Reverend Al Sharpton was the first of three speakers (after being introduced by NAACP National Board Member Clayola Brown) at this afternoon’s press conference at the NAACP National Convention in Kansas City.

Clayola Brown: Good afternoon everyone. Good afternoon everyone. [voices: “Good afternoon.”] We wanted to take this opportunity to address the media before the economic justice forum to talk with you a little bit about the One Nation movement. On October the second, the ten-two-ten, we will be marching on Washington with some of the leaders you see here, Reverend Sharpton, Reverend Jackson, as well as other leaders throughout labor, civil rights and the community to demand the changes that we voted for. Civil rights are under attack in this country and even Glenn Beck is holding a rally on eight twenty-eight, which is the anniversary date of Dr. Martin Luther King’s historic March on Washington. And this is certainly not what this country needs right now. It is my pleasure this afternoon to introduce to the mic first, Reverend Al Sharpton, a renowned leader across this country who really needs no introduction whatsoever. Reverend Sharpton…

Reverend Al Sharpton and Clayola Brown.

….Reverend Al Sharpton: Thank you Miss Brown. I come as President of the National Action Network to join others in pledging our support for the march of labor and others joining us on the second of October in Washington. And also there’ll be a big gathering on the twenty-eighth of August, the date that Miss Brown just referred to. Uh, forty-seven years ago there was a march in Washington for jobs and justice, and which Martin Luther King made one of the addresses that became known as the famous “I Have a Dream” speech. It is an absolute outrage that Glenn Beck and the tea parties are coming to Washington on that day, claiming to restore dignity. It is not about race. It is about their belief in government that is so [inaudible].  The idea of the civil rights movement is to get a strong federal government to protect the people against state’s rights that has been those that kept people down based on going by state to state laws. The tea partiers are a state’s rights philosophical group. The cannot march in the name of Dr. King’s dream, which was totally antithetical to their idea of government. So Martin Luther King the third and Marc Morial of the National Urban League and [inaudible] and others will be joining us on the twenty-eighth in Washington. We will not be marching were Beck is. We will be at Dunbar High School and go to the site where Dr. Martin Luther King monument will be unveiled next year, the last monument on the Potomac. We’re not going to react to Beck. We’re going to raise what the real dream was on the anniversary of the dream. The dream was about jobs, the dream was about economic justice, the dream was about making sure that states could not interfere with the rights of labor, the rights of women and the rights of people. You cannot have people who are now trying to have tea party for state’s rights coming and celebrating the day that asked the federal government to overrule where states were segregating and allowing segregation to go forward. There clearly is some racial leaves in their tea bag, but this is not just about race. This is about how you see government. And those of us that see government the way that Dr. King and Roy Wilkins and Dorothy Height saw it will be in Washington to raise the right banner on the twenty-eighth of August and be there in mass with everyone, One Nation, on the second of October. I close by reminding you, if you read the whole speech of Dr. King, Dr. King said that America had given the negro a check that had bounced in the bank and it was returned insufficient funds. Uh, I submit that that check has been written again with an African-American president, this time the bank bounced, ’cause there’s no money. So we really need to press for jobs, we need to press for jobs, economic equity and we cannot return back to states deciding on immigration, states deciding on labor. That’s why we’re going to Washington on twenty-eight, that’s why we’ll be there in mass on the second. We see from Arizona, we see from the tea parties, they’re trying to bring us back to pre King days. While they talk about restoring dignity they’re really talking about restoring a time before the federal government intervened and protected the rights of people. Again, this is not about race, this is about how you see the role of government and how Beck and that crowd sees it is the opposite of why they marched in nineteen sixty-three….

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Michelle Obama – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Sheila Jackson Lee on the tea party and human rights

NAACP in Kansas City: Senator Claire McCaskill (D) – “Now is no time to quit.”

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Emanuel Cleaver – “Don’t you forget it!”

NAACP in Kansas City: Wednesday afternoon press conference – photos

BGinKC Jobs, and Justice and Peace. Keep our eyes on THAT prize. –Jesse Jackson #NAACP101 #NAACP about 3 hours ago via web

Waiting for the start of the press conference.

(left to right) Reverend Jesse Jackson, NAACP President and CE0 Benjamin Todd Jealous, Reverend Al Sharpton.

