SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) asks a question at a House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on August 24, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Tom Brenner-Pool/Getty Images)
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday paused before proceeding to her line of questioning at a House Oversight Committee hearing, expressing shock over the treatment Republican Rep. Clay Higgins subjected an expert witness, Raya Salter, to moments earlier.
"Frankly, men who treat women like that in public," said the New York Democrat, "I fear how they treat them in private."
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently."
The committee held a hearing on the tens of billions of dollars oil companies rake in annually and their failure to mitigate the damage their extraction practices are doing to the planet, instead embarking on a "greenwashing campaign" while people in frontline communities across the U.S. and around the world face increasingly extreme weather events fueled by the heating of the planet.
The witnesses included Salter, the founder and executive director of the Energy Justice Law and Policy Center, who spoke about environmental injustice that has plagued communities like those represented by Higgins in southern Louisiana.
Salter noted in her testimony that "the extraction, processing, transportation, refining, and combustion of fossil fuels places disproportionate environmental burdens on Black, Brown, Indigenous, and poor communities."
The industry has also been heavily invested in painting "the consumer, rather than Big Oil, as the primary climate crisis villain," she added.
Instead of addressing Salter's comments on the disproportionate impact oil and gas extraction has on communities of color and low-income people, Higgins illustrated her point by challenging the attorney to comment on the fact that the U.S. economy is heavily reliant on fossil fuel industries.
"Everything you have--your clothes, your glasses, your car you got here on, your phone, the table you're sitting at, the chair, the carpet under your feet--everything you've got is petrochemical products," Higgins said. "What would you do with that? Tell the world."
"What I would do is ask you, sir, from Louisiana, to search your heart and understand why the EPA knows that toxic petrochemical facilities are some of the most toxic polluting facilities in the world and are killing Black people throughout Louisiana," Salter replied.
Higgins later addressed the witness as "boo" and "young lady," telling her, "You got a lot of noise, but you got no answers."
When her turn to question the witnesses came, Ocasio-Cortez addressed Salter.
"In the four years that I have sat on this committee, I have never seen members of Congress, Republican or Democrat, disrespect a witness in the way that I have seen them disrespect you today," the congresswoman said.
\u201cRep @AOC (D-NY) goes after Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) for yelling at witness Raya Salter during a House Oversight hearing about the climate crisis:\n\n"Men who treat women like that in public, I fear how they treat them in private. We can be better than this."\u201d— The Recount (@The Recount) 1663263606
"I've never seen anything like that," she added. "And for the gentleman of Louisiana, and the comfort that he felt in yelling at you like that--there's more than one way to get a point across."
Salter thanked the congresswoman for her "leadership and courage" and said Republicans who continue to defend the fossil fuel industry "can come for me all day long."
Other progressives joined Ocasio-Cortez in condemning Higgins' actions.
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently," said Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) on Twitter. "Thank you, Raya Salter, for your brilliant testimony and work to rescue us from the climate catastrophe."
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday paused before proceeding to her line of questioning at a House Oversight Committee hearing, expressing shock over the treatment Republican Rep. Clay Higgins subjected an expert witness, Raya Salter, to moments earlier.
"Frankly, men who treat women like that in public," said the New York Democrat, "I fear how they treat them in private."
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently."
The committee held a hearing on the tens of billions of dollars oil companies rake in annually and their failure to mitigate the damage their extraction practices are doing to the planet, instead embarking on a "greenwashing campaign" while people in frontline communities across the U.S. and around the world face increasingly extreme weather events fueled by the heating of the planet.
The witnesses included Salter, the founder and executive director of the Energy Justice Law and Policy Center, who spoke about environmental injustice that has plagued communities like those represented by Higgins in southern Louisiana.
Salter noted in her testimony that "the extraction, processing, transportation, refining, and combustion of fossil fuels places disproportionate environmental burdens on Black, Brown, Indigenous, and poor communities."
The industry has also been heavily invested in painting "the consumer, rather than Big Oil, as the primary climate crisis villain," she added.
Instead of addressing Salter's comments on the disproportionate impact oil and gas extraction has on communities of color and low-income people, Higgins illustrated her point by challenging the attorney to comment on the fact that the U.S. economy is heavily reliant on fossil fuel industries.
"Everything you have--your clothes, your glasses, your car you got here on, your phone, the table you're sitting at, the chair, the carpet under your feet--everything you've got is petrochemical products," Higgins said. "What would you do with that? Tell the world."
