You are here

Home » movements, unions, and organizations

movement politics

Our Green Transition May Leave Black People Behind

Submitted by x332349 on Wed, 06/21/2023 - 00:00

By Rhiana Gunn-Wright - Hammer & Hope, Summer 2023

I’m an architect of the Green New Deal, and I’m worried the racism in the biggest climate law endangers our ability to get off fossil fuels.

This summer, the earth raged. Fires in Maui and Canada, floods in Delhi and Beijing, heat everywhere — this is the beginning of the climate impacts scientists have long predicted, and the U.S. is unprepared in terms of everything from infrastructure to public health. And if I’m honest, I raged, too. Never in my life have I wished more to be a cyclone, blowing away everything in my path, or an earthquake, shaking everyone to their core until they take seriously the concerns of Black and Indigenous frontline communities.

August marked a year since the Inflation Reduction Act passed, arguably the most significant climate legislation in U.S. history. But the racist compromises and the marginalization of Black people and their demands that facilitated the bill’s passage have seeped into the climate movement, sowing division and narrowing discourse in ways that not only threaten to keep Black people at the bottom of a new green economy but also undermine efforts to address thornier issues, such as who owns energy resources or how to navigate conflicts about resource distribution and land use, questions that money alone cannot answer.

Tags: 
Green New Deal (GND)
just transition
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
front line communities
combating racism
climate justice
environmental justice
sacrifice zones
green capitalism
greenwashing
Build Back Better (BBB)
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)
Joe Biden
capitalism, colonialism, and fascism
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
movements, unions, and organizations
Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)
cap-and-trade
capitalism
disaster capitalism
extractivism
highly recommended

Cop City is Bad News for Working People

Submitted by x332349 on Fri, 06/09/2023 - 00:00

By Kamau Franklin, Mariah Parker, and Maximillian Alvarez - Working People, June 9, 2023

Read the transcript of this interview here.

Tags: 
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
Atlanta Forest
mobilizations and uprisings
anti-capitalism
libertarian-socialism
Industrial Workers of the World (IWW)
Tortuguita
anarchism
green-anarchism
post scarcity anarchism
ecological movements and organizations
movement politics
movements, unions, and organizations
class struggle
Democratic Party
Republican Party

Episode 4: Exploring the Intersection of Labor and Climate Policy

Submitted by x332349 on Fri, 06/09/2023 - 00:00

By Aiko Schaefer and Jeff Johnson - The Just Solutions Podcast, June 9, 2023

Tags: 
green unionism
just transition
climate change
climate justice
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
front line communities
jobs
green jobs
decarbonization
strategy and tactics
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
labor and environment

Daniel Randall RMT at the XRTU Hub, The Big One

Submitted by x332349 on Wed, 05/10/2023 - 00:00

By Daniel Randall - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, May 4, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT)
renewable energy
public transit
public transit workers
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
fracking
offshore wind
videos

Finlay Asher from Unite and Safe Landing at The Big One Trade Union hub

Submitted by x332349 on Wed, 05/10/2023 - 00:00

By Finlay Asher - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, May 10, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
Safe Landing
Unite the Union
transportation
transportation infrastructure
transportation workers
air transport workers
airports
Heathrow
videos

Clara Paillard from Unite Grassroot Climate Justice Caucus at the Big One Trade Union hub

Submitted by x332349 on Wed, 05/10/2023 - 00:00

By Clara Paillard - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, May 10, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
Unite the Union
fracking
videos

Equity for a Green New Deal at The Big One Trade Union hub

Submitted by x332349 on Wed, 05/10/2023 - 00:00

By Equity for a Green New Deal - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, May 10, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
marine transport workers
transportation workers
transportation
Green New Deal (GND)
videos
climate justice

Review - A Planet to Win:Why We Need a Green New Deal

Submitted by x344543 on Tue, 05/09/2023 - 18:22

By x344543 - IWW Environmental Union Caucus, May 11, 2023

In spite of this book's straightforward sounding title, A Planet to Win, Why We Need a Green New Deal (Verso, 2019), by Kate Aronoff, Alyssa Battistoni, Daniel Aldana Cohen, and The Riofrancos, this relatively short and concise book would be much more accurately titled, "Why we think our version of the Green New Deal is the best one of the lot," because there isn't a single "Green New Deal", but several, as we have noted here on ecology.iww.org. This, however, is not necessarily a negative aspect of this book.

The authors, all of them ecosocialists with a transformative approach, are quick to explain that the particular Green New Deal they seek is one that addresses most critiques of the Green New Deal in general. 

  • Would the Green New Deal repeat the mistakes of the original New Deal and exclude BIPOC people? Not the authors' version.
  • Would the Green New Deal rely heavily on social democratic Keynesian state intervention? Not the author's version!
  • Would the Green New Deal perpetuate endless growth in hubristic ignorance of the natural limits to growth, not if these authors have any say in the matter;
  • Would the Green New Deal further the continued exploitation by the Global North of the Global South? Not if the authors have anything to do with it!
  • Would the Green New Deal merely be a case of the capitalists saving themselves, with a putatively green branding? Absolutely not, the authors say.

Certainly, if given the choice, that sounds quite good to me. Clearly these authors aren't content with a naive faith that just because something is called a "Green New Deal" it will actually be a good deal.

Tags: 
Green New Deal (GND)
green unionism
ecosocialism
ecological movements and organizations
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
strategy and tactics
reformism
fossil fuel capitalism
green capitalism
Global South
conflict minerals
rare earths
extractivism
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
indigenous
capitalism, colonialism, and fascism
deep organizing
book reviews
IWW Environmental Unionism Caucus

Stop the Cumbria Coal Mine: XRTU at The Big One

Submitted by x332349 on Sun, 04/30/2023 - 00:00

By Hazel Graham - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, April 30, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
public transit
public transit workers
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
mine workers
mining
coal
decarbonization
green jobs
fracking
videos
Unite the Union

NEU Climate Change Network Paul Atkin

Submitted by x332349 on Fri, 04/28/2023 - 00:00

By Paul Atkins - Extinction Rebellion Trade Unions, April 28, 2023

Tags: 
Extinction Rebellion Trade Unionists (XRTU)
green unionism
climate change
jobs versus environment
United Kingdom (UK)
just transition
movements, unions, and organizations
movement politics
ecological movements and organizations
strategy and tactics
anti-capitalism
mobilizations and uprisings
videos

Pages

The Fine Print I:

Disclaimer: The views expressed on this site are not the official position of the IWW (or even the IWW’s EUC) unless otherwise indicated and do not necessarily represent the views of anyone but the author’s, nor should it be assumed that any of these authors automatically support the IWW or endorse any of its positions.

Further: the inclusion of a link on our site (other than the link to the main IWW site) does not imply endorsement by or an alliance with the IWW. These sites have been chosen by our members due to their perceived relevance to the IWW EUC and are included here for informational purposes only. If you have any suggestions or comments on any of the links included (or not included) above, please contact us.

The Fine Print II:

Fair Use Notice: The material on this site is provided for educational and informational purposes. It may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is being made available in an effort to advance the understanding of scientific, environmental, economic, social justice and human rights issues etc.

It is believed that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have an interest in using the included information for research and educational purposes. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. The information on this site does not constitute legal or technical advice.