D.Woods opens the tour in New Orleans.
Thursday marked the kickoff of the Hip Hop Caucus Clean Energy Now Bus Tour, as entertainers, musicians and community leaders engaged with students from two Louisiana universities, calling for clean energy and climate legislation.
It was a huge start for the tour that heads to Arkansas today.
At Dillard University Rev. Yearwood, joined by D. Woods, Gloria Reuben, DJ Biz Markie, community and student leaders, rallied with hundreds of students on Dillard University’s campus in a call for clean energy.
Students descended on Dillard’s main quad to listen to Biz Markie on the turntables and a number of speakers discussed the importance of the clean energy economy and climate protection. The speeches were centered on the linkage between the challenges we face with both our economy and our climate and how these issues presents a momentous opportunity for our generation.
Rev. Yearwood implored the crowd to recognize the significance of this moment and to respond with the same tenacity that the previous generation had when faced with Jim Crowe. He said, “This is our lunch counter moment…In the 20th Century they had to fight for equality, and in the 21st century we gotta fight for existence.” By tying climate protection and clean energy jobs to social justice and economic empowerment, Rev. Yearwood and the other speakers effectively engaged a crowd of close to 300 people for nearly 2 hours.
During discussions with attendees, young people were asking how they could connect with employers and organizations who are putting people to work in the clean energy economy.
Then last night at Tulane, a school that was washed out by Hurricane Katrina, close to 100 people showed up to a student led roundtable discussion that focused on engaging youth, communities of color and low-income communities in the clean energy movement. Students and young people from a wide variety of organizations and backgrounds engaged in a dialogue with panel members. Those in attendance included Rev. Yearwood, D. Woods, Gloria Reuben, DJ Biz Markie, Sess 4-5 and others. Topics included job creation, pollution reduction, and practical ways to engage others to make a positive environmental impact in their own lives.
After a student moderator posed a series of questions to the panelists the floor was open to the audience. For nearly 45 minutes, young people, many of whom were young activists from states outside of Louisiana, asked questions ranging from how climate change can be seen as a moral issue to the practicalities of how political organizers in others states can plug into the movement on the ground to further address the cause and help put people back to work.
One panelist, a professor at Tulane and native of New Orleans, discussed the importance of rebuilding the Lower 9th Ward utilizing sustainable building practices. This led to questions about how the environmental community can move beyond the mere message and impart enduring social values and practical lessons to be carried on in the public’s lives.
The tour is in Little Rock, Ark. starting at 3 pm today. Check out Rev. Yearwood’s Twitter page for live updates.