Reverend Al Sharpton.

Reverend Jesse Jackson.

Benjamin Todd Jealous.

(left to right) Benjamin Todd Jealous, Reverend Al Sharpton, NAACP National Board Member Clayola Brown, Reverend Jesse Jackson.

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Michelle Obama – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Sheila Jackson Lee on the tea party and human rights

NAACP in Kansas City: Senator Claire McCaskill (D) – “Now is no time to quit.”

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Emanuel Cleaver – “Don’t you forget it!”

On Monday morning Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D) was the second public office holder (after Claire McCaskill) to address welcoming remarks to those attending the first plenary session of the NAACP National Convention in Kansas City:

Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D): ….Welcome to Kansas City, Missouri. And, uh, we don’t say Kansas for short. Uh, this is Kansas City, Missouri. It’s not, don’t worry, we don’t get upset, just don’t say it. [laughter] Don’t tell people I’ve been to the NAACP convention in Kansas. You haven’t. [laughter] Uh. You didn’t land in Kansas. If you’d landed in Kansas you’d  have been dead, there’s no airport [inaudible]. [laughter] [applause]

Welcome to Kansas City, Missouri, the largest city in the State of Missouri. This is the home of Charlie “Yardbird” Parker. [applause] This is the place where the Negro Leagues were formed. [applause, cheers]. This is the place where Satchel Paige pitched two games in one day. This is Kansas City, Missouri. Not far from this place a young haberdasher decided to go into county politics and eventually became the President of the United States. This is the home of Harry Truman. This is the home of Jean Harlow. This is where McDonalds created its happy meal. [laughter] M and Ms were created here in Kansas City. This is the world headquarters of Hallmark Cards, H and R Block, Sprint, Faultless Starch. This is the home of Walt Disney. This is where he first drew a little mouse, named him, and named him Latimer [Mortimer]. Went to California, his wife changed, convinced him to change the name to Mickey. [laughter] But this no Mickey Mouse town, this is Kansas City, Missouri. [applause] We welcome you to Kansas City, Missouri. Missourah, uh huh. Missouri. [laughter]

Now let me just tell you, in my real life I’m a United Methodist pastor. Um, even when I served as mayor I continued to pastor at our church here. One Sunday morning a young man came back into the office and he had glee written all over his face. And you could tell that exuberance was boiling over. And he came back in and he said. “Rev, how much did you get today?”  And so I said, this counts and I [inaudible], and you don’t people [inaudible]. [laughter] And I said, you know, “Young man don’t, you know, you don’t ask people that.” And said, “No, no [inaudible], you got to tell me, how much did you get today?” And I said, “I, I didn’t get anything. What, I’m understanding your question.”  He said, “You know, how much did you get when they passed that tray around?” He said, “I took out a twenty.” He said, “So I.” [laughter, applause]  He said, “So I want to know how much what you get?” [laughter] So I said, “Well, wait just a minute, I didn’t get anything.” But I thought about it. And that young man actually was profound. When you go to a church or a convention you ought to get something out of it. [laughter, applause]

And, what I hope you will get out of this is that no matter how much the pundits say we are in post racial era, no matter how much that you believe that everything is fine, it’s not. [applause] We need the NAACP now as much as ever [applause, cheers]. I hope you get out of it that you are needed. [applause] We have seventeen members of the United States Senate voting “no” for unemployment benefits. We need the NAACP [inaudible] right now! [applause, cheers] We need it! We need it! Don’t you forget it! [applause, cheers]

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Michelle Obama – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Sheila Jackson Lee on the tea party and human rights

NAACP in Kansas City: Senator Claire McCaskill (D) – “Now is no time to quit.”

On Monday morning Senator Claire McCaskill (D) was the first public office holder to address welcoming remarks to those attending the first plenary session of the NAACP National Convention in Kansas City:

Senator Claire McCaskill (D): Welcome to all of you. What a grand and glorious sight you are. It is terrific to have you here in Kansas City in this state I love so much, in this city I love so much. Thank you for blessing us with your presence here in Missouri. [applause] One nation, one dream, one people. We live in a wonderful country where so much more unites us than divides us. But so much work remains in this great nation.

