WASHINGTON – Last week, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) Council on the Environment & Climate Crisis released its 2020 platform recommendations. Informed by the Green New Deal, the platform marks the boldest stance Democrats have taken yet on combating climate change, centering racial and environmental justice in a $10 trillion investment package to be deployed over the next decade. Today, Greenpeace USA officially endorses the platform.
Greenpeace USA Climate Campaigner Charlie Jiang said:
“As we confront the interwoven crises of climate change, white supremacy, and COVID-19, we must demand nothing short of a visionary, transformative agenda from Democratic leadership. It would be unforgivable to return to a ‘normal’ in which fossil fuel corporations like Exxon, Shell, Chevron, and BP pollute Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities and put our shared climate under attack.
“We’re glad to see the DNC Climate Crisis Council stake a bold and much-needed new direction for the Democratic Party. It’s critical that candidates and elected officials champion a Green New Deal and a managed transition away from fossil fuels, including the end of federal permits, subsidies, and financing for oil, gas, and coal. A world beyond fossil fuels — one that prioritizes justice for workers and communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis over corporate profit — is possible if our elected officials are willing to fight for us. We hope to see the many visionary and essential elements of this proposal included in the official DNC platform to be finalized in August.
“As platform negotiations continue, we hope to see more details emerge as to how the part plans to meet its important goals for achieving 100% clean power, transportation, buildings, agriculture, and industry; deploy federal investments quickly and equitably; and meaningfully engage with impacted workers and communities. We must prioritize racial and economic justice for frontline communities while mobilizing the full power of the federal government to tackle the historic crises we face.”