MARCH FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE THROUGH RACIAL JUSTICE

SUNDAY, 9.20.2020
GATHER @ 1PM EST
”COLUMBUS CIRCLE”

WEAR A MASK

Groups initiating this effort: Action Corps NYC, American Indian Community House, Bronx Climate Justice North, Climate Reality Project NYC/Metro Chapter, Corporate Accountability, Extinction Rebellion NYC, March for Science NYC, North Bronx Racial Justice, Peoples Climate Movement - NY, Plus1Vote, Schaghticoke First Nations, Sustaining All Life - NYC, United Confederation of Taíno People

 
 

MANDATE

On May 5th, 140 local organizations sent a message all all NYC elected officials: as plans are made to rebuild from the devastation caused by Covid-19, the threats posed by climate change must be taken into account. The Bold Next Steps framework called for us to commit to rebuilding a city that was safer, healthier, and just.

But even more than that, we knew that we needed to put action behind our words. This isn’t the first march calling for climate justice and racial justice, and we know (hope) it won’t be the last. By kicking off climate week with a march prioritizing Black, Brown, and Indigenous peoples, we are aiming to make clear the intersection between climate justice and racial justice. With an emphasis on racial justice, we seek to set a tone for the week. The NYC Youth are organizing a Strike for Environmental Racism on Sept. 25, and a number of other actions are being scheduled for this year's Climate Week.

Building movements for racial, economic, and climate justice in NYC requires using every tool we have available – voting, completing the census, holding elected officials accountable, and mobilizing mass actions. One thing is clear - we cannot achieve climate justice without racial justice.

 

OUR DEMANDS

  1. NYC must act on Resolution 864 declaring a climate emergency.  It must immediately halt any investment in fossil fuels, Canadian hydropower, and related infrastructure. NYC must meet a zero-carbon emissions economy by 2030.  We demand a powerful public process and structure for implementation led by and prioritizing the voices and needs of frontline communities, Black, Brown, Indigenous Peoples, working people and youth. Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge is valuable and essential in order for us to heal properly and ethically. Measurable benchmarks must be established to meet the needs of the people, and what has been confirmed by science.


  2. NYC Green New Deal. A fair and just transition and involvement of all communities impacted with a focus on frontline communities that are impacted first and worst by the climate crisis. The Green New Deal must move the city's economy to full employment, generating new, living-wage jobs for those living in marginalized Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities. We must enact a comprehensive Green New Deal for NYC that immediately begins to convert the city's fossil fuel economy into a new, green economy that is environmentally sustainable, economically secure, and socially just.

  3. The Red Deal. Prioritizing Indigenous liberation, the Red Deal calls for us to move beyond the US colonial state and demands “this planet be habitable for human and other-than-human relatives to live dignified lives… call(ing) for a divestment away from police, prisons, and military, and fossil fuels, and a reinvestment in common humanity for everyone and the restoration of Indigenous lands, waters, airs, and nations.”

  4. Rename Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day and Remove All Statues of Columbus in NYC. Christopher Columbus is a symbol of genocide of Indigenous Peoples, commodification of nature, religious intolerance, gendered violence, and the founding of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Land must be returned to Native peoples and treaties must be honored. 

  5. Defund and demilitarize the NYPD. The police have committed human rights violations against Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities since the institution's creation. The fossil fuel industry, along with many other corporations, have funded the police. We also call for no new cops. The mayor’s new class of NYPD recruits is coming on board in October. If this class were canceled, the city would save at least $25 million.

  6. Direct investment in Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities that have been disproportionately impacted by the climate crisis. This includes the transfer of funds from policing to community needs. Air pollution and land contamination disproportionately affect Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, causing lung and respiratory diseases (e.g. asthma), heart disease, and cancer. This has contributed to the increased effects of COVID-19 on Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities.

  7. Equitable Response to COVID-19. During this dual economic and health crisis, it is more important than ever that we create jobs that prioritize the needs of communities most impacted by the climate crisis. As named in the #BoldNextSteps framework signed by 140 organizations, “When our city comes out of the current health crisis we will face a moment of reckoning. We can step back and lose all we love or we can step forward and create the world we need to survive and to thrive.”

 
 

WAYS TO SUPPORT

 

  • Complete this short Google Form to share how you’re going to sign-on to the days of action and to share how you can support directly!

  • Donate towards the week of actions! Our initial goal is $2,500 in order to purchase PPE items, art build supplies, and secure equipment for the day of.

