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Environment, Climate, Water

More Californians Are Freezing to Death. And More Are Older and Homeless

More people — many older and homeless — are freezing to death during winter in California. Hypothermia is the underlying or contributing cause of death for Californians last year, more than double than a decade ago,

Fighting for Climate, Students Walk Out Over Trump

"[The student nationwide] walkouts represent a call to action for both parties," said Sunrise Youth Movement, a group that advocates for political action on climate change.

Michigan’s Prescient Lesson: Vote While You Still Can!!! 

Michigan's non-elected Emergency Manager dictatorship made Flint's water crisis possible. Pay attention to the danger of losing our Democratic rights as we’ve known them in this election. Vote while you still can!

Water Costs: May be Key to Kamala Winning – or Losing –Michigan

Research of professors at Wayne State University identify group of Black voters in Detroit who are critical for Kamala Harris to win Michigan. Cost of water is key issue.

How Summer of Heat on Wall Street is Using Disruption to End Fossil Fuel financing

New climate campaign tests if relentless civil disobedience can stop financiers like Citi and others from backing fossil fuel industry.

Sacramento Homeless Union’s Projects of Survival

Climate change and extreme weather is a real thing. This is evidenced by the fact that extreme weather events are becoming increasingly frequent and more intense.

Homeless in Las Vegas: No Reprieve from the Heat

If you are among the growing number of the Las Vegas homeless there is little to no reprieve from the heat.

Victory Over Big Oil In Campaign For Safe, Healthy California

After Spending $61 Million In A Failed Effort To Deceive Voters, Big Oil Withdraws California Referendum In Defeat

Israel’s War on Gaza Also Destroying the Climate, Study Finds

In addition to its death toll, Israel’s war in Gaza comes at great cost to the climate crisis.

Help Stop Water Shutoffs in Benton Harbor, MI.

Benton Harbor city officials are shutting off the water at homes; in one week more than I00 homes water was shut off.

Flint is Still Broken — 10 Years Later

Hear Flint voices at the 10-Year after Commemoration of the water crisis.

Youth in the Era of Climate Change

Earth Day is a reminder that Mother Earth pleads with us to care for her. The youth are listening, holding a global climate strike April 19. Although we are still far from reaching net zero emissions by 2050, it's time to be assertive with our world leaders for change will give our grandchildren a healthy Mother Earth and create a world of peace.

Join Flint Water Crisis 10 Year Commemoration

Flint water crisis 10 year commemoration demands clean and affordable water for Flint.

‘Lead or Lose’: 21 Arrested Blockading Biden Campaign HQ Over Climate, Gaza

Nearly two dozen campaigners with the Sunrise Movement were arrested after protesting at President Joe Biden's 2024 campaign headquarters, issuing warnings that crucial votes from young people will be lost unless he takes bold climate action and ends his support for Israel’s massacre in Gaza.

Chicago OEMC for Climate Change Disasters Allows Residents to Freeze 

Dozens of unhoused, disoriented, disabled Chicago residents will die. Hundreds will get frostbite and/or hypothermia. The city must open warming senters 24/7.

The Real Heroes in the Benton Harbor, MI Water Crisis

Thanks to the Benton Harbor Community Water Council and Rev Edward Pinkney, Benton Harbor’s water system is now providing safe water to its residents.. All the lead service lines have been replaced. But now Benton Harbor faces another drinking water crisis—the water, now safe to drink, is unaffordable.

UN Climate Summit Fails to Explicitly Call For Fossil Fuel Phaseout

The U.N. climate summit ended with nations pledging to transition away from fossil fuels, but the final text fails to explicitly call for a phaseout of fossil fuels, language sought by over 100 countries.

Spectacular Miscarriage of Justice: Door Slammed Shut on Criminal Charges in Flint Water Disaster

With almost 10 years of the crisis, having dealt with death, health challenges, Legionella, children’s social emotional trauma along with learning disabilities — the failure of the judicial system for the people of Flint is unforgivable. Flint residents will not give up on being made whole.

War! Who is it Good for in the Time of Global Warming?

The number of people displaced by climate disasters, conflict, and violence continues to reach unprecedented levels. Vulnerable communities and countries under attack from wars for corporate ownership of resources are living with the worst impacts.

The ‘Open Border’ Farce

The Biden administration will break all records for paying border contractors. At the same time, the administration announced it would waive 26 laws protecting people, including the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act, to put up a new section of border wall in Starr County, Texas.