I know many of you may realize that I share the pride of a nation on that special night in November when Barack Obama was elected President of the United States. [applause] This nation delivered on its promise of equal opportunity. This nation delivered on its promise that all things are possible for anyone in America. What a moment it was. Exultation. It was thrilling. It made us all so proud.  And we were so caught up in the top of the mountain that I think we forgot to look out and see that there were many valleys that remain. Too many of us thought the hard work was over. The hard work remains.  This nation needs our passion and our energy. Our President needs our passion and our energy. We soared but now we have [inaudible] jet lag.

I certainly hope the NAACP continues its important work because there is a lot of pain still in America. We need good jobs, we need affordable college education [applause], we need quality day care [applause], we need to make sure that that opportunity remains for everyone in this great nation. [applause]

I hope the NAACP continues to take a leading role in voter education, voter registration. I hope everyone turns their eyes towards November, the next big election in this country, because it’s an important one.

And remember, President Obama, like all of us, is one of God’s children. He needs our prayers [applause], he needs our energy, he needs our passion [applause].  If I could leave you with any message this morning that you might take from this great hall, it is simply this, now is no time to quit. Now is no time to quit. [applause]

Thank you so much. God bless you and have wonderful time. [applause, cheers]

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Michelle Obama – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Representative Sheila Jackson Lee on the tea party and human rights

On Sunday afternoon Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) was part of the panel for a legislative workshop titled “Engaging Congress: the NAACP’s Legislative Agenda to Achieve One Nation, One Dream”. Representative Jackson-Lee spoke on the tea party movement and immigration reform among other issues:

Representative Sheila Jackson Lee: ….And I thank you professor very much. I’m going to be engaging you with those very powerful numbers that you have offered on what the tea party recognizes, uh, or is recognized as. Might I add my own P.S.? All those who wore sheets a long time ago have now lifted them off and started wearing [applause], uh, clothing, uh, with a name, say, I am part of the tea party. Don’t you be fooled.  [voices: “That’s right.”, applause] Those who used to wear sheets are now being able to walk down the aisle and speak as a patriot because you will not speak loudly about the lack of integrity of this movement. Don’t let anybody tell you that those who spit on us as we were walking to vote on a health care bill for all of America or those who said Congresswoman Jackson-Lee’s braids were too tight in her hair had anything to do with justice and equality and empowerment of the American people. Don’t let them fool you on that [applause]….

….But let me just say this. We have had a challenging time with African-Americans on the question of immigration. As it first begun, uh, it looked as if it was a job killer bill for all of you. It looked as if these were folk who were interlopers who were attempting to move in on your territory. My brothers and sisters, once they begin to divide us [voices: “That’s right.”], once they begin to point out this one and that one [voices: “Yes.”], for many of you don’t realize that immigrants are Haitians, they are Liberians, they’re Nigerians, and they come to this nation as we did, first in the bottom of a belly of slave boat, to make for a greater time. Wouldn’t it be better if we linked arms with them to find the justice that is [inaudible] our people. [applause]….

….Immigration reform is not something we should be frightened about. We should grab it and make it ours and make it work for us as it works for those who are seeking a better life. Now let me just pose why you should look to this, uh, if you can’t bring yourself to, uh, use the terminology civil rights, uh, then use the terminology human rights and human dignity. For I would compare two disparate situations which will hopefully turn the light bulb on – Arizona, there might be some of our constituents saying, go ahead, right on. But if you understand what the Arizona law says, and thank you NAACP, it says that if you as a police officer, police state that we are fighting against [voices: “Yes.” “That’s right.”], all the places that we look askance and say oh my goodness, look what they’re doing in Sudan. But if you are in Arizona the police officer has a right, if they have reasonable suspicion, and I am strong supporter of law enforcement, I’m on the Judiciary, I want them to be treated fairly, but every human being has the ability to have human error….so if they have reasonable suspicion, uh, masterful attorney, they can stop you, they can ask you papers that you left at home because you were going to Seven Eleven, they can arrest you criminally and immigration in the United States is a civil responsibility, it is not a criminal responsibility unless you are someone who perpetrated a criminal act, but they can arrest you criminally, put you in jail and throw you out of the country….

[Discussion of New York’s “stop and frisk” procedure affecting a disproportionate percentage of minorities.]….

