With President Biden set to announce the details of his Build Back Better plan during a speech in Pittsburgh later today, grassroots activists across the country are pressing Biden to go bold. At more than 100 “Time to Thrive” events today — town halls, protests, honk and waves, concerts, and creative actions — advocates are calling on Biden and Congress to pursue an economic recovery and infrastructure package modeled after the THRIVE Agenda.
Endorsed by more than 100 members of Congress and 300 leading unions, racial justice, and climate groups, the THRIVE Agenda would invest $1 trillion per year over ten years to create more than 15 million good jobs, end the unemployment crisis, cut climate pollution in half by 2030, and advance racial, Indigenous, gender, environmental, and economic justice.
Greenpeace USA Climate Campaigner Ashley Thomson said:
“Our movement has already handed President Biden the plan he needs to end the unemployment crisis, combat climate change, and deliver a just, equitable recovery from COVID-19: the THRIVE Agenda. We will not settle for anything less. This is a moment for the president to be bold, and to listen to the wisdom of the very communities that organized to put him in office. Instead of wasting billions of dollars every year subsidizing fossil fuels, our government should be investing in the renewable energy economy of the future. Not only can we avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis, we can create a world in which our health and our families come before corporate greed.”
From West Virginia to Arizona to Alaska, communities that have been excluded from economic opportunity in the past will take today to remind elected officials of this once-in-a-generation chance to rebuild and renew. Photos from events across the country will be made available here throughout the day.
Some of today’s actions include:
- In Ohio, where there is an open Senate seat in 2020, clergy will lead a press conference after which local leaders will serve Senator Rob Portman a fake subpoena demanding that he more fully explain his position on the THRIVE Act.
- In West Virginia, community members will call for action through a “jammin’ for jobs” concert.
- In New Mexico, representatives of the state’s Congressional delegation, state officials, and community activists will lead a virtual rally in support of the THRIVE Act.
- In Pennsylvania, leaders from across the Commonwealth will hold a virtual town hall to discuss the need to divest from extractive economies and invest in just solutions like THRIVE.
A full list of “Time to Thrive” events is available at www.recoveryrecess.org. A summary of the eight pillars of the THRIVE Agenda, as well as the complete list of grassroots and Congressional sponsors, is available at www.thriveagenda.com.
ENDS
Contact: Ryan Schleeter, Senior Communications Specialist, Greenpeace USA: +1 (415) 342-2386, [email protected]