Four Senior Women Arrested for Blocking Entrance to Cop City

The latest warriors to save Atlanta's Weelaunee forest and stop ‘Cop City’ are four elder women who believe people should decide the fate of the forest, not the Mayor, Atlanta City Council, or the Atlanta Police Foundation. A petition for a public vote was signed by 116,000 people.

Activists Demand Community Oversight of Jackson, Mississippi Water Repairs

Activists in Jackson, MS are citing a provision under the Safe Drinking Water Act that gives residents and community groups like them the right to intervene and partner with the government in enforcing the Act’s requirements.

Indigenous Wisdom During The Great Unraveling

New podcast gives perspectives of Indigenous communities from around the world about the consequences we all reckon with of a global, industrial society built on growth, extraction, and colonialism.

High Schoolers Launch Green New Deal for ‘Our Schools & Our Futures’ Campaign

Fifty high schools nationwide launched the 'Green New Deals for Schools and Our Future' campaign organized by the youth-led Sunrise Movement.

Climate March of 75,000, a Demand is For Biden to End Fossil Fuels, 149 Arrests

75,000 people marched on the U.N. headquarters. A demand was for President Biden to “end fossil fuels.” Financial institutions financing fossil fuel projects were targeted with 149 arrests.

It’s Huge: Judge Sides with Montana Youths in Historic Climate Ruling

Sixteen young residents of Montana argued that the state violated their rights by promoting fossil fuel extraction and a Judge sided with them.

‘Time to Do It for Real’: Biden Claims He’s ‘Practically’ Declared Climate Emergency

The article outlines many things President Biden can do to unlock his executive powers and drastically cut fossil fuel emissions by calling for a ‘real’ Climate Emergency.

Workers Strike to Pressure Biden For Heat Protection

Given the deadly heat, workers and some officials are urging Biden to accelerate a federal OSHA standard to prevent heat-related work injuries and illnesses.

Climate Change Deniers: Me First, America 19th, the Planet Last

In this article, the author points to some of the latest examples of the climate emergency, and warns that Trump and his followers represent the most extreme version of climate change deniers.

Virginia: Lawsuit against Mountain Valley Pipeline Protestors Dropped

A lawsuit against protesters of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) was dropped by Roanoke County, Virginia. The three self-described Old Folks blocked the pipeline access road for 15 hours in 2021. Lawyers called the County’s charges a First Amendment violation.

Youth Bring Historic Climate Lawsuit Against State of Montana

The first-ever constitutional climate trial in the U.S. — the result of 16 youth suing the Montana government for promoting and supporting fossil fuels that dangerously warm up the planet — concluded June 23

Human Costs of Global Warming: We’re Having a Violent Meltdown

The climate disaster is breeding conflict — from open war between nation-states to abuse of migrants at borders to hate and physical assaults in our own cities to state violence against climate activists.

‘The People Will Not Let This Pipeline Be Built’

Ongoing protests are mounting in opposition to the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which Congress recently gave the go ahead to via the debt ceiling deal. Appalachians vow to not let the pipeline be built.

“We are Dying:” Houston Workers Protest New Law Removing Water Requirements

Protesters at a news conference, many speaking Spanish, called Texas HB 2127 the “law that kills” and that it will leave lawn crews, construction workers and others who labor outdoors at the mercy of their employers. "Believe me, we are dying . . . when they take away our water and our [break] time,” said one worker.

Climate Orgs Launch Week of Action to End Era of Fossil Fuels

A week of climate action began on June 8, following the debt-ceiling agreement, signed into law by Pres. Biden, which included approving the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) and weakening the National Environmental Policy Act. The demand is for President Biden to honor his promise to be the climate president and end the era of fossil fuels.

‘We Will Never Stop Fighting’ Say MVP Pipeline Opponents

Pipeline opponents vow to continue the fight against the Mountain Valley Pipeline in Appalachia following the debt ceiling deal signed by Congress.

Up Next for the Mountain Valley Pipeline: Civil Disobedience

Congress and the President bypassed the people, courts and Constitution to finish the Mountain Valley pipeline through passage of the debt ceiling act. The author says every person available must be willing to put their foot down - directly in its path.

Rallying A Climate Majority

New tactics in climate movement in UK mobilizes thousands in fight for bottom-up pressure to hold governments accountable for inadequate climate pledges and for policies commensurate with climate science.

Californians Reach Out to Farmworkers Devastated by Climate Disaster

Nancy Faulstich, director of Regeneración-Pajaro Valley Climate Action, discusses the climate disaster in the agricultural town of Pajaro, California and the importance of enough people joining climate actions and working collectively.

