...I would work to organize a day of action across the nation highlighting the connection Al Gore and others have pointed out between the economic crisis, the national security crisis, and the climate crisis. Solving our energy crisis is the key to solving all of these and more, and the day of action I would organize would focus on this.
If I were a community organizer, I would dream of Gore’s own We Campaign working with other like-minded groups, including 1Sky, Green for All, and the international grassroots climate justice movement 350.org, to come together on the National Day of Service, September 27, to create the most powerful display--and celebration--of the real responsibilities of community organizers, including helping all citizens be the informed public on which our democracy depends.
I would call this day: Green Jobs Now!
The thing is, this is not one of those counterfactual hypotheticals. I actually am a community organizer. And thanks to thousands of other community organizers, Green Jobs Now! is not just a dream!
Community organizers from community service groups, climate advocacy groups and grassroots organizations, environmental justice organizations, human rights groups, labor unions, workers’ rights groups, and many, many more are coming together to drive home the message that the new energy economy is not a "single issue"—it’s the framework of society and the solution to the crises we face.
On September 27, community organizers and members around the nation will celebrate that we have the solutions, we have the strength, we have the numbers, and we have the hope. And with Obama, our community-organizer-in-chief, we have the real leadership we need to turn our potential into reality.