….Do you see where I’m coming from when you talk about immigration reform? That we can’t push any of this off because the tea party and others will say that is great, we want to divide you along those lines.

I remember very, uh, conspicuously going out, uh, on the, uh, uh, veranda or going out on the grounds of the Congress on that Sunday when we voted on the health care bill to engage these wonderful Americans. And I really mean that I was sincerely trying to glean from them what their angst was. And there were a few sprinkled people of color. Of course, is a democracy and they’re allowed to be there. The only thing I could get from them in responding to my question of do you understand what the bill was, was the flipping of the bird. You all understand what the bird is? [voice: “Right.”] Everybody got to understand what the bird is. All right. Nobody understands what the bird, some do. But, in any event, they were [laughter], Pastor,  [voice: “I understand.”] that is the only thing that I could get. That was, uh, some are still looking dumbfounded, the finger, uh, was the only thing that I could get. [laughter] Um, and I could not get anyone to communicate why they were so angry about this health care bill which was going to provide them with an opportunity.

I say this to say, that when you look at immigration, look at the fine line. It is the underpinnings of divisiveness, it is the underpinnings of seeking to lock up people for their distinction, and it is the underpinnings of confusion, uh, and, uh, if you will, uh, abject unfairness….

….Many times, uh, the NAACP will be challenged and say what are they in this business for? Reverend, this is not, uh, a civil rights issue. [voice: “That’s right.”] Don’t let anybody tell you what your business is. [applause, voices: “That’s right.”] Don’t let anybody tell the NAACP [applause] what your business is about. [applause]….

And on the agenda of the convention:

NAACP considers resolution condemning racism in Tea Party movement.

At the organization’s national convention this week, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) will propose a resolution “condemning racism within the tea party movement.” The resolution calls upon “all people of good will to repudiate the racism of the Tea Parties, and to stand in opposition to its drive to push our country back to the pre-civil rights era.” NAACP leaders said the resolution was “necessary” to make people “seriously” consider what leaders “believe is a racist element within the tea party movement.” Tea Party leaders, however, vehemently deny allegations of racism and call the proposed resolution “unfair”….”

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

NAACP in Kansas City: Michelle Obama – photos

First Lady Michelle Obama addressed the NAACP National Convention for its first plenary session, focusing her remarks on the problems of childhood obesity and her effort to address the problem through her Let’s Move campaign. Prior to her speech Senator Claire McCaskill (D) and Congressman Emanuel Cleaver (D) addressed the audience with brief remarks.

First Lady Michelle Obama speaking at the NAACP National Convention in Kansas City.

Yeah, we know. The main press riser was 110 feet from the stage and we weren’t lugging a 400 mm telephoto lens because they’re really heavy and we can’t afford one.

Senator Claire McCaskill (D).

Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D).

Photographers on the main press riser.

The much smaller cut riser to the right of the stage was so packed it looked like a raft with survivors of the Titanic, except in this case they were holding really expensive cameras.

An introductory hug – Roslyn Brock, Chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors, greets First Lady Michelle Obama after introducing her.

There was standing room only at the back of the seating area.

A standing ovation from the audience after Michelle Obama’s speech.

NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous speaking to the media on the main press riser after Michelle Obama’s speech.

There was so much crowd noise after the session ended that we really couldn’t hear what anyone was saying on the press riser during the press availability. A credentialed still photographer handed me his high end camera and asked me to take a picture of him with Benjamin Todd Jealous. Guess what happens when you hand a Ferrari over to someone who doesn’t have one? The result ain’t pretty. And no, I didn’t drop the camera.

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: Sunday – photos

A drill team makes their entrance to a midday event.

The lines for registration have continued throughout the convention.

In the afternoon Hilary Shelton, the NAACP’s Washington Bureau Director, and four members of Congress presented a workshop titled: “Engaging Congress: The NAACP’s Legislative Agenda to Achieve One Nation, One Dream.” Each of the panelists spoke at length. There was an opportunity for questions from the audience at the end of the workshop. The event went overtime – going for over two and a half hours.

Senator Roland Burris (D-Illinois).

Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas).

Representative Barbara Lee (D-California).

Representative Bobby Scott (D-Virginia).

The legislative panel.

Senator Roland Burris.

There will be quite a bit on the legislative workshop in later posts.