World’s Biggest Banks Poured $673 Billion Into Fossil Fuels Last Year

While the window for avoiding the most catastrophic consequences of climate change narrows, the global banking sector continues to funnel huge sums each year into fossil fuels to the tune of $673 billion last year.

The Willow Project’s Approval Means Broken Promises

The Biden administration approved the Willow Project. This oil reserve, in Alaska, will be extracted for about 30 years; and expected to deliver $8 to $17 billion in revenue. It will release about 9.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and also be built nearby Indigenous people’s land.

The Ohio Black Cloud: Working Together for Systemic Justice

The EPA is no longer transparent. Industries pay big bucks for lobbyists to pressure and pay off legislators. The same legislators pressure governmental agencies to turn their heads on our marginalized communities. East Palestine, Ohio is protesting, collaborating, networking, organizing, and taking action.

Flint Water Warriors Connect with East Palestine, Ohio

Water warriors from Flint, Michigan connect with people in East Palestine, Ohio, helping to get samples of toxic material, and sharing lessons of the Flint fight for justice, reparations from the damages, clean water and a clean environment.

Forest Defenders Reoccupy Weelaunee to Stop Cop City

Atlanta neighborhoods, clergy, environmental and many other groups and activists joined Stop Cop City actions to save Atlanta forest from destruction for proposed police academy. Events were held in 38 cities and supported by international environmental groups.

Atlanta Area Resident: Why Cop City Must Be Stopped

Atlanta area resident from the majority Black neighborhood adjacent to the Atlanta forest speaks about what’s behind the struggle to Stop Cop City, and recent events.

Rain and Heat, Fire and Snow: Life in a Destabilized California

The Western and Southwestern U.S. are gripped by the worst drought for these regions in at least the last 1200 years, and climate scientists attribute this to the climate emergency. The situation is now being compounded in California by atmospheric rivers, flooding and fires.

Collapsed Dam Raises New Fears of More Contamination, East Palestine, OH

The collapse of a makeshift dam in East Palestine, Ohio, raises new fears that contaminated soil from the train derailment may seep into homes or businesses.

Police Violently Raid Music Festival in Atlanta’s Weelaunee Forest

Police agencies in militarized gear, armed with lethal weapons, raided a music festival in a public park within the Weelaunee forest in Atlanta during the fifth Week of Action to protect the Weelaunee (Atlanta) Forest and stop ‘Cop City’

Water Scarcity Feeds Wall Street Vultures

Any water investment firm bought $20 million worth of land, aiming to buy up Colorado River water rights to make huge profits. The Colorado River supplies water to 40 million people throughout the west. 

Action To Stop ‘Cop City’ and Protect Atlanta Forest

Actions are taking place to reverse financial backing for the proposed "Cop City" in Atlanta.

Amid Ohio Nightmare: Rail Worker Alliance Urges Railroad Nationalization

After Ohio's toxic nightmare, an alliance of rail workers argues for public ownership of the industry, stating that "private and inadequately regulated industry is incapable of doing the job."

Austin, Texas Residents Suffer from Ice Storm

Texas’ statewide electrical grid failed two years ago, leading to the deaths of hundreds. It is still not fixed, and Texans are now suffering from power losses in the current ice storm.

Atlanta Moves Ahead with “Cop City” in Face of Growing Protests

The proposed $90 million police training facility known as “CopCity” is moving forward despite opposition and the police killing of a forest defender.

Community Demands Police Abolition As They Mourn Tortuguita, Forest Defender Killed By Police

People mourned, cried, and supported each other at one of many remembrances of Tortugita, the forest defender killed by police, reaffirming a commitment to public safety free of police and to "Stop Cop City."

The Poor Bear the Brunt of California’s Storms

California’s 172,000 Homeless face two storms: natural disaster and govt Indifference Yet enough vacant housing exists in SF and LA to house all of California's unhoused.

Greenpeace Calls on US and Mexico To Defuse Largest Carbon Bomb in North America

The oil and gas industry has lit a fuse on the Permian Basin carbon bomb that threatens any hope of a livable future . . . When Presidents Biden and Obrador meet, they must commit to ending new oil and gas development in the Permian Basin and secure a just transition for fossil fuel workers.

Homeless in the California Storms: We are in a State of Emergency!

While homeless communities in Sacramento try to shelter themselves during the catastrophic storms, police sweep camps, even taking people's RVs.

