Today is Earth Day, which got me thinking about my first-ever political rally on the inaugural Earth Day. 

I organized a march with two of my friends, and together, we led about 1,000 of our classmates from Mansfield Senior High School. Take a look -- that’s me up front with my back turned to the camera:

Looking at that photo, I think of everything that’s changed since Earth Day 1970. But I also think of all the things that haven’t changed -- and frankly, it’s why we keep fighting.

We still have so much to do to combat climate change.

Today, I’m asking you to join me and the Biden Administration in the fight against climate change. Add your name here >>

Climate change threatens our environment, our public health, and American livelihoods across the country. Just last month, the Banking and Housing Committee held its first-ever hearing on the threat climate change poses to our economy.

This is just as crucial to remember: Climate action poses a whole host of economic opportunities, too. We can improve our infrastructure and make it more sustainable and resilient, we can make our country a global leader in clean-energy technology, we can bring down people's utility bills, and we can create millions of good-paying jobs.

That’s precisely what President Biden’s American Jobs Plan aims to accomplish by:

• Delivering clean drinking water to every community by eliminating lead pipes and service lines that disportionately harm Black and brown Americans
• Rebuilding our country’s electrical grid and making it more resilient against extreme weather events like hurricanes and floods
• Expanding manufacturing of clean-energy technology and electric vehicles to create millions of new jobs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions
• Building new affordable housing and making it more energy efficient and resilient

This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to tackle climate change head on while building back our economy to work for everyone -- not just corporations and the top 1%.

One thing I learned from organizing my first march on Earth Day all those years ago is that it takes a lot of people raising their voices to affect change -- and that’s what we need now. 

So I’m asking: Will you add your name to mine and join our fight to rebuild our infrastructure and our economy so we can protect our environment for generations to come?

With gratitude,

Sherrod