National
No Kings Protests
The Sierra Club encouraged everyone to join the No Kings Protests that were happening across the country on Saturday October 18th to advocate against the authoritarian policies of the current administration as well as corruption. Over 7 million people attended across 2,700 cities with New York, Washington DC, Miami, Chicago and Los Angeles attracting some of the larger crowds. People were extending their right to peacefully protest against the recent actions of the administration such as the ICE raids, the government shutdown and cuts to medicaid. Many of the large and smaller cities have no reported protest related arrests, allowing the meaning of the protest to shine through. You can view pictures that were taken across the US here, and read some coverage of the event here.
Nearly 2,700 Sierra Club members and supporters joined the protests around the country in both big and small communities. From rallies on courthouse steps to marches through main streets, the Sierra Club organizing helped show that people power is alive and unstoppable.
Here’s what the Sierra Club achieved:
- 25 chapters and local groups actively engaged and turnout to their local No Kings Mobilization.
- Thousands of members and volunteers took action, shared stories, and stood up for democracy and our planet.
- Sierra Club’s presence was felt across the country unified, bold, and values-driven.
State
Metrolink Electrification
The Sierra Club Transportation Committee gave its support to electrify the Metrolink network for the commuter and regional system. The vision is to support commuter rails to become a regular means of transportation, lowering the congestion on freeways as well as decreasing the pollution. Ideally this would lead to an electric rail system that travels at a faster speed than automobiles and moves in several directions, back and forth, all day. This could truly change how people across Southern California travel creating a domino effect leading to less drive time, cleaner air and a more connected region. You can read more here.
Local
No Fireworks and No Fireworks Shows
The Sierra Club - Los Angeles chapter is following suit of other major cities to put an effort to stop firework shows for the 4th of July. Fireworks are illegal within the city of Los Angeles and permits are given out for the 4th of July shows, in recent years some shows have been replaced by drones due to the detrimental effects that fireworks have on the environment, human health as well as some people's mental health.
Los Angeles Park Needs Assessment
This past month the Los Angeles County Parks and Rec department opened the LA Parks Need Assessment to engage the community in offering feedback to improve LA Country parks. This included comparing parks to other large cities, accepting feedback from the community on what was lacking as well as ensuring site prioritization was taken into account. Having access to nature is important for everyone's well being, allowing people to connect with nature and their community.
As the city evolves and grows it is intended that the parks will follow. You can see the plans guidelines and read more about this initiative here.
Compiled by Lenah Lankhaar