5/4/2021
To benefit from the new energy economy, we must first rescue Rhode Island
Our state government has an affirmative duty to ensure that Rhode Islanders have clean air and water, but in my neighborhood, that has been far from the case. While industries like offshore wind power are poised to bring $100 billion to U.S. economies in less than 10 years, for Black and brown communities like mine to benefit, we have to first address the underlying racism that keeps us saying “we can’t breathe.” This legislative session in Rhode Island, an unprecedented multiracial group has come up with the first step toward re-establishing the basic civil liberties that are the right of every Rhode Islander in a policy package called the Rescue Rhode Island Act.
Infrastructure investments move us toward an equitable climate resilient future
Without a carefully targeted approach, these climate and infrastructure investments will almost certainly exacerbate persistent inequities.
By Alex Papali and Rebecca HerstUpdated April 19, 2021, 3:00 a.m.
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Smoke billows from a Marathon Petroleum refinery near a neighborhood in southwest Detroit.Romain Blanquart/Associated Press
In a stark reversal from both the Trump era and prior Democratic presidencies, the Biden administration has made clear it understands the urgent and unequivocal â but also unequal â threat that climate disruption poses to life on Earth. Among other injustices, our pernicious histories of white supremacy and systemic racism have long caused low-income communities and communities of color to suffer more toxic pollution, failing infrastructure and increased exposure to climate risks.