Statement on Supreme Court ruling in WV vs. EPA
June 30, 2022
Contact: xrnyc_press@unitedrebellion.com
Today, the Supreme Court issued a ruling on West Virginia vs. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), siding with corporate energy providers and financial profits rather than the health of humans and the planet. In doing so, it lays the groundwork for tearing down any regulation that impacts the profits of corporations. The court majority sided with West Virginia, arguing the EPA should not be allowed to reshape the economy by limiting pollution, even while the United Nations’ IPCC reports warns that mass migration, food shortages, heat waves and droughts will kill millions of people, and plant and animal species will continue to go extinct.
This ruling — decided by six unelected individuals on the Supreme Court — will have a monumental impact on the future of the planet and all life on it. Yet the Court accepted West Virginia's argument that the EPA is severely limited in its ability to regulate emissions — even though Congress has given the agency the authority to combat air pollution. Given the Court's recent assaults on individual rights and its consistent support of economic elites, its alleged fear of government overreach is farcical. The only freedom the justices care about is the freedom to make profits at all costs.
As a result of today’s ruling, the United States, one of the planet's worst climate polluters, will speed up humanity's descent into climate destruction.
The Supreme Court is now complicit in the destruction of the planet, and is actively working to disassemble the federal government's ability to regulate exploitative and destructive emissions practices, which are a key cause of the climate crisis. SCOTUS’s decision on the EPA and the Clean Air Act will lead to the death of millions — not just generations from now, but within our lifetimes. SCOTUS has caved to decades of lobbying and lying from the oil and gas industry.
Democracy is broken in the United States. The highest levels of government continue to perpetuate climate and ecological destruction by prioritizing profits over health and corporate rights over human rights. Trust in the Supreme Court is now at historic lows, down to 25% as of June 2022. This is why the United States needs to implement Citizens’ Assemblies, (XR’s third demand), where the people’s voice can be heard. The decisions being made which will affect the entire country should not be decided by government officials whose allegiance and obligations are to corporate interests, but rather by the people and what is in the best interest of the health of the public.
Countries all around the world are implementing policies and initiatives to address the climate and ecological crisis, yet the United States continues to fall behind — while our government is purposefully dismantling and destroying any efforts for a liveable future on this planet.
Faced with government failure to protect lives, citizens have the power and the right to create change. Non-violent civil disobedience has been intrinsic to policy shifts in the United States for hundreds of years, from the suffragettes to the civil rights movement. It is now clear — this is the only way to force the government to act in ways that safeguard humanity's collective future. Now is the time for millions to join in the streets to demand action on what are the biggest, deadliest issues facing humans and the planet today.
About Extinction Rebellion
Time has almost entirely run out to address the climate & ecological crisis, including the sixth mass extinction, global pollution, and abrupt, runaway climate change. Societal collapse and mass death are seen as inevitable by scientists and other credible voices if rapid action is not taken.
Extinction Rebellion believes it is a citizen’s duty to rebel, using peaceful civil disobedience, when faced with criminal inactivity by their Government.
Extinction Rebellion’s key demands are:
Government must tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency, working with other institutions to communicate the urgency for change.
Government must act now to halt biodiversity loss and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025.
Government must create and be led by the decisions of a Citizens’ Assembly on climate and ecological justice.
Government must commit to a just transition in order to maintain a livable, just planet for all.
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