Press release from Sunrise Movement Asheville:
Hundreds of Asheville-area community members and students will walk out of work and school the morning of December 6th on a day of national climate strikes, organized locally by Sunrise Movement Asheville. City-wide walkouts will occur at 10am to symbolize ten remaining years to complete a rapid transition off of fossil fuels and transition our economy. Protestors will march through downtown and ultimately gather at Pack Square Amphitheater to hear from youth speakers involved in Sunrise and partner organizations, envisioning what a “Green New Deal for Asheville” could look like. Following the September 20th strike, Sunrise Movement Asheville continues to ask the City of Asheville to declare a Climate Emergency and pass the group’s resolution that would initiate a planning process for a municipal Green New Deal. This nationwide strike is a preface to the 2020 elections, when it is more important than ever to hold elected officials accountable and push them to take bold climate action, from the local to the federal level. Sunrise Movement hubs throughout North Carolina will be advocating for a state-level Green New Deal.
WHAT: A protest calling on politicians to recognize the urgency of the climate crisis, respond with Green New Deal policies and emergency-level action, and refuse to take fossil fuel money. The Green New Deal is a 10-year plan to transform every aspect of American society to 100% clean and renewable energy by 2030, guarantee living-wage jobs, and facilitate a just transition for both workers and frontline communities.
WHEN: Friday, December 6th. Walkouts at 10am (to symbolize that we have ten years to make this transition); march at 10:40am; youth-led speaker rally 11-12pm.
WHERE: Vance Monument, Downtown Asheville, and ending at Pack Square Park Amphitheater.
WHO: Sunrise Movement Asheville, the local hub of a national youth-led climate justice Movement behind the Green New Deal, composed of high school and college students, twenty-somethings, and millenials. In partnership with: Community Roots, BeLoved Asheville, Asheville Greenworks, Dogwood Alliance, Soul & Soil Project, Bountiful Cities, The BLOCK off Biltmore, and other local organizations.
WHY: In 2018, young people with the Sunrise Movement put the Green New Deal on the national agenda and permanently changed the conversation on climate policy in this country. On September 20, 2019, nearly 500 concerned residents of Asheville made history by joining the millions striking for action to address the world climate crisis. As the 2020 elections approach, Sunrise Movement Asheville continues to ask the City of Asheville to declare a Climate Emergency with a resolution that would initiate the planning process for a municipal Green New Deal. We are at a tipping point and we need our leaders to take that seriously. Politicians who want the vote of young people in 2020, the largest voting block, need to back a Green New Deal and work alongside the youth-led Movement.
More information, logistics, and speakers will be posted here: bit.ly/avlstrikedec
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