Climate Change: A Look in 2022

The wealthy countries need to take responsibility for being the world’s biggest polluters. Poverty-stricken countries don’t have the infrastructure or financial help for climate catastrophes. The protests are a way to get people to notice the urgent cry of our Mother Earth. There is still hope and momentum for this fight to be won. 

Tragedy Unfolding: Cleanup of Largest-Ever Keystone Pipeline Oil Spill Continues

Around 600,000 gallons of Canadian crude tars sands oil, called the world's dirtiest and most environmentally destructive form of oil, spewed December 7 from the Keystone 1 pipeline into a Kansas creek that feeds a watershed providing drinking water for 800,000 people.

Clean and Affordable Water is a Human Right

As the effort of corporations to privatize our water, causing prices to rise even higher and water quality to further decline in many cases, people throughout the country are standing up to corporate power. People are coming together, demanding that government, local, state and federal, protect their right to clean and affordable water as a human right.

Toxic Justice System Bypasses Flint Residents —Again

The Flint community is angry but not surprised at what feels like Groundhog Day as it relates to injustice for Flint. This month, charges against seven defendants in the water disaster were thrown out by the courts.

Poor People’s Campaign: Jackson Mississippi Fights For Water

The fight for clean water as a public good is gathering strength nationally. Hear voices from the Poor People’s Campaign in Jackson, Mississippi, where people have been suffering from government neglect of basic services like water for decades.

The U.S. Supreme Court Could Soon Gut the Clean Water Act

The following is a statement from Earth Justice, See the original statement at: bit.ly/3yijWVI — The Editors “Today, the Supreme Court heard a case that...

A Win for Frontline Communities, Manchin Withdraws Dirty Deal from Senate Vote

Hundreds of national and grassroots groups made a victory for climate and against fossil fuel expansion possible by working together for a livable future for the planet.

Hundreds Demand No Mining at Juristac Sacred Indigenous Grounds

Demonstration at Santa Clara County government to demand Board of Supervisors deny permit for Quarry at Juristac Mutsun Sacred Grounds.

Jackson: A Water Crisis Amid a Legacy in Decline

This article from the Mississippi Free Press is part of a three-part series by the Free Press on the origins of the Jackson, MS, water crisis.

Alarm as Gov. Threatens Water Privatization in Jackson, MS

Jackson, Mississippi residents still lack safe drinking water, and now, people must contend with the governor’s threat of privatization.

Kids Born Near Fracking Sites Develop Leukemia

In a major health concern, a new study indicates that kids born near fracking sites are 2-3 Times More Likely to Develop Leukemia. Fracking threatens every person on the planet, directly or indirectly. It should banned entirely.

Water Privatizers’ Attempt to Silence an Elected Official Fails

In a court victory, Leticia Vasquez Wilson, who has served on the Central Basin Municipal Water District for 10 years, representing Southeast Los Angeles communities, has won her right to free speech. When she alerted her community about the contamination in their water supply, Water District privatizers, bought and paid for by private water interests, attempted to silence her.

Virtual Event Sept. 7: Imperialism vs. People & Planet

This virtual event will offer perspective on how harmful extractive industries are part of the larger system of imperialism that is destroying our people and the planet. It will focus in on indigenous communities and issues in the Philippines and show how their struggles are connected to ours here in the US.

San Joaquin Valley: Taps Run Dry in Record Heat

San Joaquin Valley communities in California are going without water in the midst of record heat, and this is particularly affecting low-income people.

Charges Dropped Against Officials Over Flint Poisoning

Charges have been dropped against Michigan officials, including former Gov. Rick Snyder, for their role in the poisoning of the people of Flint. The community demands justice.

Occupy the PGA in Benton Harbor, MI!

On May 28, Reverend Edward Pinkney and the Benton Harbor Community Water Council hosted "Occupy the PGA," protesting the corporate takeover of the predominantly...

Gas Prices and Inflation – What’s REALLY going on!

Far-right amplifiers blame environmentalists for the increase in gas prices. They claim prices will fall if we allow more fracking. These are lies.

Water Warriors from Around the State Join Flint 8th Year Commemoration of water Crisis

Excerpts from water warriors, speaking at the Flint 8th Year Commemoration of water Crisis.

The 2022 mid-term elections: Grassroots candidates step forward, speak truth to power

Important political primaries will take place in the next weeks and months. Will billionaires determine the results of the mid-term elections? Or will grassroots candidates mobilize the discontent brewing in this country?

