Friend,
On Sunday I wrote to you with the message that defunding the police is the starting point to ending systemic anti-Black racism in this country. It’s a starting point, because there is a lot more that must be done.
The words “I can’t breathe” are prophetic. We must collectively fight against all the ways Black people can’t breathe.
I want to introduce you (although you may already know them) to four women who embody our fight for liberation, who breathe life into the fight for racial justice and the intersections therein: Tamika Mallory, Emerald Garner, Dr. Beverly Wright, and Elizabeth Yeampierre.
On our Think 100% podcast The Coolest Show, we break down the issues of the climate crisis, environmental justice, and racial justice. Our latest episodes feature these phenomenal four women.
Listen to them on your favorite podcast platform, find links to each here.
I could write at length about Black people’s fight to breathe clean air, to drink clean water, to be safe and free in green space, and to participate in the financial benefits of the energy economy - the 100% clean one that we need. I could write at length about why Black people, and Indigenous people and people of color, are first and worst impacted by climate disasters. I could list statistic after statistic that shows how Black lives are shortened and taken from us by pollution, and how our lives are exploited by the fossil fuel industry.
But, these four women say everything that needs to be said. So treat this as the Black and Brown eco-liberation playlist that you didn’t know you needed. But now you know. And like women leaders do, their words, their brilliance, and their courage will lift you up. I promise.
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. Jump to this episode on Spotify, Google, and Apple.
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. Jump to this podcast episode on Spotify, Google, and Apple.
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. Jump to this podcast episode on Spotify, Google, and Apple.
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. Jump to this episode on Spotify, Google, and Apple.
Listen to each. I’d love to hear your thoughts -- Tweet me @RevYearwood and @Think100Climate.
Also, add your name to this call for local elected officials to defund the police.
And most importantly, take good care of yourself in these deeply trying times. We may not be okay right now, but we will be. All power to the people.
For Future Generations,
Rev Yearwood
President & Founder
Hip Hop Caucus
1638 R Street, NW #120, Washington, DC 20009
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