Virginia Cramer, virginia.cramer@sierraclub.org, 804-519-8449
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Senator Ed Markey, Senator Tammy Duckworth, Rep. Debbie Dingell, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Rep. Barbara Lee, and Rep. Mark Pocan have joined more than 500 progressive organizations across the country to launch a new People’s Bailout campaign to ensure that the fast-moving coronavirus relief and stimulus packages protect workers and communities, counteract systemic inequity, and make a down payment on a clean energy economy.
As reports warn of unemployment rates hitting over 2 million Americans soon, the seven members of Congress are sending to fellow lawmakers in the U.S. House and Senate a sign-on letter that calls for coronavirus relief and stimulus packages to follow 5 principles that ensure protection for workers and communities, not corporate executives. Over 500 organizations are pushing for these same 5 principles as part of a People’s Bailout, including a broad array of union, climate justice, social and economic justice, Indigenous, youth, women's rights, immigrants' rights, and environmental groups.
The scale of this pandemic-- and the economic fallout already being felt by families across the country -- demands that Senate Republicans put people first. Congress must pass a stimulus plan that provides relief directly to people, prioritizes public health, supports workers and sets us up for a clean energy economy that offers a healthier and more equitable future,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune.
“As we work to advance further spending packages to ensure immediate relief and long-term recovery, we need to consider the interrelated crises of income and wealth inequality, racism, and ecological decline, which were in place long before COVID-19, and now risk being intensified,” read the Dear Colleague letter sent by Reps. Ocasio-Cortez, Pocan, Dingell, Jayapal, and Lee.
For more information on the People’s Bailout push, including a full list of participating organizations, click here: https://www.thepeoplesbailout.com
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, 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.