Benton Harbor Water

It appears that the powerful and well-heeled forces of corporate America are once again targeting the Reverend Edward Pinkney, president of the grassroots Benton Harbor Community Water Council, for the “crime” of standing up for the poor, the elderly, and the children by providing people with safe drinking water.

Sunrise Movement: It’s Our Generation and Our Lives at Risk

Youth voted for President Biden for him to be the best president ever on climate because it’s “our generation and our lives at risk,” says a leader of the Sunrise Movement.

Is Benton Harbor, Mich. Water Safe to Drink?

Group fighting to get lead and other toxins out of a town’s drinking water say they had a hard time getting straight answers from the EPA about whether their water is safe to drink.

Flint, Michigan: High Water Rates for 10 years

The poisoned city of Flint is still paying the price for the decisions officials made which resulted in their poisoning.

Louisianans in dire need in Hurricane Ida’s wake

The People’s Tribune’s Bob Lee interviews Belden “Noonie Man” Batiste, a New Orleans activist and mayoral candidate, about the situation in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Ida.

Michigan Speaks: Frontline Communities on Lead in Water

The People’s Tribune water discussion group is presenting a series of webinars on the fight for clean water as a human right. Sponsors include...

Year Seven of Flint Disaster:

Michigan Poor People's Campaign Seeks Justice The statement below is from the Michigan Poor People’s Campaign. We demand restorative justice for Flint in the wake of...

No Justice for Flint in $600 million settlement

The following is an abridged version of a statement by the Flint Democracy Defense League. FLINT, MI — The State of Michigan has dealt...

Save our Students: County negligence of special needs Flint kids draws fire

For the past several months, parents and community activists, including pastors, have packed the Genesee County Intermediate School District ...

Water shutoffs is public health crisis

Hundreds of thousands of people in low-income families across Michigan have borne the brunt of the record rise in the cost of water services and the unaffordable ...

Flint students with special needs increase by 56% since water crisis

On January 14, residents of Flint confronted the County School Board for failure to dispatch needed Special Education funds to the long suffering, poisoned ...

Former EPA chief poised to head environmental “advocacy” group

In 2017, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), an international environmental advocacy group, was among plaintiffs who won a successful lawsuit ...

Flint is still broken

When the Michigan Attorney General’s office dropped the bombshell on Flint residents—through the mass media—announcing the dropping of all charges ...

5 years and counting . . . FIX FLINT NOW!

We stand here today in front of the Flint Water Treatment Plant to commemorate the disaster that continues to affect the people of Flint. [It is] five ...

5 years later: Flint water disaster alive and well

This is dedicated to deaths of Lori Carter, age 57, Jassmine McBride, age 30, Mary J. Watson, age 43, along with scores of others who fell victim to the toxic ...

When our children woke up to the nightmare

“Flint was not only the birthplace of GM. This is where brave and radical and disobedient Flint autoworkers demanded a fair share of our prosperity. The American ...

Water Wars: Trump’s EPA will create more Flints

  America is heading for a showdown between the corporations and the American people. Corporate owner Warren Buffett gave notice in 2006 when he said,...

Proposed EPA cuts: corporations are making the rules

President Trump’s proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency would nearly eliminate all regional cleanup programs, including those for the Great ...

Stop Gifting Nestlé, Governor Snyder!

This just in: The Oscebla Township Planning Commission just denied the water permit for Nestlés. Evidently, the (growing) push back from activists all over the state ...

Water is our Mother – without it there is no life

Without water, there is no life. So, we do the things we do— these crazy water protectors—for the plants, for the animals, for the future generations. ’Cause we understand ...

Coal miner speaks about the fight to save miner’s healthcare

By Chuck Nelson, interviewed by Sandy Reid  People’s Tribune: Chuck, what is going on with the miner’s benefits? Chuck Nelson: Back in 1946, Truman said if...

Corporate control of energy is killing us

  One of Trump’s first acts as president was to green-light the Dakota Access Pipeline, threatening the drinking water of millions of people. For months,...

Third year commemoration of the poisoning of Flint

April, 2017 marks the third year commemoration of the poisoning of the water and the people of Flint. As a tribute to their monumental struggle, which has put the ...

Why I am joining the March for Science

I have been a working research scientist for almost 50 years. I will join the March for Science in opposition to the current threat to science and ...

Pennsylvanians take a stand against pipeline

The Lancaster Stand was established on a farm in southern Lancaster County, Pa., on March 4. The encampment has brought together opponents of the ...