The first public mass meeting of the convention started after 6:00 p.m. After delegates, observers and guests were seated a large gospel choir sang several numbers.

The opening public mass meeting – view from the media riser.

Governor Jay Nixon (D) addresses the opening public mass meeting.

Roslyn Brock, Chairman of the NAACP National Board of Directors – the evening’s keynote speaker.

“…the fantasy of the notion of making people whole again…”

Jacqui Patterson, NAACP Climate Justice Initiative Director – speaking on the NAACP’s report on the impact of the BP oils spill on the Gulf region at the opening press conference.

At yesterday’s opening press conference the NAACP released a report of an investigation conducted by their national office to “document the impact of the BP Oil Drilling Disaster.” From the report overview:

…The PB Oil drilling Disaster has overlaid another travesty over a region devastated by Hurricanes Rita and Katrina when communities were still far from recovering from the impact of those disasters of 2005. Therefore the largest disaster in US history was visited upon communities who already suffered from compromised economic status, displacement and substandard housing, fragile mental and physical health status, and socio cultural disruption.

The timing of the tragedy also places the disaster at a time when it has the most potential for negative impact. It comes at the nexus of great economic impact because it occurred at the beginning of harvest time for shrimp, crabs, and oysters. There is also the threat of elevated pervasive impact because of the start of hurricane season, which has the potential to setback clean-up efforts as well as accelerate and intensify the onslaught of oil and dispersant on the shores of the Gulf Coast….

The report provides a synopsis of the disaster impact on communities in the region, a critique of the “mitigation systems/processes”, and a list of thirteen recommendations from those communities.

After the press conference I spoke with Jacqui Patterson, the NAACP’s Climate Justice Initiative Director, about that impact on the region:  

Show Me Progress: How long did you spend on the Gulf?

Jacqui Patterson, NAACP Climate Justice Initiative Director: Three weeks in total.

SMP: And, and you traveled through the communities  just gathering information?

Jacqui Patterson: Yes.

SMP: What’s the most striking thing?

Jacqui Patterson: The most striking thing. The most striking thing is the kind of, what do you call it, the fantasy of the notion of making people whole again. Because, like people talk about making people whole? And it’s just, a, it’s just, uh, the, the, the devastation is just so pervasive that, you know, there’s no one outside of that person that can really do that. You know what I mean? So people who lo, lost, not just their, people have a lot of focus on livelihood and so forth, but people who, like the, the Houma Nation that’s connected, that’s really connected to the land spiritually, culturally, etcetera, to have that land defiled in a way that’s not gonna be reversible, really, in their lifetime, you know. And to have that, the generations of connection to that land just, you know, gone in some ways, or at least defiled, that like was the most overwhelming thing to me. Like the notion just, not just the Houma Nation, but the Vietnamese, Vietnamese folks who have just kind of, not just when they are here, but back when they were in Vietnam their, um, their connection to, to shrimping, to crabbing, to fishing that’s just gone now. They’re not, they’re not, a lot of the folks aren’t speaking English because that’s just what they’ve been doing, just been them on the water with their, with their craft. So, just the obliteration of like everything that, you know, what’s made people, what’s kind of comprised the majority of their life was kind of the most striking thing for me.

SMP: Is there a  realization, um, obviously in the communities, but of people that you’ve talked to outside of those communities that this is the case?

Jacqui Patterson: I don’t think, no, because people do kind of focus narrowly on like this or that. But you don’t really hear people talking about the totality as much. You know, some people, of course, that the totality of the loss, you know. So, yeah, that, so that struck me.

SMP: Um, were you able to actually witness some of the devastation yourself?

Jacqui Patterson: Yes. I mean, ’cause I was in the, the various communities where I spoke with the Vietnamese, I spoke with the Houma Nation, I spoke with the, you know, all the various folks and so, and, you know, went out and saw the oil situations and that kind of thing, so I was in the communities, very much so.

SMP: Well, thank you very much.

Jacqui Patterson: Yeah, sure. All right.

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

NAACP in Kansas City: EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson at the opening press conference of the NAACP national convention in Kansas City.

Lisa Jackson, Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, spoke on the subject of the Gulf oil spill at today’s opening press conference for the NAACP national convention:

….Lisa Jackson, Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency: …I’m honored to join the NAACP at their annual convention, their hundred and first convention. And it makes me, uh, very proud to know that this organization continues to fight the fight for environmental justice in our country.

