 Dear Friends, As you’ve probably heard, we recently traveled to Washington, DC to ensure that communities impacted by the BP Horizon disaster are included in the search for solutions.Ten of us from communities across the Gulf Coast held House and Senate briefings for legislative staff, met with Obama Administration officials, as well as those of our Congressional delegation and relevant committees. The days were hectic ones, but essential in our ability to share a narrative from our homes that are once again in such grave danger. We heard messages of openness and receptiveness to the full range of issues facing our communities; we also heard difficult messages and know that this will once again be a heavy lift to ensure our lives are protected. Together we have developed a platform that outlines the full scope of economic, social, cultural and ecological impacts this disaster has on our communities, along with proposed solutions. We collectively wrote this platform from a wide range of input in a series of community meetings and forums….and now we must make this message heard. We will send this platform to every Member of Congress, officials from the Obama Administration, and submit it to the Congressional record of relevant hearings, in the first of many steps to advance regional and equitable solutions to the crisis in the Gulf. Please see http://www.equityandinclusion.org/data/Joint_Statement_6.1.2010.1.pdf?folder=INBOX&firstMessage=1Best for a copy of the actual statement. Regards, |
