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Dear friends, supporters and allies,

Find here [3] and below CJA's just released statement on the COVID-19
response.

In solidarity, Angela
-------------------------

CLIMATE JUSTICE ALLIANCE DEMANDS AN IMMEDIATE END TO TRUMP’S XENOPHOBIA
AND NEGLIGENCE

_- CALLS FOR A JUST RECOVERY RESPONSE TO COVID-19 THAT CENTERS THE MOST
VULNERABLE -_

Climate Justice Alliance (CJA) calls upon the Trump Administration, states,
and local health agencies to ensure a rapid and responsible approach to the
Coronavirus (COVID-19) that will lead to the long term resilience of
vulnerable communities. Disease and climate disasters are the new normal,
and the speedy, though inconsistent and inequitable, response to
coronavirus so far proves that governments, businesses, and communities are
capable of quickly addressing crises, including the climate crisis. CJA is
committed to holding our governments accountable, while supporting our
members and grassroots, frontline organizations in preparing a community
care and centered approach to COVID-19.

Whether it is our elders and frontline communities that have high rates of
respiratory illness, diabetes, and autoimmune disease; or working class
families, those who are houseless, undocumented, incarcerated or those with
disabilities who have the least access to housing and healthcare, COVID-19
puts our communities at further risk, especially those in rural areas and
American Indian and Alaska Native lands. Trump’s xenophobic and racist
response, and his refusal to heed the recommendations of the World Health
Organization (WHO), which would have delivered test kits to the US given
the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) inability to create its own, has
only increased the danger. It also underscores the need for a response
based in a Just Recovery approach, where local communities are involved and
lead the way in assessing and addressing the real concerns of their
communities, including developing the best care models for their most
vulnerable.

INTERNATIONAL TO LOCAL ECONOMIC REPERCUSSIONS SHOW THE NEED FOR A JUST
TRANSITION 

Coronavirus is here and is a litmus test for how the climate crisis will
destabilize markets, open opportunity for disaster capitalism, disrupt
global supply chains, and expose inadequate or failing systems like our
healthcare system. We are already seeing a stunning drop in oil prices,
price manipulation of key health related products, hoarding, and a concern
on the supply side of renewable energy components. Frontline communities
have been here before and we know how corporations and special interest
groups use people’s suffering for profit.

This is why we need a Just Transition away from extractive and polluting
economies to economies that are governed and designed by local communities,
and aim to protect workers while ensuring safe and sustainable energy.
There is no need for us to be dependent on energy giants who exist only to
make a profit and who have historically harmed our communities when we can
control our local economies, create jobs, learn trades and plan our own
development justly.

THREATS OF QUARANTINE HAVE HISTORICALLY BEEN LINKED TO RACIST, MILITARIZED
STRATEGIES 

Quarantines, containment strategies (including surveillance that typically
has a security component), and states of emergency can escalate to
authoritarian and racist policies of control. As more cases are identified
in the U.S., there are reports that people exposed to the virus are being
caught up in quarantine, sometimes in military bases like Lackland Airforce
Base in San Antonio, or at the behest of the National Guard, as in New
York. In the U.S. we know that local law enforcement agencies and
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have used every opening to attack
the undocumented and other immigrants and racially profile members of our
communities.

Access to adequate preventative health care and testing for those who often
live in the shadows, such as the houseless and undocumented communities,
must be guaranteed. Therefore, WE CALL ON LOCAL AND STATE HEALTH
DEPARTMENTS TO GUARANTEE ACCESS TO CARE FREE OF FEAR OF REPERCUSSIONS FOR
ALL IN THE COMMUNITY. FURTHER, WE DEMAND NO COORDINATION OF ANY AGENCIES
MANAGING THE PUBLIC HEALTH CRISES WITH ICE, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
(CHS), OR U.S. BORDER PATROL AGENTS.

RACIST ACTS AND PORTRAYAL OF VIRUS VICTIMS IN THE MEDIA MUST BE CONDEMNED

Physical violence and abuse are a reality for many in our communities. WE
CONDEMN THE RACIST AND ANTI-IMMIGRANT ATTACKS BEING WAGED BY THE TRUMP
ADMINISTRATION AND ITS SURROGATES. WE CALL ON THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, ALL
STATE AND LOCAL OFFICIALS AND MEDIA OUTLETS [4] TO IMMEDIATELY STOP
PROMOTING THE LIE THAT SOME GROUPS OF PEOPLE (PRIMARILY THOSE WITH CHINESE
AND ASIAN ROOTS) ARE MORE LIKELY TO CARRY THE VIRUS. This is categorically
untrue and there are reports that this is already having economic
ramifications in Asian communities and businesses across the country.

> _“As COVID-19 spreads, so do the panicked reactions that are targeting
> our Chinese and Asian immigrant and refugee community members and workers
> in Oakland Chinatown and across the state. Home-care workers are being
> interrogated, businesses are being targeted, and people are being
> assaulted in public places. The fear and hatred that promotes racial
> profiling and xenophobic attacks on immigrants and refugees is a
> pre-existing condition that has been weaponized by the Trump
> administration since day one.” _- Miya Yoshitani, CJA Steering
> Committee Member and Executive Director of Asian Pacific Environmental
> Network

To date, those most at risk are the elderly and those with compromised
immune systems, regardless of race or country of origin. We must create
communities of care, not ignorance.

