Ban on PFAS in Clothing Passes New York State Legislature
As part of our JustGreen Partnership, we have been successfully reducing our exposure to PFAS, a group of toxic chemicals with widespread use, including non-stick pans, microwave popcorn bags, raincoats, cosmetics, fire-fighting foam, carpets, food wrappers, etc. As you may recall, in 2020 we helped pass a New York State law banning the use of PFAS in food packaging.
This week we learned that our bill to ban PFAS from clothing passed both the New York State Senate and Assembly. We’re now working to get the Governor to sign this into law as well.
“Given the proliferation of PFAS, which research has linked to cancer, thyroid disease, and a huge list of reproductive health issues, it is essential that we keep it out of our clothing, where it has direct, long-term contact with our skin. And because people of color and low-income are exposed to disproportionate levels of PFAS and other toxics, eliminating this source will help reduce our cumulative exposure and the adverse health impacts they lead to,” explained Sonal Jessel, MPH, Director of Policy at WE ACT for Environmental Justice and Co-Chair of the JustGreen Partnership. “That is why we are grateful that the New York State Senate and Assembly saw the wisdom of passing this legislation, and we now urge Governor Kathy Hochul to sign it into law.”
WE ACT Responds to EPA's Clean School Bus Program
As part of the Biden administration’s Justice40 Week of Action, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced its 2022 Clean School Bus Rebate Program. We have a long history of advocating for clean buses in environmental justice communities, so we encourage you to read our response to this program here, which was also picked up by Harlem World Magazine.
WE ACT Makes the Case for Race as an Indicator for Justice40
The Justice40 Initiative is the Biden administration’s commitment to address decades of institutionalized harm in communities that have a disproportionate pollution burden and contend with environmental, economic, and health stressors associated with bias in land use, housing, economic, and energy decision-making. Similar to New York State’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, Justice40 mandates that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain Federal investments are received in areas most impacted by climate change, distributive impacts, disinvestment, and structural bias. And to identify these communities, the administration created a draft Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool. However, race is not being used as a factor, despite overwhelming scientific evidence that it is the primary factor in identifying communities with a disproportionate pollution burden. Dana Johnson submitted a letter to the White House this week making the case for why race must be used as an indicator – as it is for New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act. Read the letter here (links to a PDF), which includes several other recommendations to improve the screening tool.
Too Hot to Handle: Webinar Addressing Extreme Heat in NYC
Join us on Wednesday, June 1 at 12:00 PM for this comprehensive webinar on extreme heat, the deadliest impact of climate change, on the residents of Northern Manhattan, and how you can help address it. We will be presenting the findings from our 2021 Cooling Center Report, based on in-person audits of Northern Manhattan’s cooling centers, along with our 2022 Heat Plan, which includes policy and strategy recommendations to proactively prepare New Yorkers for rising temperatures and mitigate the corresponding health risks. RSVP here.
Free OSHA & Solar Training For West Harlem Residents
Looking to get your OSHA certification and training on solar installation? Thanks to the generous support of West Harlem Development Corporation, we are offering free worker training this June, with priority given to residents of Manhattan Community Board 9. To participate, you must register for and attend both informational sessions, the first on Thursday, June 2 at 12:00 PM (RSVP here) and the second on Wednesday, June 8 at 3:00 PM (RSVP here). Both sessions, along with the actual training – which will take place daily, beginning at 7:00 AM, during the weeks of June 17-24 – will be held in-person at WE ACT’s New York headquarters: 1854 Amsterdam Avenue (at the corner of 152nd Street). Contact Charles Callaway at [email protected] with questions.
Help Get Harlem Ready for Climate Change
Tune in on Saturday, June 4 at 10:00 AM for a webinar on how to prepare for this summer’s extreme weather events fueled by the climate crisis, including heatwaves and flooding. Learn more here.
Concerned About Toxics in Cosmetics? Join Our Beauty Inside Out Working Group
Our new Beauty Inside Out Working Group consists of members interested in working together to raise awareness of toxic substances in personal care and beauty products while promoting policies that remove these substances and products from the market. The industry is largely unregulated, and many products you may apply daily contain toxic chemicals known to cause cancer, infertility, poor infant and maternal health outcomes, obesity, asthma, and many other serious health issues. Join us at 5:00 PM on Wednesday, June 8 for the next monthly meeting. Contact Sophia Huda at [email protected] for more details.
