October, 14 2009, 04:38pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Adrianna Quintero, 415-875-6123, aquintero@nrdc.org;
Laura Rodríguez, 202-772-0456, lrodriguez@deweysquare.com
Latinos Use Voces Verdes to Call for Strong Climate and Energy Legislation
New Initiative provides platform for Latino community to support passage of strong climate legislation
WASHINGTON
Voces Verdes,
an innovative platform designed to highlight the Latino community's
support for strong climate and clean energy legislation was launched
today by La Onda Verde, the Latino arm of the Natural Resources Defense
Council, in partnership with America Verde and Common Ground for
Conservation.
"Voces Verdes aims to include
diverse Latino voices from across the political, geographical, economic
and vocational spectrum, to demonstrate that climate change has become
a priority issue for Latino businesses, community leaders, parents,
teachers, doctors, nurses, and students alike," said Adrianna Quintero,
Director of NRDC's La Onda Verde and Voces Verdes' Campaign Director.
The
threat of global warming affects Latinos greatly, and the opportunities
for Latinos in implementing climate and energy solutions make their
input vital. With the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, pending
in the Senate, Voces Verdes provides a platform for Latinos
across the country to engage on climate change issues and support the
passage of strong clean energy legislation that benefits everyone.
America Verde
has brought together hundreds of signatures of diverse Latinos in
several states, including Arkansas, North Carolina, Colorado, Florida,
Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia, who have
added their names to a letter to Senators expressing support for strong
climate and clean energy legislation.
"The signers
understand that while global warming has had a negative impact on their
communities and that strong climate legislation will improve not only
the health of their communities but also create much needed jobs and
economic opportunities," added Mildred Real, CEO of Common Ground for
Conservation.
"The future of our communities and our
families is at risk if we do not make it clear that Latinos want clean
energy and a safe environment," said Andrea Bazan, President of The
Triangle Community Foundation and a nationally renowned and well
respected Latina business leader based in North Carolina. "We will not
stand silent as this problem becomes an ominous threat to our children
and our future. We stand with other Americans in urging quick passage
of strong clean energy legislation that will help our communities'
economic recovery with better, safer, cleaner jobs and a safe and
sustainable environment."
Voces Verdes
will continue to serve as a platform to activate Latinos across the
country in support of strong clean energy and climate legislation. As
support grows among Latinos, Voces Verdes will in turn deliver those Latino voices to legislators.
NRDC works to safeguard the earth--its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. We combine the power of more than three million members and online activists with the expertise of some 700 scientists, lawyers, and policy advocates across the globe to ensure the rights of all people to the air, the water, and the wild.
(212) 727-2700LATEST NEWS
Amid Spying Fight, House Passes Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act
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While applauding the U.S. House of Representatives' bipartisan passage of a bill to ensure that "law enforcement and intelligence agencies can't do an end-run around the Constitution by buying information from data brokers" on Wednesday, privacy advocates highlighted that Congress is trying to extend and expand a long-abused government spying program.
The House voted 219-199 for Fourth Amendment Is Not For Sale Act (FANFSA), which won support from 96 Democrats and 123 Republicans, including the lead sponsor, Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio). Named for the constitutional amendment that protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, H.R. 4639 would close what campaigners call the data broker loophole.
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Wednesday's vote followed the House sending the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act to the Senate. H.R. 7888 would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows for warrantless spying on noncitizens abroad but also sweeps up Americans' data.
The House notably included an amendment forcing a wide range of individuals and businesses to cooperate with government spying operations but rejected an amendment that would have added a warrant requirement to the bill, which the Senate could vote on as soon as Thursday.
Noting those decisions on the FISA reauthorization legislation, Ruddock stressed that "today's vote is a victory but follows a recent loss and ongoing threat as that Section 702 bill moves to the Senate this week too."
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Jeramie Scott, senior counsel and director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center's Project on Surveillance Oversight, also praised the House's FANFSA passage on Wednesday.
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Kia Hamadanchy, senior policy counsel at ACLU, similarly said Wednesday that "the bipartisan passage of this bill is a flashing warning sign to the government that if it wants our data, it must get a warrant."
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As The Intercept's Ken Klippenstein and Daniel Boguslaw noted:
Since 2011, the U.N. Security Council has rejected the Palestinian Authority's request for full member status. On April 2, the Palestinian Observer Mission to the U.N. requested that the council once again take up consideration of its membership application. According to the first State Department cable, U.N. meetings since the beginning of April suggest that Algeria, China, Guyana, Mozambique, Russia, Slovenia, Sierra Leone, and Malta support granting Palestine full membership to the U.N. It also says that France, Japan, and Korea are undecided, while the United Kingdom will likely abstain from a vote.
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"After a year of preparation, we finally open the doors to our new research consortium, exposing the global network of reactionary forces that corrode our democracies, destroy our planet, and drive us closer to world war," the group added.
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