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Late last week, the Sierra Club asked its members and supporters to extend a helping hand to some of the frontline organizations helping those in need through the COVID-19 crisis. Our Sierra Club community responded just as expected, contributing generously to help those groups.
Now we’ve heard from smaller, local organizations that our volunteer leaders, organizers, and chapter staff work in partnership with -- organizations coming to the aid of families and individuals struggling to survive these unprecedented times. Even while we’ve been asked to practice social distancing, these groups are keeping the bonds between us strong.
The bulk of the media coverage of this crisis has been about the threat to our collective health. But the COVID-19 pandemic is a social and economic justice issue, too. As with every other natural or man-made disaster we’ve witnessed in recent years, low-income communities and communities of color will bear the brunt of the pandemic’s long-term effects.
When government institutions and vital industries slow or even grind to a halt, the ripple effects are severe -- especially in those communities. Children may not get their school meals. Seniors don’t receive their home-delivered nutrition assistance. Families already living paycheck to paycheck—especially those whose breadwinners are unable to work due to closures, quarantines, or a diagnosis of COVID-19 -- can’t buy groceries, pick up lifesaving medicines, or pay rent.
Local nonprofit organizations pick up the slack and close the gaps -- stepping up to provide vital aid to countless people. These groups are providing nutrition assistance; meeting the immediate needs of healthcare, gig economy, and other workers affected by the virus; and protecting communities of color suffering acts of bigotry and xenophobia. In short, they’re taking care of those who need it most.
And they desperately need whatever help we can provide.
Can you pitch in to help the vital groups -- listed below -- helping to close crucial resource and service gaps for some of our most vulnerable neighbors? 100 percent of funds raised will go directly to them.
- City Harvest
- Farmworkers Association of Florida
- The Harambee House
- Seattle Foundation
- Social Justice Fund Northwest
- Oakland Public Education Fund
- VAYLA New Orleans
Our goal is to give people the opportunity to explore, enjoy, and protect the planet -- which means nothing without protecting the people who live here. We recognize we have a social responsibility to keep others safe and support our communities -- and that we must come together to work through this crisis.
Thank you for all you have done to combat hate and fear with humanity -- and hope.