Vote for WE ACT's Membership Planning Committee
At our May Membership Meeting, you all had a chance to meet the candidates for our Membership Planning Committee (watch the video replay here). And you can learn more about the candidates here. Once you have had a chance to get to know these candidates, we encourage you to cast your vote here. Our Membership Planning Committee serves a leadership role in our membership and does a lot of the work planning and preparing for our Membership Meetings and other events. The committee also works toward more effective communication between the membership body and staff and helps set goals for membership participation.
June Membership Meeting Get Ready to Vote & Learn About Fair Fares
Join us at 10:00 AM on Saturday, June 11 for our June Membership meeting. We’ll be talking about voter engagement, first with our Membership Planning Committee elections (learn more here) and then with early voting for New York State’s June 28 Primary Election (learn more here). We will also be talking about the city’s Fair Fares program for affordable public transportation. RSVP here. And if you missed our May Membership Meeting, you can watch the video replay here.
Help End New York's Lead Crisis Come to Our Lead Poisoning Workshop
New York State leads the nation in homes with lead-based paint and childhood lead-poisoning cases. Here in New York City, an average of 2,233 children test positive for elevated blood lead levels each year. And studies show that Black children living below the poverty line are twice as likely to suffer from lead poisoning as poor white or Latino children. That is why WE ACT has been battling for years to pass and enforce legislation to eliminate this entirely preventable crisis. We have had some victories at both the city and the state level, but the fight is far from over. That is why we encourage you to join us on Thursday, June 16 at 6:00 PM for a workshop on childhood lead poisoning. You will learn about the sources of lead exposure, including how to identify and prevent them, as well as the health impacts of lead poisoning and how you can get involved in the work we are doing to put an end to this crisis at the city, state, and federal levels. RSVP here.
Help Clean Up Harlem
Join us for Team Up to Clean Up on Saturday, June 25 at 10:00 AM as we come together to tackle trash in our community. Read about it in Harlem World Magazine and sign up here. Cleaning supplies will be provided. And we thank West Harlem Development Corporation for funding this event!
Bailey on Impact of Climate Change on Elders of Color
Bailey was one of the panelists at Aging Greener: Climate Change’s Impact on Older Adults, which was organized by the Journalists in Aging Fellowship program, where he spoke to an audience of journalists about the inequity of the impacts of climate change on elders of color. Watch the video replay here.
In case you missed Lonnie Portis on the youth climate movement panel at the Waterfront Alliance’s 2022 Waterfront Conference, City Limits offered a nice overview. Read it here.
At last week’s rally for the Renewable Heat Now bills, Jasmine Graham called out National Grid’s “Clean Energy Vision” as a pipe dream, arguing that renewables are the better solutions because they are proven and do not harm frontline communities. Read the coverage in the Brooklyn Paper here.
In an article in Baruch’s Dollars & Sense blog on the proposed Penn Station Area Civic & Land Use Improvement Project, Bailey raised concern about the impact on local residents and the affordability of housing in the neighborhood. Read it here.
Hyperlocal Air Monitoring Maps Disparities Block by Block
We know that communities of color are exposed to disproportionate amounts of air pollution. In fact, that’s true for air pollution from nearly every source imaginable. The challenge is with static air quality monitoring. You only know what you can measure, and if they are not measuring in your community, as is often the case, then you and those making the decisions have no real idea what your local air quality is like. Fortunately, Aclima partnered with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District in San Francisco to create a hyperlocal mobile measurement network, using low-emission vehicles to measure the air quality block by block throughout the region, blanketing 5,000 square miles. The results? You can read Aclima’s press release, but I encourage you to read Darryl Fears article in the Washington Post. This could be a game-changer in terms of fighting cumulative impacts and other sources of air pollution.
Arts & Jazzfest NYC Returns!
Mark your calendar for the return of Arts & Jazzfest NYC this summer. Head to Governor’s Island on Saturdays June 4, July 23, and August 13 from 1:00-6:00 PM. Artist, educator, and Arts & Jazzfest NYC Founder (and WE ACT member) Gwen Black is the force behind this annual festival, celebrating its 19th year. And on Friday, June 10, she is hosting the 6th annual Visual Arts Jazz Day, which is an intergenerational celebration of music and art. That will be at the Denny Farrell Riverbank State Park at 145th Street from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Learn more here.