This morning I had a conversation with the local Chamber of Commerce which has done a great job supporting a green economy here in Kansas City. I spent time with Congressman Cleaver and the green impact zone in this fair city which he has been so passionate about, not just defining, but devoting real resources to. I’ve just discussed, I was a few minutes late, I was with the NAACP’s Gulf Coast leadership, uh, to talk about the status of our work in the Gulf and hear their concerns, hear their concerns. And we’re gonna have a, another, uh, great step this afternoon, I’m going to leave here and go to a Congressional Black Caucus environmental justice town hall with Representative Cleaver. I’m sure he’ll mention [inaudible]. He’s been my host, he’s been a wonderful partner.

I just want to echo what we just heard the President of the NAACP say, we take it for granted, the air in the Gulf Coast is not safe. But it’s not because of the BP spill. In fact, we can’t differentiate the contamination that we see and have been measuring for months now. You can’t attribute any part of that to the BP oil spill. That makes some sense, it’s happening fifty miles out at sea and there’s a lot of other things going on. But, it’s those other things going on that I hope we don’t forget as a whole…

…Right now there are red and orange ozone alert days all over our country, especially in the Gulf Coast. When the weather is warm it is not safe for our children to be outside, for our elderly to decide to take a stroll around. If you have heart or lung problems you are advised to stay inside and seek out a place that has air conditioning. That is the status quo. And that is the heart of our concerns when it comes to environmental justice. For too long too many areas in this country have just had to live with the fact that when it gets hot you, we have to change our lifestyle.

So I don’t want to minimize the impact of this spill on the Gulf Coast region. I grew up, I was raised in New Orleans, my mother lost her home in Hurricane Katrina. I already know there will be refugees, if you will, from this latest disaster. With the President, what President Obama’s called the greatest environmental disaster our country has ever faced. EPA pledges, Mr. President [Benjamin Todd Jealous] that we will be a partner in trying to insure justice in this response. But we are also gonna, uh, work to insure overall justice – clean air, clean water, clean land, clean dirt as you put it earlier – for every single American, every single American. ‘Cause that’s part of our, uh, birthright as well.

Nothing illustrates the need for us to focus our attention on a clean energy future like the BP oil spill. It is but one incident, but it is indicative of the challenges we face as a country, whether it’s our addiction to foreign oil, whether it’s the wars we fight on behalf of that oil, whether it’s air pollution that, killing, literally killing our children, or whether it’s the need for a new economy, one that gives jobs to people who are now displaced because of an oil spill or who were displaced long before that oil spill because of the greatest recession our country has seen since World War Two.

We need a foundation for prosperity and clean air and clean water and clean land [inaudible]. We’ll continue to push, we’re happy to work to push, uh, this response to be community centric as possible, to include local contractors, local business men and women, and of course, to look holistically at health concerns, not just the concerns from this incident, but concerns for the health of the people, all the people, of the Gulf Coast region. So thanks very much. [applause]

Later, during the question and answer portion of the press conference:

….Lewis Diuguid, Kansas City Star: …And what about the safeguards for the workers health [in reference to the BP spill]? Are they being properly equipped to do the cleanup work?

[….]

Lisa Jackson: …I have a wonderful partner over at the Department of Labor, uh, Secretary Hilda Solis, uh, who was a representative from the State of California, a fierce advocate not just for worker’s rights, but also for, uh, people for whom English might not be their first language. And you heard we have Vietnamese, we have, uh, Spanish speaking people in the Gulf. I think the situation there, thanks to the, uh, attention brought to it by, uh, organizations like the NAACP and other advocates, has improved. People are getting, uh, the training that they need. We are still encouraging, uh, people to , uh, insure that they have safe havens, places where they can speak up if they feel that they are being pressured or may be in fear of losing their job if they speak up about unsafe conditions. I can tell you that, uh, there is monitoring and modeling going on for a range of air contamination. The biggest threat out there is that with the hot weather, uh, that is a light crude oil. It does vaporize, about forty or so percent of it goes straight up into the air so you can get unsafe levels of what we call volatile organic compounds very close to the well. You can smell it all the way on shore. And we already know, as I said earlier, that that smell just compounds the, uh, for people who already have lung, uh, or heart disease the, the health issues and irritation that they can suffer as a result. I do think things are getting better, but I think it requires constant vigilance and I know that Secretary Solis, uh, has been, uh, along with her OSHA, the Occupational  Safety and Health people, all over the issue [inaudible].