“Our streams run orange and black,” says West Virginian

Paula Swearengin, a coal miner’s daughter, and uncompromising leader in the fight for clean water and air in Appalachia, spoke with Senator Bernie Sanders ...

Water protector asks: “What is American culture?”

The following are excerpts from an interview with Nirvana Anulekha (Muscogee Creek Nation), Water Protector and Journalist with Indigenous Live ...

Saving the human race and healing our Earth

In a 2010 interview with Larry King, the famous scientist Stephen Hawking said, “We are in danger of destroying ourselves by our greed and stupidity.” ...

Flint Water Crisis: Why I voted for Jill Stein

I put my heart, soul, spirit and HOPES in Bernie Sanders. HOPE that we could restore the wrongs. HOPE, that together, we could take back our government, ...

Legalizing civil disobedience to stop fracking wastewater project

Grant Township, in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, has been fighting the energy industry since 2013 in an effort to prevent the creation of fracking wastewater ...

Standing Rock, 24 Hours, 2400 miles, 600 words

More than 500 clergy and faith leaders from across the country converged at Standing Rock, in support of the Sioux people and in solidarity with water ...

California water: a human right or private property?

Despite California having the first law in the U.S. declaring water a human right, the situation is growing worse as the state enters the 5th year of drought. And it is the worst for ...

The struggle to protect Appalachians from poisonous water and air pollution

“We are losing about 4,000 people a year from the impact of mountain top removal coal mining. My daughter, who is only 22, has lost four friends to cancer. Her best friend ...

‘The start of an important shift’: Water rights and human rights at Standing Rock

People’s Tribune correspondents Brett Jelinek, Diana Zwinak and Adam Gottlieb travelled to Cannon Ball, North Dakota, where the Standing Rock Sioux lead the ...

Global anti-poverty and pro-humanity activists present to the Vatican

Visionaries and organizers worldwide met at the invitation of the Vatican to review, then offer proposals that addressed issues such as poverty and lack of clean water ...

The struggle to protect Appalachians from poisonous water and air pollution

“We are losing about 4,000 people a year from the impact of mountain top removal coal mining. My daughter, who is only 22, has lost four friends to cancer. Her best friend died ...

No more poison in Detroit’s water and air

For too long, corporate polluters have put the profits before human lives in Michigan. The corporation US Ecology has been seeking permission from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality ...

We Are One

My heart has been heavy for weeks now as I visualize first-hand the tragedies of this war waged upon the people. But I am not the only one. The people are agitated as ...

Notes from the Flint water front

While Congress and State officials continue to hold meetings, hearings and investigations, Flint residents still live their lives using bottled water and sink filters while coping with health challenges ...

“Home” (about the Flint water crisis)

Judge my heart not my mind if you hating on me just wait in line Out that city where kids are dying if its not from the lead in the water

Water is a human right: Poetry in Defense of Flint, Michigan

This special feature section, "In Defense of Flint," is a partnership between The People’s Tribune of Chicago and Caravel in response to the contamination of the city of Flint's water supply. Many of the poems here were published in April 2016 as a special insert to The People's Tribune for National Poetry Month.

“There are no pets in flint!” resident says

Walking door to door in Flint, MI, to ask residents about their need for water, or water filters, or access to health care exposed the absolute horror ...

Dirty pipes, poison profits

“The City of Flint, Michigan paid Veolia, the largest private operator of municipal water and sewer systems in the U.S., $40,000 to conduct an analysis of its water system ...

Mothers, women of Flint ‘Die’ in at city’s water plant

On May 16, arriving in a packed van, a group of women protesters stage a die in upon the steps of the Flint Water plant. The Flint water crisis has generated an ...

They’re not helping me,’ says man with high lead levels

My name is Aaron Stinson for all you that don’t know me or may have not seen me. I have the highest lead level recorded in Genesee County. I was tested February 7 ...

Healthcare and Democracy: A Political Public Health Emergency

“As registered nurses, we are compelled to advocate for all our patients, whether at the bedside or in our neighborhoods and communities. To that end ...

Fighting the Dictatorship in Michigan

The dismantling of democracy is wreaking havoc in Michigan. A corporate dictator law passed in 2011 authorizes the governor to dispatch Emergency Managers ...

Dictator law poisoned Flint: Harbinger for America?

  A battle is unfolding in America. The workers are fighting for life itself— for food, water, shelter, healthcare, and education against a corporate class...

