Photo Credit: Quinn Clark
Justin Blake, Jacob Blake’s uncle, speaks out against environmental racism.
Whether it’s the middle of the day or the dead of night, long-time Milwaukee activist Tory Lowe says he doesn’t think twice when he gets a call asking for help. Over time, he’s realized that some of the pleas for help are linked to an underlying cause: the need for climate justice.
Lowe says people tell him that they’re sick from pollution in the air and water. His own son suffered from lead poisoning, which was discovered at a checkup years ago. “I never thought I was fighting for climate justice,” Lowe said. “I just knew that it was a problem.”
Lowe, host of the radio talk show 101.7 The Truth, hasn’t eaten for 17 days. He’s not the only one. Seven activists, including Rev. Jonathan Barker, Jill Ferguson, Justin Blake (Jacob Blake’s uncle), Vaun Mayes, Kenosha County Supervisor Andy Berg and former Kenosha County Supervisor Joe Cardinali, pledged to fast for 22 days in support of Gov. Tony Evers’ climate justice initiatives in the 2021-23 state budget.
“Between the seven of us, we’ve lost over 100 pounds, collectively,” Berg said.
Rally for Renewable Energy and Jobs
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Cars passing by the rally honked in support of the group’s calls for climate justice.
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Rev. Jonathan Barker is the author of “Jesus Would Demand a Green New Deal” and the first to initiate the 22-day fast.
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Jill Ferguson, one of the Wisconsin7 partaking in the 22-day fast, expresses her concerns for her grandchildren’s future if changes are not made to improve the environment.
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The demonstrators at the climate justice rally outside of the Redeemer Lutheran Church chant, “Climate; justice” and “Green; future.”
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Tory Lowe, activist and host of the radio talk show 101.7 The Truth, calls for Wisconsin to take action against climate change. “The truth is, the one thing we all share is the air, water and land, and it's our job to protect those things,” he said. “We are failing. Wisconsin is failing in this area.”
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Bishop Paul Erickson reminds the group that, to honor God’s creations, they must love and care for the environment.
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Member of Peace Action Wisconsin, Pam Richard, stands in support of the Wisconsin7.
The group, who named themselves Seven Wisconsin Activists Fast for Climate Justice
the Wisconsin7, held a rally of around 30 people at the Redeemer Lutheran Church in Milwaukee on Sunday. Their demands, as stated in a press release, are: “Renewable energy and jobs, energy efficiency and resiliency, renewable energy and equity, electrified transportation, clean water and programs for farmers and land conservation.”
“We are demanding that there be an Office of Environmental Justice which says that our communities of color, our indigenous communities and our communities impacted by poverty will have a seat at every table that makes a decision about what the future of Wisconsin looks like as we transition away from dirty fossil fuels to clean renewable energy,” Barker said of their demands for equity.
A member of Peace Action Wisconsin held a large flag with a peace sign across it, and some demonstrators held signs that read “Stop the violence.”
“It comes down to humanity,” Blake said. “It’s violence when you shove leaded water down our children’s mouths. It’s violence when they breathe in coal every day.”
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The group pointed out another form of unsustainable violence—war.
“We could start a serious transition to a green economy,” Ferguson said. “It’s life-sustaining. It (a green economy) offers living wages. It’s no longer do parents have to worry about army recruiters coming into their kid’s junior high school class or high school class and getting them to sign up for the military as if no other jobs available for them.”
Barker, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church in Kenosha and author of “Jesus Would Demand a Green New Deal,” is no stranger to fasting. Two years ago, he felt called to fast for 12 days in support of climate justice. When he announced that he would be fasting again, others in support of climate justice joined his cause.
Tackling climate change is no easy feat, but Barker credits his faith for his hopefulness. “As a person of faith, I am mindful that the imaginations, prophecies and dreams of the people who follow the divine have shaped the world for millennia,” he said. “People of faith have had big dreams. They have had dreams that shape the world. When we dream big, the world changes. It doesn’t always change overnight, but we have to have big dreams, and climate justice is a big dream.”
