March 24, 2020
CONTACT: Hendrik Voss, Climate Justice Alliance, 202-425-5128
Dear Colleague letter to Congressional colleagues calls for “down payment” on green economy
WASHINGTON — Senator Ed Markey, Senator Tammy Duckworth, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Mark Pocan, Rep. Debbie Dingell, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, and Rep. Barbara Lee have joined the People’s Bailout campaign, which was launched today and inspired by the recently released “Five Principles for Just COVID-19 Relief and Stimulus,” endorsed by more than 500+ progressive organizations to push Congress to focus on the needs of working people and address the urgent threat of climate change in any federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As reports warn of unemployment rates hitting over 2 million Americans soon, the advocates’ push for a People’s Bailout laid out demands in a letter sent by the seven progressive lawmakers to fellow lawmakers in the U.S. House and Senate for any coronavirus response legislation, including providing economic relief directly to people, forbidding bailouts for corporate executives, and encouraging investment in a green economy.
“Frontline communities have been here before and we know how corporations and special interest groups use people’s suffering for profit.” said Climate Justice Alliance Executive Director Angela Mahecha Adrar. “This is why we need a Just Transition away from extractive and polluting economies to economies that are governed and designed by local communities, and aim to protect workers while ensuring safe and sustainable energy.”
“As we work to advance further spending packages to ensure immediate relief and long-term recovery, we need to consider the interrelated crises of income and wealth inequality, racism, and ecological decline, which were in place long before COVID-19, and now risk being intensified,” read the Dear Colleague letter sent by Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Pocan, Dingell, Jayapal, and Lee.
The Climate Justice Alliance (CJA) is a growing member alliance of 70 urban and rural frontline communities, organizations and supporting networks in the climate justice movement. CJA is part of a group of progressive organizations, who are calling for COVID-19 relief and stimulus packages to contribute to a just recovery.
For more information on the Just Stimulus push, including for a full list of participating organizations, visit: https://ThePeoplesBailout.org?source=cja
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