Originally posted on Oaklandseen.com

On May 5, the East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy – in partnership with allies from Seattle to Newark, N.J. – will make our congressional debut. We’re excited to be taking the fight for good jobs and clean air to our nation’s capital.

EBASE and a “blue-green-brown” coalition are fighting to reform the broken port trucking system. It impoverishes the truck drivers who transport the food and supplies you and I use every day. And it exposes both drivers and local residents to toxic diesel pollution.

I’ve met with truck drivers and seen first-hand some of the injustices they endure. But don’t take my word for it. As Ablelom, an Oakland driver, told the New York Times last fall: “This is straight-out slavery, only modern. The companies tell you to keep your mouth shut, take what they give you, and don’t say anything because if you say anything there’s always another guy who can do it.”

Fixing this broken system is key to building healthy communities and creating an economy where everyone earns enough to live with dignity.

Why Washington, D.C.?

We came close to passing a comprehensive clean truck policy at the Port of Oakland last year, but the global shipping industry joined together to block our progress on the road to justice. They simply don’t want to pay their fair share to fix the system. They profit off the status quo, in which low-wage drivers bear the enormous costs of greening the port’s truck fleet, and low-income communities of color pay with their health.

To remove the industry’s roadblock, EBASE is “going national” with this journey to Washington, D.C. As a member of the Coalition for Clean and Safe Ports, we’ll be making the case for putting an end to “sweatshops on wheels” before the Congressional Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

If you agree that global corporations should not profit at the expense of Oakland’s low-income communities of color, I invite you to learn more and also consider helping us get to Washington. Together, we can make our rallying cry of “good jobs, clean air” a reality.

Comments

Comments are now closed for this item.