Flint in forefront of battle for health care for everyone

  America’s inability to provide good health care for all is most clearly visible when we have a health catastrophe such as exists today in...

Democracy is a righteous threat to corporate rule

Named the “Homrich 9“ for blocking trucks owned by Homrich demolition company from shutting off thousands of poor people‘s water, our actions ...

“Here’s to Flint,” a new documentary about the poisoning of a city

‘It is a real honor to be in the room with all of you. I have one thing to say: it’s the power of documentation. Document injustices in your community ...

No jobs, only lead poisoning for Flint and Baltimore workers

How would you like to look into the face of your five-year-old daughter and know she is mentally retarded for life because you gave her a bath? ...

Hundreds of Californians rally against oil trains

Hundreds of people from around California went to San Luis Obispo on February 4 to urge the county Planning Commission to reject Phillips 66 ...

2010 BP Oil spill

Concerned citizens of Springfield, Massachusetts, are trying to help our people who have been affected by the British Petroleum (B.P.) oil spill in ...

Why are they poisoning our children?

  Tammy Loren, a mother of four who lives in Flint, recently told the New York Times, “My trust in everybody is completely gone, out...

Dictatorship in Michigan: Flint Water Warriors expose the truth

On this page we present the voices of those in Flint, Detroit, and Benton Harbor, Michigan, and across the nation, who are waging a determined struggle ...

Nationwide solidarity with Flint

In the face of government inaction, individuals, organizations, unions, doctors and many others are rallying in the defense of the people of Flint. Here are some ...

Water for life, not for profit

  The poisoning of the people of Flint, Michigan—especially the children—with lead and other toxins in the drinking water is just the latest ugly example...

Flint residents outraged over water poisoning

Today I observed a 10-year-old little boy with his mother praying on his knees at the Romney Building for justice in Flint, MI. Has he been lead poisoned or subject to some ...

The trial of the Homrich 9

This is an interview with Marian Kramer, one of the Homrich 9 water warriors in Detroit, MI, arrested for disorderly conduct while blocking city trucks setting out to ...

Battle for prisoners’ rights and environmental justice in Kentucky

The United States boasts the highest prison population in the world. The government constantly installs new, larger prisons to fill with “criminals” indicted for committing ...

The crisis in the streets of Flint

The crisis that is flowing through the streets of Flint, MI has galvanized the soul of the country in a way that we are all encouraged yet overwhelmed by the response to this ...

“It’s going to take national collaboration,” says fighter from West Virginia

“I come from a long line of coalminers. My grandfather died of black lung. My dad died of cancer and black lung. My stepfather died of heart disease and black lung. ...

The Birth of an Activist



It is not a choice made, this birth. It is the direct result of the implantation of injustices, fertilized by greed and unconcern, that impregnates certain ...

Threat to democracy and jury system in water trial

In July of 2014, nine protesters were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct as they blocked Homrich trucks hired by the city from leaving their ...

Water Wars Escalate In Flint, MI

“The thought of people being put out of their homes because the water has been cut off and it's been cut off illegally is very emotional to me.” — Val Washington, Flint ...

Resistance to fascism grows in Benton Harbor

Once the robots began replacing workers in factories and poverty began to spread, the corporations began to impose fascism to contain the workers and guarantee ...

Water for life, not for profit

The poisoning of the people of Flint, Michigan—especially the children—with lead and other toxins in the drinking water is just the latest ugly ...

The crisis in the streets of Flint

The crisis that is flowing through the streets of Flint, MI has galvanized the soul of the country in a way that we are all encouraged yet overwhelmed by the ...

Lead in drinking water. Do Flint lives matter?

The city of Flint has eroded public trust and violated the social contract between the residents and their government. The continued inaction of the ...

The Real Cost of Water

By Salvador Sandoval MD, MPH MERCED, CA — In the midst of a drought, and with wells on small farms and towns throughout the Central...

HUD “learns” about Detroit’s foreclosure and water crisis

After months and months of DAILY emails from Michigan Welfare Rights Organization (MWRO), on September 8, the Department of Housing and Urban ...

Letter to the Editor

This letter was sent to the People’s Tribune in response to the article in the September 2015 edition entitled, “Judge drops bomb on illegal...

“Lead astray”: Drinking water in Flint, MI unsafe

Despite claims by city and state officials that the water supply in Flint is safe to drink, independent expert tests conclusively show that city’s drinking ...