DISRUPTION OF WORK AND TRAVEL DISPROPORTIONATELY IMPACTS INMATES, LOW-WAGE
WORKERS, AND CONTRACTORS

Just as we see xenophobia rising, disease capitalism is currently
accelerating in the U.S. Grounded in profiting off the misery of others, it
includes price hikes and hoarding of sorely needed medicines and
disinfectants, forcing the incarcerated to produce currently hard-to-find
items for little or no pay, costly testing and potential vaccines that may
be out of reach for many, or layoffs. The ripple effects of quarantine,
remote work, canceled travel, and disrupted supply chains result in more
demands being made on low-wage workers and incarcerated people; often no
protocols or rapid response plans exist for those in prison or jail.
Workers are being laid off with little to no support systems and some, such
as nurses, taxi drivers, or cruise ship workers are being put in high
risk/exposure situations.

WE CONDEMN DISEASE CAPITALISM AND DEMAND FREE ACCESS TO HEALTHCARE, PAID
SICK LEAVE AND CONTAINMENT LEAVE, EVICTION PROTECTIONS, SAFETY PROTOCOLS,
UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS, AND JOBS GUARANTEES SO OUR COMMUNITIES ARE ABLE TO
RECOVER JUSTLY. Given the current politically motivated response to
COVID-19, which has included downplaying the impact to the public, lax
containment and social distancing recommendations and militarization, the
Trump Administration has paved the way for disease capitalism to prosper.

THE U.S. HEALTHCARE SYSTEM IS DESIGNED FOR PROFIT

COVID-19 has exposed how deeply inadequate, inequitable, and limited the
United States healthcare system is. Built for profit rather than human
need, those most vulnerable in our communities are at higher risk of
serious health concerns, including death, if they become infected. Health
care costs are real, especially when you consider loved ones who don’t
have coverage and no paid time off. Just imagine the 7 million food service
[5] workers who would have to take unpaid leave to care for themselves or a
loved one. This expectation is unrealistic, unfair and unsustainable.

Therefore, we demand immediately that THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ENSURE AN
ABUNDANCE OF TESTS AND MAKE RESOURCES AVAILABLE TO ALL STATES AND AMERICAN
INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVES SO THAT ADEQUATE TESTING AND INTERVENTION CAN
BEGIN. Due to the lack of any real federal response, many states with only
a few cases of COVID-19 have already declared states of emergencies in
order to receive funding to begin a robust medical response. We do not
know, however, if this will suffice.

CONGRESS RECENTLY PASSED AN $8 BILLION BILL FOR RECOVERY. WE DEMAND THAT
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IMMEDIATELY PASS THESE FUNDS ON TO LOCAL, STATE AND
TRIBAL HEALTH DEPARTMENTS, WHICH AT THIS TIME, HAVE THE BEST CAPACITY  TO
CONTROL THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS. Moreover, we recognize the need for the
United States to live up to its trust and treaty responsibilities to tribal
nations and we support the request of no less than $120 million allocated
to tribal nations and urban Indian organizations who deserve access to the
same funding support and information as states. FURTHER, IT IS IMPERATIVE
THAT LOCAL OFFICIALS WORK WITH COMMUNITY BASE BUILDING ORGANIZATIONS WHO
UNDERSTAND THE BEST WAY TO ACCESS AND ADDRESS THE REAL CONCERNS OF
FRONTLINE COMMUNITIES. Local community involvement and leadership is key.
With recent community hospital closures, especially in rural areas, along
with a reduction in hospital beds, it is critical that resources be made
available across the board and that federal, state, local and tribal
authorities are working in a coordinated effort to combat the spread of the
virus. UNIVERSAL HEALTH CARE IS A RIGHT AND IS THE STRONGEST WAY TO ENSURE
ALL OF US CAN ACCESS TESTING AND TREATMENT NOW, AND WELL INTO THE FUTURE. 

IT’S TIME FOR A RESPONSIBLE APPROACH THROUGH LONG TERM JUST RECOVERY

We encourage everyone to continue to follow the latest developments within
the scientific community about COVID-19. At this point, we know little and
encourage the federal government to strengthen and support, rather than
impede, the larger medical community as it moves to implement measures and
protocols that are based in sound science rather than fear. In the coming
weeks and months as presidential elections draw near, our environment will
become increasingly politicized. We remind everyone that medical experts,
not politicians, should be consulted and sought out for advice on
self-quarantine and testing.

The extreme mismanagement, at the highest levels of our government from the
outset, speaks to the dire situation we face in the U.S. and the importance
of who holds public office. As more cases of the virus are identified in
more states, we must look to our communities to support them and learn from
them about how best to safeguard those on the frontlines of this public
health crisis.

The Climate Justice Alliance, representing 70 members from urban and rural
frontline communities, organizations and supporting networks, is committed
to a collective care and community building approach developed through a
process of intentional deliberation. We understand from the WHO that the
next couple of weeks can be pivotal and we want to contribute to the
management of this virus for vulnerable members of our communities. We must
be smart, not scared. We call for and embody a sensible approach, drawing
upon the wisdom of our elders, to stop the spread of the virus, grounded in
community leadership and a Just Recovery.

PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO SHARE WITH OTHERS

Support CJA [6]

Climate Justice Alliance

436 14TH STREET C/O Movement Strategy Center
5TH FLOOR
OAKLAND, CA 94612
United States


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