Racism is Killing the Planet. July 2020

Photo by Mark Peterson/Redux | Sierra Magazine | Racism Is Killing the Planet “It’s no exaggeration to say that racism and white supremacy harm all of us,” says Hop Hopkins, the Sierra Club’s director of strategic partnerships. “In addition to robbing us of our humanity, racism is also killing the planet we all share. An idea—a long-overdue realization—is growing in the environmental movement. I really believe in my heart of hearts—after a lifetime of thinking and talking about these issues—that we will never survive the climate crisis without ending white supremacy. "Here’s why." Photo courtesy of Jonathon Berman | Article | A Movement Moment “The Sierra Club is committed to meeting this moment,” says Sierra Club president Ramón Cruz. “The Board of Directors has officially signed onto the platform of The Movement for Black Lives, demanding an end to police brutality and white supremacy, and defunding the police in favor of investing in Black communities. "What’s happening now may seem unprecedented, but it’s not. It’s an extension and a deepening of the work that’s long been central to the Sierra Club." Photo courtesy of Javier Sierra | En Español | Peace Will Come When Justice is Done The marches and rallies in support of The Movement for Black Lives have been overwhelmingly peaceful, amid the violent repression they have suffered, fanned by Donald Trump’s incendiary rhetoric. Regardless of his attempts to asphyxiate everything that is decent in our country, his construction of a wall around the White House, and his hiding from the American people, Trump now lives right across the street from what used to be Lafayette Square, which DC Mayor Muriel Bowser renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza earlier this month. The country and its political system must work for all of us, no matter where we are from, our gender, or the color of our skin. "There will be no peace without justice—for all." Photo by iStockphoto.com/LFO62 | Take Action |