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Newsletter for the Movement for Economic, Climate, and Racial Justice |
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We build our team with community leaders from movements that fight for—and win—economic, climate, and racial justice in New York. We are so proud to welcome Theodore Moore and Jenille Scott to the ALIGN team.
In this special newsletter, we learn more about Theo and Jenille and how they came into the movement, Jenille’s current favorite Burna Boy song, and Theo’s totally not controversial picks for the best bagels and pizza in Brooklyn.
Theo brings close to 20 years of movement and political advocacy experience to the position, most recently serving as New York Immigration Coalition’s (NYIC) Vice President of Policy & Programs. As Executive Director, he’ll lead the team and ALIGN’s strategic vision for worker power and climate justice. The Climate Director is a new position that will oversee our green team and lead climate coalitions, renewable energy initiatives, and policy campaigns. Jenille brings leadership and policy development experience from the Chisholm Legacy Project, WeSolar, and Our Climate, and holds an M.A. in Environmental Law and Policy. Read their full bios on ALIGN’s website. Welcome, Theo and Jenille! |
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Together, we can win a stronger, more resilient New York. Become a sustaining member of ALIGN so we can continue building coalitions for economic, climate, and racial justice. |
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Meet Theodore Moore, our new Executive Director! |
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Which movements, past or present, do you learn from?
So many! As I said before, I started in the Anti Globalization movement that emerged at the turn of the century against neoliberal globalization, and I learned a lot from that. I’m a student of the Black movements in the United States, from the Civil Rights and Black Power movements to the movement for abolition of slavery. I’m really into labor movements and the conditions that sparked them, like the Pullman Strike in 1894 or the great strike wave of 1946. And international movements like The Pan-African Movement, international and internal resistance to Apartheid in South Africa, the Mau Mau, and the Haitian Revolution.
I’m also still learning so much from recent and current movements and the use of social media and other new tools and tactics, mixed with traditional organizing. Movements like Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, The Arab Spring, and even the current resurgence of the Labor Movement. There is so much throughout history and recently that can be studied and has set us up to achieve major victories. |
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Theo rallying for a Walmart-free NYC. This was one of ALIGN’s first campaigns uniting labor and community groups to challenge corporate power that drives down working conditions. |
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Can you tell us how you became part of the movement?
I had an organizing and labor background from my dad. He recently retired but was involved in his union. He was a shop steward and a DEI representative. Even with that, I didn't really start organizing unitil I started at Brooklyn College. That’s when I was introduced to organizations, like NYPIRG (New York Public Interest Research Group) and the Black Student Union, that were fighting against sweatshops and the adverse effects of globalization off-campus, and against tuition and student activity fee increases on-campus.
What do you remember about your work at ALIGN a decade ago? What excites you about being in the organization today?
It wasn’t that different from the work of ALIGN today. I was primarily working on a campaign focused on worker misclassification, specifically short haul truck drivers who work in the ports of New York and New Jersey. This was with the Teamsters and community groups in Red Hook, Mariners Harbor, and Port Richmond, and neighborhoods like the Ironside in Newark that were exposed to so much emissions pollution from out-of-date semi-trucks. ALIGN was then and continues to be the organization that takes on the biggest and the baddest issues and corporations with little more than a proverbial sling. I’m most excited to see which giant will be the next to fall.
Favorite restaurants in Brooklyn?
How can I even possibly narrow that down to a few? There are too many good spots because Brooklyn has the best food in the whole City. That’s right, I said it. Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island, y’all are good but you ain’t Brooklyn! Okay, let’s just do the NYC staples of pizza and bagels, and then I’ll probably have to do a part 2 for some other categories:
Pizza:
Bagels
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Welcome Jenille Scott, our new Climate Director!
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Can you tell us about your work in Jamaica and how it informs your climate activism?
In the past 3 years with the Jamaica Climate Change Youth Council (JCCYC), I have been supporting the policy and research committee on event planning, policy research, and review and policy papers. My work with the council helps keep me grounded, and I continue to support Jamaica’s climate movement even though I am not active on the ground like other members. It’s a constant reminder that there is more work to be done and of the international impact that decisions made or not made by developed nations have on developing countries—particularly for Black and Brown communities. |
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Jenille with a friend during her Audubon Vermont Internship
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How did you become active in climate movement spaces?
My interest in the environmental movement started in high school when I began learning about local environmental issues in Jamaica, and I decided I wanted to be an environmental lawyer. Attending school in Costa Rica was where I learned about the global impact of climate change and the disproportionate impact on developing countries and small island nations despite their low contribution to global carbon emissions.
Simultaneously, I participated in volunteer events in communities and saw more local impacts and engaged with community members, which firmly grounded me in my desire to work in the climate space and support communities. From there, I studied Biology and Political Science in college to learn more about the interconnection between science and policy, then furthered my studies with a Masters in Environmental Law and Policy at Vermont Law School. |
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Jenille in Costa Rica doing volunteer work |
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What are the records you’ve been listening to lately?
I listen to a lot of different genres of music: Jamaican reggae and dancehall, reggaeton and bachata, afro beats, soca, hip hop, R&B, gospel with some classical music mixed in. Some specific songs I have been listening to are “Plenty” by Burna Boy, “Run Away” by Koffee, and “Cuando Me Enamoro” by Andrea Bocelli. |
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#TeamClimateJustice
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We’re in the fourth quarter when it comes to the climate crisis. Our communities have been facing a relentless onslaught of climate crises, from suffocating smoke to flooded subway stations and buses, and it's only getting worse.
That’s why NY Renews is relaunching the Climate, Jobs and Justice campaign this November, with events in Albany, Buffalo, Long Island, and NYC!
Join NY Renews coalition members across NYS (AKA #TeamClimateJustice) to fight for our winning vision: green union jobs, clean air, lower utility costs, and real community-led climate and justice solutions.
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Alliance in Action |
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Updates from ALIGN's Board of Directors |
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NYC-EJA mapped vegetation density in NYC to better understand the cooling benefits of plants here and associated inequities such as urban heat challenges.
New York Communities for Change joined legislative allies and community orgs in Harlem to announce proclamations honoring the crime reduction work of formerly incarcerated New Yorkers & families of people in prison, and to call for #ParoleJusticeNY.
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