidarity.

Spirits are high on the picket line, despite the bitter cold and minimal progress on contract negotiations, partly due to all of the support the strikers have been receiving from the community. While waiting for them to arrive, we got an update from spokesperson James Feeney, a 32-year service technician based out of Fairpoint in Bangor:

More information about the Fairpoint strike is available on facebook at: fairnessatfairpoint The elves also have a facebook page: communityunionofellsworth

Segment 2: In the spirit of peace on this first night of Hanukkah, we have some words from Dr Alice Rothchild. Some of the strongest opposition to the Israeli government’s policies toward Palestinians is coming from Jewish activists like Dr. Rothchild, who work for justice by speaking out publicly, often at great risk. She is a physician, author, filmmaker, and human rights activist who shares her observations on the conflict based on her Jewish upbringing as well as her personal, first hand knowledge of the region. She has been a member of several health and human rights delegations to the region, working with Israelis and Palestinians who “refuse to be enemies”. Here is some of what she had to say during a visit to Maine earlier this month, as one of the latest in Robert Shetterly’s “Americans Who Tell the Truth” portrait series. (Audio recorded by Matt Murphy)