  • Volunteer to be a member of the safety team! We are looking for street marshals, bike marshals, street medics, Healers, de-escalators and experienced police interfacers.

  • Post on social media using our toolkit.

  • Share the event on Facebook!

 

MEDIA COVERAGE

Roberto Borrero, organizer in the NYC Racial Justice Climate Justice Group, joined I Eat Green to discuss the September 20th mobilization. Click here to listen to it. The host begins introducing him at 13:40.

 

WHAT TO BRING & WHAT NOT TO BRING

What To Bring:

  • Posters, banners and other items that say why you are marching!

  • Musical instruments to help express the joy of our communities.

  • Face mask - everyone must wear a protective face mask!

  • Hand sanitizer, if possible.

  • Water.

  • Snack.

  • Wear comfortable clothing, and, depending on the weather, that might include a hat.

What Not To Bring:

  • Weapons of any kind.

  • Do not put banners or posters on wooden or metal sticks or poles.

  • Anything heavy to carry during the march.

 
 

COVID-19 SAFETY

 

All participants must wear face masks. Social distancing will be encouraged. We understand and encourage each individual/organization to make the best decision for safety. 

 
 

WEEK OF ACTIONS

 

  • Saturday, September 12: Racial Justice/Climate Justice Art Build, J. Hood Wright Park, Washington Heights - Lawn Area @ 1:30pm - 4:30pm

  • Saturday, September 19: Racial Justice/Climate Justice Art Build, Prospect Park, Brooklyn - Concert Circle Area/ enter on Ocean Ave

    @ 1:30pm - 4:30pm

  • Sunday, September 20: Climate Justice through Racial Justice Rally and March, Columbus Circle @ 1pm

  • Wednesday, September 23rd: The Intricacies and Intersections of Climate, Abolition, and Decolonization Webinar on  @ 7pm via Zoom 

 
 

SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS (as of 9/19)

 

Your group can be added to this list by clicking here.

 

350Brooklyn
350NewJersey/Rockland
350NYC
9/11 Environmental Action
Action Corps NYC
American Indian Community House
Atlantic Climate Justice Alliance
Bronx Climate Justice North
Bronx Green Party
Brooklyn Defender Services
Brooklyn For Peace
Brooklyn Greens
Buddhist Council of New Yrok
Center for Earth Ethics
Climate Reality Project/NYC Metro Chapter
Climate Works for All
Cultural Survival
Defend Democracy in Brazil Committee
Divest NY
Drawdown New York City
Earth Day Initiative
Earthjustice
Environmental Justice Initiative / NY En. Law & Justice Project
Extinction Rebellion NYC
Food & Water Action
GANY Grass Roots Action New York
Granny Peace Brigade, NYC
Green Party of Brooklyn
Green Party of Nassau County
Harlem Climate Caucus
Heat Cool Smart Brooklyn

 

Hudson River Sloop Clearwater
Indivisible Harlem
Indivisible Nation Bk
Interfaith Moral Action on Climate
MADRE
Move the Money NYC
National Lawyers Guild - Environmental Justice Committee
New Brunswick, NJ, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
New York Insight Meditaion Center
North American Climate, Conservation and Environment (NACCE)
North American Megadam Resistance Alliance
North Bronx Racial Justice
NY Buddhist Climate Action Network
NY Communities for Change
NYC 2030 District
NYC Metro Raging Grannies
NYC Veterans For Peace
NYC War Resisters League
NYC World Can't Wait
NYC-DSA Ecosocialist Working Group
OneMillionOfUs
Parents Supporting Parents NY
Peace Action New York State
Peace Action of Staten Island
Peace and Justice Committee of Uptown Progressive Action
Peoples Climate Movement- NY

 

Plus1Vote
Professional Stafff Congress-CUNY, AFT #2334
Queens Climate Project
RefuseFascism.org NYC
Rise and Resist
Sane Energy
Seeding Sovereignty
SEMILLA WARUNKWA & ProtectTheSacredNYC
Showing Up for Racial Justice NYC (SURJ NYC)
Shut Down Indian Point Now
Sierra Club New York City Group
Sixth Street Community Center
St. Stephen's United Methodist Church
Surfrider Foundation NYC
Sustainable Staten Island
Take Down Columbus NYC
TREEage
Uptown Progressive Action, a NYPAN chapter
Veterans For Peace - NYC Chapter 34
VOCAL-NY
Vokashi — Compost Collection Service
WE ACT
World BEYOND War
World Can't Wait
World Team Now, NY
XR St. John's University
Zero Hour NYC