"What I would do is ask you, sir, from Louisiana, to search your heart and understand why the EPA knows that toxic petrochemical facilities are some of the most toxic polluting facilities in the world and are killing Black people throughout Louisiana," Salter replied.
Higgins later addressed the witness as "boo" and "young lady," telling her, "You got a lot of noise, but you got no answers."
When her turn to question the witnesses came, Ocasio-Cortez addressed Salter.
"In the four years that I have sat on this committee, I have never seen members of Congress, Republican or Democrat, disrespect a witness in the way that I have seen them disrespect you today," the congresswoman said.
\u201cRep @AOC (D-NY) goes after Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) for yelling at witness Raya Salter during a House Oversight hearing about the climate crisis:\n\n"Men who treat women like that in public, I fear how they treat them in private. We can be better than this."\u201d— The Recount (@The Recount) 1663263606
"I've never seen anything like that," she added. "And for the gentleman of Louisiana, and the comfort that he felt in yelling at you like that--there's more than one way to get a point across."
Salter thanked the congresswoman for her "leadership and courage" and said Republicans who continue to defend the fossil fuel industry "can come for me all day long."
Other progressives joined Ocasio-Cortez in condemning Higgins' actions.
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently," said Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) on Twitter. "Thank you, Raya Salter, for your brilliant testimony and work to rescue us from the climate catastrophe."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Thursday paused before proceeding to her line of questioning at a House Oversight Committee hearing, expressing shock over the treatment Republican Rep. Clay Higgins subjected an expert witness, Raya Salter, to moments earlier.
"Frankly, men who treat women like that in public," said the New York Democrat, "I fear how they treat them in private."
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently."
The committee held a hearing on the tens of billions of dollars oil companies rake in annually and their failure to mitigate the damage their extraction practices are doing to the planet, instead embarking on a "greenwashing campaign" while people in frontline communities across the U.S. and around the world face increasingly extreme weather events fueled by the heating of the planet.
The witnesses included Salter, the founder and executive director of the Energy Justice Law and Policy Center, who spoke about environmental injustice that has plagued communities like those represented by Higgins in southern Louisiana.
Salter noted in her testimony that "the extraction, processing, transportation, refining, and combustion of fossil fuels places disproportionate environmental burdens on Black, Brown, Indigenous, and poor communities."
The industry has also been heavily invested in painting "the consumer, rather than Big Oil, as the primary climate crisis villain," she added.
Instead of addressing Salter's comments on the disproportionate impact oil and gas extraction has on communities of color and low-income people, Higgins illustrated her point by challenging the attorney to comment on the fact that the U.S. economy is heavily reliant on fossil fuel industries.
"Everything you have--your clothes, your glasses, your car you got here on, your phone, the table you're sitting at, the chair, the carpet under your feet--everything you've got is petrochemical products," Higgins said. "What would you do with that? Tell the world."
"What I would do is ask you, sir, from Louisiana, to search your heart and understand why the EPA knows that toxic petrochemical facilities are some of the most toxic polluting facilities in the world and are killing Black people throughout Louisiana," Salter replied.
Higgins later addressed the witness as "boo" and "young lady," telling her, "You got a lot of noise, but you got no answers."
When her turn to question the witnesses came, Ocasio-Cortez addressed Salter.
"In the four years that I have sat on this committee, I have never seen members of Congress, Republican or Democrat, disrespect a witness in the way that I have seen them disrespect you today," the congresswoman said.
\u201cRep @AOC (D-NY) goes after Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) for yelling at witness Raya Salter during a House Oversight hearing about the climate crisis:\n\n"Men who treat women like that in public, I fear how they treat them in private. We can be better than this."\u201d— The Recount (@The Recount) 1663263606
"I've never seen anything like that," she added. "And for the gentleman of Louisiana, and the comfort that he felt in yelling at you like that--there's more than one way to get a point across."
Salter thanked the congresswoman for her "leadership and courage" and said Republicans who continue to defend the fossil fuel industry "can come for me all day long."
Other progressives joined Ocasio-Cortez in condemning Higgins' actions.
"Small men resort to demeaning tactics when they don't have the wherewithal to act decently," said Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) on Twitter. "Thank you, Raya Salter, for your brilliant testimony and work to rescue us from the climate catastrophe."