Dear Voornaam,

More than 50 years ago, the first Earth Day was inspired by the deplorable mess we had made of our environment. Skies over cities were often cloaked with brown haze, land and waterways were clogged with garbage, and in 1969 Ohio's Cuyahoga River, a depository of industrial waste, caught on fire in Cleveland…for the 13th time!

In January of that year Americans had learned of a catastrophic oil rig blowout off the coast of Southern California, polluting miles of coastline and killing off wildlife. Scientific research was revealing that we were slowly but surely devastating plant and animal species. The American public was moved and motivated, and began to act.

Wisconsin Democratic Senator and former Governor Gaylord Nelson organized a nationwide "teach-in" for April 22, 1970. More than 20 million people took to the streets, one of the largest national protests in the Country’s history.

That first Earth Day protest, sponsored by a myriad of organizations from peace advocates to labor (the UAW was a significant benefactor) sparked the political enthusiasm - shared by both parties - to form both the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) later that year.

But in a 1986 dramatic Bronx cheer to the environment, President Ronald Reagan yanked off the White House the 32 solar panels President Jimmy Carter had installed in 1979. Reagan's act became a political symbol for Republicans and marked the point at which the environment played second fiddle to Big Oil and their well monied lobby for GOP lawmakers.

Now, in a fire and drought ravaged West, we Oregonians bear witness to the critical need for ALL Amercans, regardless of political party, to get back to working together to preserve our planet. President Joe Biden, following up on the work of our Democratic leaders, took a huge step forward for the environment today when he signed an executive order laying the groundwork for protecting some of the biggest and oldest trees in America’s forests. We should all be proud, and mark this as among the first of many steps forward.

The Inaugural 1970 Earth Day was planned as a Spring event as a sign of rebirth. Let 2022 mark the year in which we fully recommit to protecting our environment and rejuvenating our planet.

For Our Earth,

KC Hanson
State Chair

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Democratic Party of Oregon
1220 SW Morrison St.
Suite 910
Portland, OR 97205
United States

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