Question: With your meeting with the Gulf Coast, uh,  representatives, what’s [inaudible] you’re gonna take away from this meeting today?

Lisa Jackson: You know, that, that meeting, uh, was about empowerment. These were, uh, uh, leaders who were not asking for any handout. They wanted the ability to represent that their community wants power to impact itself. So, from EPA’s perspective power comes in the form of air sampling and water data that communities can take and bring to their own validators and say, hey, maybe I want to take this to my universities and make sure I feel comfortable. But I think the larger issues, whether it’s making sure that there are command stations and government representatives in, uh, all along the Gulf Coast, making sure that community representation is a part of the command structure. Because, remember, in many places we’re dealing with a government structure that doesn’t necessarily have a huge community component. And making sure that constantly in this response, ’cause it is a long term one, that we honor President Obama’s desire to have this be a community based, from, uh, the community up, uh, restoration plan for the Gulf. All those things are probably the big messages. It’s about empowerment….

Lisa Jackson with NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous.

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Ka
nsas City

NAACP in Kansas City: Benjamin Todd Jealous at the opening press conference

Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP.

There was an extensive opening press conference for the NAACP national convention this afternoon at the Kansas City Convention Center. Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP, spoke on the economy and the goal of the convention:

Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO, NAACP: ….These are tough times in our country. History has shown us that in tough times like these, great recessions and great depressions, there’s really only two choices, people of this country. Either we run downhill towards hate and division or we continue to push uphill towards progress and hope.  That choice of hope, not hate, the choice that the NAACP made a hundred and one years ago during a period of tough times – our country was being torn apart when black men were being burnt, hung from trees and burned, Catholic men and Jewish men, to a lesser extent. We were founded to resurrect the dream of Abraham Lincoln that this be truly one nation.  Because we knew that all of its people only had one dream. Which is the great American dream – universal access to prosperity and the things needed to realize the full potential within all of us…

…We come here this year, tough times – tough times in Kansas City, tough times in Missouri, tough times in our nation as a whole. People are impatient. They want to see results. They want to see change. They in many instances want to see all of the change that they voted for two years ago.

And there are, there is once again an insurgent movement in this country to tear this country apart. And if we pull off the veneer what we see behind them are wealthy law firms and fancy lobbyists like Dick Armey, this faux populist rage represented by the Tea Party. There is nothing new, and what is new is that this group of people is smaller than they have ever been in our society, smaller than the White Citizens Council, smaller than the Klan of the nineteen-twenties, but divisive and dangerous.

This convention is going on simultaneously with the convention of the National Council of La Raza and to the conventions of many religious and labor organizations around the country. All of whom have come together to begin pushing the country back uphill towards hope and prosperity, building our country up and making sure that jobs is job one for us. It is outrageous that the U.S. Senate, the U.S. Congress felt entitled  to go out on vacation without passing unemployment insurance. To take this let them eat hotdogs approach to starving families around the country, as if they could afford a hotdog when they’re surviving on three hundred dollars a week and you just decide to stop paying them because you would rather stop debating the issue and just get home to glad hand campaign.  It is disturbing that our Congress can find thirty-two billion dollars for war but can’t find twenty-three billion dollars to save hundreds of thousands of teacher’s jobs.

And it is time for the people of this country, the, the dynamic majority of this country that made history two years ago to reassert itself in streets across the country and say enough is enough, let jobs be job one. If we gotta spend more money to get out of the great recession, let’s do it, ’cause that’s what got us out of the Great Depression. We focused on creating jobs, we put the country back to work, and we pulled the country back together.

That will be our focus with our membership. That is our call to the country. And you will see the biggest mobilization in years on the Mall on October 2nd, one month before the election, to make sure that everbody’s, who is running for office in this country understands that jobs has to be job one.

Thank you and God bless. It’s going to be a great convention, we’re excited. [applause]

Previously:

The 101st NAACP National Convention in Kansas City