The resignation of Van Jones silences a much-needed progressive voice in the administration. There is no doubt he will once again don the mantle of advocacy he wears so well and continue to do great work fighting for the environment and civil rights.
Unfortunately, Mr. Jones is not the first, nor will he be the last, target of manufactured right-wing outrage or partisan witch hunts. Just ask Justice Sonia Sotomayor, whose stellar career and accomplishments were reduced by the right wing to attacks on her “wise Latina” phrase. Or ask Tom Perez and Dawn Johnsen, two nominees to senior Justice Department posts who still await confirmation amidst partisan gameplaying.
Those yelling the loudest now about targeting administration officials--many of whom are women and people of color--for "extremist views" are the same voices who passionately defend the likes of John Ashcroft, Jay Bybee, and Donald Rumsfeld.
Van Jones’ forced resignation is a hard lesson for our progressive community. We have always known the corrosive effect the organized right wing has on reasonable debate, and their willingness to lie and wage baseless attacks on the character of good and strong leaders.
But instead of each group defending leaders of our own communities, all of us -- environmentalists, civil rights, women’s, human rights groups, you name it – must work together to defend progressive leaders from the kind of vicious attacks that have denied America a creative, innovative public servant like Van Jones, and that threaten to keep Dawn Johnsen, Tom Perez, and others from serving in the Obama administration.
Van Jones has much more to offer this country, and Alliance for Justice looks forward to proudly standing with him and other committed progressives to fight for the change America needs.
Showing posts with label green jobs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label green jobs. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Going Green AND Blue on St. Patty’s Day
By Guest bloggers, Margrete Strand Rangnes and Karin Lee with Sierra Club's Responsible Trade Program
Most people don’t know it, but back in the day, St. Patrick’s signature color actually used to be blue. This St. Patty’s Day, when you wear your green, don’t forget to think about our nation’s workers, and the wearing o’ the blue too!
The buzz these days seems all to be about the green: green jobs, green buildings, green cars (green beers, anyone?).
Amidst the difficult economic times, the greening of our economy provides us with a tremendous opportunity to rebuild our nation around green jobs that will address not only the climate crisis and unemployment, but also deeply rooted social problems of poverty and inequality.
One way to ensure that these green jobs will also be good family-supporting jobs is to allow workers a democratic chance to form unions. That’s why the Sierra Club supports the Employee Free Choice Act.
In recent years, flawed trade deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have enabled companies to relocate to countries with weak or non-existent protections for workers and the environment, and have led to the hemorrhage of more than 1.5 million jobs. With a global recession and U.S. unemployment at over 8%, now is not the time to weaken the focus on creating a strong middle-class in America. On the contrary, given the current economic crisis, it is more important than ever to focus on farsighted policies that will staunch this outward flow and strengthen the American workforce. Investing in the green energy economy can maintain and create millions of jobs, right here at home. The challenge is to make sure that these are good jobs, with decent wages and benefits.
The Employee Free Choice Act would level the playing field and give workers a fair and direct path to form unions without the fear of being fired, help employees secure a contract with their employer in a reasonable period of time, and toughen penalties against corporations who violate their workers’ rights.
Workers serve as our front line of defense against hazardous pollution, chemical spills and other accidents that can devastate communities. Union workers are better trained to know about important health and safety risks and have greater protections if they blow the whistle on hazards and accidents in the workplace.
However, the current labor law system makes it difficult for workers to form unions. Employees who try to form unions are routinely harassed, and often even fired. Among private sector employers whose workers try to form unions, 25% have illegally fired at least one worker for union activity.
The emerging green economy holds great promise to build the American middle-class. One way to ensure that it benefits the many rather than the few is by passing the Employee Free Choice Act.
Most people don’t know it, but back in the day, St. Patrick’s signature color actually used to be blue. This St. Patty’s Day, when you wear your green, don’t forget to think about our nation’s workers, and the wearing o’ the blue too!
The buzz these days seems all to be about the green: green jobs, green buildings, green cars (green beers, anyone?).
Amidst the difficult economic times, the greening of our economy provides us with a tremendous opportunity to rebuild our nation around green jobs that will address not only the climate crisis and unemployment, but also deeply rooted social problems of poverty and inequality.
One way to ensure that these green jobs will also be good family-supporting jobs is to allow workers a democratic chance to form unions. That’s why the Sierra Club supports the Employee Free Choice Act.
In recent years, flawed trade deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) have enabled companies to relocate to countries with weak or non-existent protections for workers and the environment, and have led to the hemorrhage of more than 1.5 million jobs. With a global recession and U.S. unemployment at over 8%, now is not the time to weaken the focus on creating a strong middle-class in America. On the contrary, given the current economic crisis, it is more important than ever to focus on farsighted policies that will staunch this outward flow and strengthen the American workforce. Investing in the green energy economy can maintain and create millions of jobs, right here at home. The challenge is to make sure that these are good jobs, with decent wages and benefits.
The Employee Free Choice Act would level the playing field and give workers a fair and direct path to form unions without the fear of being fired, help employees secure a contract with their employer in a reasonable period of time, and toughen penalties against corporations who violate their workers’ rights.
Workers serve as our front line of defense against hazardous pollution, chemical spills and other accidents that can devastate communities. Union workers are better trained to know about important health and safety risks and have greater protections if they blow the whistle on hazards and accidents in the workplace.
However, the current labor law system makes it difficult for workers to form unions. Employees who try to form unions are routinely harassed, and often even fired. Among private sector employers whose workers try to form unions, 25% have illegally fired at least one worker for union activity.
The emerging green economy holds great promise to build the American middle-class. One way to ensure that it benefits the many rather than the few is by passing the Employee Free Choice Act.
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