Martha Arthur Nathan ’73

Martha Arthur Nathan ’73, of Northampton, Mass.; Nov. 29, from complications of heart disease and lung cancer. She graduated from Duke University Medical School, where she and her husband got involved in worker’s rights and social justice issues. In 1979, her husband and four others were murdered at an anti-Klan demonstration in Greensboro, N.C., which propelled Marty to fight for social and racial justice, immigrants rights, environmental justice, and universal health care. In 1996, she accepted a teaching position at Smith College. She practiced medicine predominantly with Baystate Brightwood Health Center in Springfield, where her fundraisers to benefit La Cliniquita became popular yearly events. In 2009, she cofounded the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice; she also cofounded Climate Action Now in Western Massachusetts. She participated in marches and demonstrations and, as a physician, spoke at Northampton and Springfield government meetings opposing air and water pollution. She also wrote a column in the Daily Hampshire Gazette on climate change issues. She is survived by her husband, Elliot Fratkin; two daughters; a son; a daughter-in-law; a son-in-law; and two grandchildren.