Mark Antoniewicz (he/him)
Director of Communications
202-740-1177
Mark@HipHopCaucus.org
Friends & Allies,
#KATRINA15
August 29th will mark the 15th year since Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and Black people and poor people were left to die in the richest country in the world. Communities across the gulf are still recovering.
Each and every year since the storm, Hip Hop Caucus and New Orleans Katrina Commemoration Foundation have marked the anniversary by organizing a community led event to demand justice and a sustainable future for all.
This year we’re hosting two days of action - read about what we have planned at Katrina15.com and sign up here if your organization is interested in partnering.
READ, LISTEN, SHARE
We’ve had a number of powerful podcast episodes and articles come out over the past few months that explain and give depth to climate justice being racial justice. Please read, listen, and share! Tag us on social media so we can repost you - we are at @HipHopCaucus, @Think100Climate, and @RevYearwood on all platforms.
ARTICLES
Shondaland - “Climate Justice is Racial Justice, Racial Justice is Climate Justice”; Rev Yearwood discusses why the climate crisis and environmental injustice play out within the same systems of white supremacy and structural racism that are at the root of police brutality. (Repost @HipHopCaucus | @Think100Climate | @RevYearwood)
The Hill - “The Next Disaster for Black communities”; Rev Yearwood joint op-ed with Kathy Egland (chair of the Environmental & Climate Justice Committee for the National Board of Directors of NAACP) connects what systemic racism and intensifying hurricane seasons mean for Black communities. (Repost @HipHopCaucus | @Think100Climate | @RevYearwood)
The New Yorker - “Making a Planet Worth Saving”; Rev Yearwood spoke with Bill McKibben in a “Pass the Mic” segment about the direct link between climate change and police brutality, and why Hurricane Katrina at 15 is such a critical moment for the climate movement. (Repost on Twitter @HipHopCaucus)
Common Dreams - “The Language of 'Brown Finance' in Climate Finance is Racist”; Rev Yearwood explains that if you use the language of ‘brown’ to mean fossil fuels and carbon-intensive industries, you do not support him, or any other person of color. (Repost @Think100Climate | @RevYearwood)
Common Dreams - “All We're Asking Is to Let Us Live: Stop the Money Pipeline Now”; back in January Hip Hop Caucus helped launch the Stop The Money Pipeline campaign to shut down fossil fuel financing. Rev Yearwood gave an impassioned speech while occupying a Chase bank in Washington D.C. about why transitioning from fossil fuels is a matter of life or death for communities of color. (Repost @Think100Climate)
PODCAST - The Coolest Show
We’re releasing weekly episodes that break down the issues of the climate crisis, environmental justice, and racial justice. Our latest set of episodes feature phenomenal women of color who really say everything that needs to be said. Listen to these episodes, help spread the word, and dive into even more of our Think 100% content here. We also have an incredible guest lineup for July, see it here.
“Course Correcting” w/ Marilyn Waite (Season II - Episode 16) - Marilyn Waite leads the climate and clean energy finance portfolio at the Hewlett Foundation and has the vision of creating a world where sustainability values of social cohesion, environmental consciousness, inter-generational equity, and economic health are the drivers of decision-making and business practices. We caught up with her to discuss some of the steps to make that vision a reality, which requires course correcting the climate movement to become anti-racist.
“History Lives” w/ Tara Houska (Season II - Episode 15) - Systemic racism and structural inequity is deeply rooted in the history of America. But it’s not history - it’s reality for Indigenous people and people of color in 2020. As an Ingigenous leader and freedom fighter, Tara Houska is on the frontlines, using her skills as a lawyer and organizer against the machines of injustice. We caught up with her to discuss her work to stop the Line 3 Tarsands oil pipeline, COVID-19’s impact on Indigenous people, the intersection of Indigenous rights and the Black lives matter movement. We also learn how she is doing after being maced and arrested by the Minneapolis police while protesting George Floyd’s murder.
“Another Path” w/ Jacqui Patterson (Season II - Episode 14) - While we are being killed by police and vigilante violence, we are also dying a death of a thousand cuts by pollution in our lungs. Corporations poison our air and water, violate our rules and laws hundreds of times over. But we are up against a “three strikes and you’re out” justice system. One out of every three Black boys born today can expect to go to prison in their lifetime, but polluters never end up behind bars. These are the realities of injustice in our country that Jacqui Patterson, Director of the NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Program, has been working to change for decades as a researcher, advocate, and activist.
“Change Starts Internally” w/ Dr. Adrienne Hollis (Season II - Episode 13) - Advocating for what is right has been a journey for Dr. Adrienne Hollis, Senior Climate Justice and Health Scientist at the Union of Concerned Scientists. She joins Rev Yearwood to remind us that now is not the time to fear while facing the challenges ahead. She recounts what influenced her to study law and science and the impact of young activists in the climate justice movement. They also address the influence of big green organizations, the lack of diversity in these establishments, and their role in suppressing voices of people of color.
“Time for Transformation” w/ Dr. Mildred McClain (Season II - Episode 12) - In a period of powerful uprising for racial justice, we armor ourselves with love. The living legend Dr. Mildred McClain shares why love is her leading force, how we can draw inspiration from those who came before us, and the necessity of communities of color taking the lead. Dr. Mildred McClain co-founded and is Executive Director of the Harambee House/Citizens For Environmental Justice, a community based organization in Savannah, Georgia, whose mission is to build the capacity of communities to solve their problems and to engage in positive growth and development. Conversations with Dr. McClain are nourishment for the soul, listen!
“We. Can’t. Breathe.” w/ Emerald Garner (Season II - Episode 11) - Emerald Garner is the daughter of Eric Garner, who was choked and killed by NYPD in 2014. His last words, which were recorded on video for the world to see, were “I can’t breathe.” George Floyd cried out with the same words as he died at the hands of Minneapolis police. Emerald discusses why it's so dangerous to move through the environment while Black, whether birding in central park, sitting in your car at a park, or running down suburban tree-lined streets.
“Black Lives Affirmation” w/ Tamika Mallory (Season II - Episode 10) - Tamika Mallory spoke with us as she was on the ground in Minneapolis seeking justice for George Floyd -- which followed her trip to Louisville seeking justice for Breonna Taylor. She lays out why and how we must all come together to challenge police violence, racism, and environmental injustice.
“Examining the Clues” w/ Dr. Beverly Wright (Season II - Episode 9) - Dr. Wright is an environmental justice pioneer and movement matriarch who gives us a deep historical perspective on what’s at stake and what the path forward should be. She’s a grassroots community leader who has been at the frontlines for decades, addressing environmental and health inequities along the Louisiana Mississippi River Chemical Corridor and the Gulf Coast Region, a.k.a. Cancer Alley. This episode was recorded days before the murder of George Floyd. It could not have been a more apt precursor to the current national discussion we are having on racial justice.
“Always for Our People” w/ Elizabeth Yeampierre (Season II - Episode 8) - Elizabeth Yeampierre discusses the mutual pain and mutual hope in movement building and the work of aligning climate solutions and racial justice as one mission. This episode was also recorded a couple weeks before the murder of George Floyd, but the discussion is absolutely connected to right now. She speaks to the typical silence from most environmental organizations on police violence when Black people are killed.
Please reach out if you have any questions or comments. Thanks as always for your support!
Mark
Mark Antoniewicz (he/him)
Director of Communications
202-740-1177
Mark@HipHopCaucus.org