April Thomas, 206.321.3850, april.thomas@sierraclub.org
Memphis, Tennessee, -- Tomorrow marks the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In honor of Dr. King’s legacy, the Sierra Club Chickasaw Group of West Tennessee is announcing a renewed focus on environmental justice work.
“Dr. King’s assassination was a dark day for the U.S., and for me personally,” said Leslie Fields, Director of Sierra Club’s Environmental Justice and Community Partnerships Program. “Fifty years later we must rededicate ourselves to transforming our society, because not nearly enough has changed. Dr. King went back to Memphis support the sanitation workers’ fight for dignity and economic justice. These hard working men were subjected to filth, biological, toxic, hazardous substances, terrible working conditions, low pay and degrading treatment thus environmental and economic racism. If Dr. King were alive today to see how racism and income inequality still show up in our society as environmental and economic injustice, I believe he would be on the front lines of environmental justice struggles like the ones that remain before us in Memphis and in places like Cancer Alley and Flint, Michigan.”
“The Sierra Club Chickasaw Group of West Tennessee (Memphis) has developed four strategic directions to help focus Memphis’ environmental advocacy,” said Dennis Lynch, Sierra Club Chickasaw Group Local Chair. “These strategic directions - energy efficiency, parklands, water quality and environmental justice - can help bolster advocacy and positively steer Memphis’ environmental activism forward in times to come. The Sierra Club Chickasaw Group will look at each strategic direction to galvanize advocacy and activism for local issues. Memphis’ two most important justice issues are energy burden and drinking water pollution.
“Memphis already has the highest "Energy Burden" in all medium to large cities in the country - for lower income families, for renters, for minorities - for five different categories in all.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.