Black history is American history? ? Friend ? February is a time when we collectively honor Black history in
the United States ? from the painful to the triumphant ? and when we lift up
Black leaders. As a member of the environmental movement ? a movement whose
leadership and supporters have been overwhelmingly white for decades ? LCV is
working to become more racially just and equitable, but we still have a long way
to go. We are taking one step toward justice by celebrating and recognizing the
historic and current leadership of the Black community in the environmental
movement.

Communities of color in the United States, especially Black
communities, have always been disproportionately affected by the impacts of
pollution, climate change, and inequitable environmental policy. At the same
time, leaders of color, especially Black leaders, have always led the
environmental movement, fighting for their communities and centering the human
impact of environmental injustice. Here are a few key moments throughout history
where Black leaders advanced the fight to ensure that all communities have
access to clean air, safe drinking water, and a healthy environment.

Many of the core values and tactics for what would become the
environmental justice movement can be traced back to the Civil Rights Movement
of the 1960's. Specifically, in 1968, Black communities mobilized to protest on behalf of sanitation workers in
Memphis, Tennessee.These predominantly black workers were exposed to hazardous filth and
pollution--without being given proper protective equipment--and dealt with
deeply unsafe working conditions, which were put in the spotlight by Martin
Luther King Jr. after two sanitation workers, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, died
on the job. After a protracted battle that sadly reached a peak with Dr. King's
assassination, the sanitation workers won not just higher pay but also safer
working conditions. 1

In 1982, Black communities organized for social and climate justice, peacefully
protesting the dangerous PCB toxic waste landfill being constructed in Warren
County, North Carolina? a predominantly low-income county inhabited by communities of color. Many
consider this event the dawn of the environmental justice movement. Thanks to
the determination of the Warren County residents and protestors, environmental
racism began to receive more and more national attention. 2

In 1991, folks of African, Latino, Native, and Asian descent convened the First National
People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit in Washington, DCto unite the movement and encompass the various struggles and empowerment of
communities of color. The 300 participants created 17 principles of
environmental justice and defined the environment's role in the overall
framework of racial, social and economic justice. 3

Flashing forward to present day, progress has been made and some
fights have been won but the environmental justice movement is far from over.
Today, communities of color and low-income communities, especially Black
communities, still bear the brunt of the climate crisis and the disproportionate
impacts of pollution and policy decisions ? but the leadership, courage, and
determination for justice that began in the 1960s prevails in today's movement
leaders. It's important to lift up the leaders who are tirelessly working
towards a more just and equitable world.

Below are the stories of three leaders who LCV has been honored to
work with this year. Darien Davis joined the League of Conservation Voters in 2016 and embraced her
role as an environmental policy leader right away, building an advocacy campaign to protect public lands [link removed] and working with the Clean Energy For All movement to build toward a 100% clean
energy future. She also started a groundbreaking annual report to lift up the
environmental leadership of members of Congress who are active in caucuses
representing people of color. Every year, following the publication of LCV's National Environmental Scorecard, Darien leads a report analyzing the scores of members of Congress in the
Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus, and
Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Last year, the Tri-Caucus average score was 90% ,
more than 40 percentage points higher than Congress overall! Read the report [link removed] Jerome Foster II is a young leader in the environmental movement who is
organizing with Greta Thunberg's Fridays for Future movement and Jane Fonda's
Fire Drill Fridays to call for climate action and environmental justice. He also
founded OneMIllionOfUs to mobilize and register one million young people to vote
in 2020. In a speech at LCV's annual New York dinner Jerome said, "History shows that voting is the sword that cuts through all injustice. One
person, one vote is the great equalizer of humanity. My mission is to show that
we have the power to create a more just democracy that represents all of us."Jerome has shaped his thoughts actions and words after the great Congressman
John Lewis and believes that the youth of America have to be at the table when
solutions and decisions are made. The future is now, and he is leading his
peers to the polls to unify and make an impact in the 2020 elections. Read more [link removed] Captain Donald Lawson, an LCV member and environmental advocate, is seeking to
become the first African American man to attempt 12 world sailing records,
including to become the fastest person to sail around the globe. And he is doing
it all with a clean energy powered sailboat. Captain Lawson is not only
preparing a better future by protecting the planet with clean energy, he is also
giving back to his community right here and now. In a field like sailing that is
too often inaccessible for low-income communities and communities of color, he
is changing the narrative for others and providing opportunities for young
people in his community to experience the joy of sailing. Read more [link removed] Thank you for all that you do,

LCV Membership Team



1
[link removed]

2 [link removed]

3 [link removed]

? [link removed] ?? [link removed] ?? [link removed] League of Conservation Voters | 740 15th Street NW | Washington D.C., xxxxxx

Update your contact information [link removed] ?? ?? ?? Unsubscribe [link removed]