Judge drops bomb on illegal water rate hikes in Flint, MI: Ruling breathes life into fight for water rights

After months of demonstrations, public forums and court challenges, residents of Flint, Michigan, are emboldened by a court decision in their quest ...

Water Justice Journey

The march came out of the International Gathering on Water and Housing held in Detroit in May. It began in Detroit where tens of thousands ...

West Virginia fighters speak out at water conference

“My stepfather, father, grandfather and uncles all worked in the coal industry,” said Paula. “My grandfather was in the industry 45 years and ...

Emergency Manager law enables corporate takeover of Michigan’s water

In 2001, the notorious right-wing think tank, Mackinac Center for Public Policy, devoted their quarterly magazine “Michigan Privatization ...

Shut down risky oil and gas pipeline

Last month at the conveniently inaccessible Mackinac Policy Conference, I interrupted Governor Rick Snyder during his opening remarks. ....

Access to water is a human right

Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and the Peoples Water Board have fought tooth and nail over these last 16 months, in every way possible ...

Water struggles: Assault on poor galvanizes response

As State Chairperson of the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization, I am reminded that in the State Capitol in Lansing stands a bronze statue of ...

International Social Movements Gathering on Water and Affordable Housing, Detroit, MI

“In 2012 the city stopped sending out water bills. Now residents are getting water bills for thousands of dollars. The bills are attached to your property ...

The fight to protect the planet

The tragic proof of climate change was seen during historic rains and flooding in Houston, Texas in May. The rising water of Brays Bayou surged to nearly road level ...

Coalition for clean water: Flint is not in the clear

The struggle for safe, affordable water in Flint, MI is accelerating as local grassroots groupings form a coalition seeking relief from the ...

Highland Park, MI: Families may lose homes over water bills

Cathy Talbott of the People’s Tribune interviewed Eban Morales, a member of the Highland Park (Michigan) Human Rights Coalition ...

No Jobs, No Water: How much longer do we have to live like this?

Baltimore City, whose police are under Federal investigation for outrageous cruelty, started shutting off water to 150 families a day. ...

California drought affects poor disproportionately

Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency in the rich agricultural state of California, which is enduring the fourth ...

Water is a human right!

Corporate investors have a long-term goal to privatize the public’s water and make it available only to those who can pay. This is legal under ...

Michigan’s energy future at a crossroads

Just after the fourth anniversary of the ongoing nuclear catastrophe at Fukushima on March 11, here in Michigan we stand at a pivotal ...

Water is a human right

Mark Twain once said "whisky is for drinking; water is for fighting over." He was only half-joking. Nations have gone to war over water....

Toxic twins: Emergency Management and Flint River water

As in the mass water shut offs to tens of thousands of Detroiters, the evil kinship of Emergency Management and violation of human rights is on ...

No Safe Affordable Water—No Peace in Flint, MI

Giving new meaning to “Justice Delayed, Justice Denied,” Flint's Emergency Manager recently announced the formation of a water 'advisory committee' to bring “solutions” ...

Water Unfit for auto production

Recently, General Motors stunned the public by declaring it would no longer use city of Flint water because the chlorine ...

Water is a Human Right!

As fundamental economic changes unwind in Detroit, measures created to harm the poorest section of working families are offered that challenge the basic laws of humanity ...

Flint, MI: Vote while you still can!

Under Michigan’s Emergency Manager law, the city of Flint is run from Lansing, the state capital. Flint’s city council, mayor, and charter have no power. Residents have no voice. All local ...

In Flint, Paying Residents Lose Water Rights to Corporate Theft

While the Detroit water shutoffs drew international condemnation from the United Nations and shamed the city’s unelected Emergency Manager into allowing a temporary moratorium ...

Flint Protest Exposes Emergency Manager Order to Silence Public

With tape over their mouths, members of the Democracy Defense League, held a silent protest in the Lobby of the Flint City Hall to challenge yet another assault on any semblance of ...

Democracy: are Flint citizens ready to live without it???

Recent events here underscore the depth and breath of dictatorship as outlined under Michigan’s Emergency Manager Law. These “Managers” are ...

Thousands of school books destroyed by unelected Emergency Manager

The People’s Tribune’s, Sandy Reid, interviewed Linda G. Wheeler about the destruction of thousands of books in Highland Park, Michigan

San Diego march against Monsanto

On May 25 — Stop Monsanto Day — as worldwide actions were taking place, those of us in San Diego mounted one of our most successful actions since the First Occupy Assembly ...

Illinois Democrats Sell Out to Big Oil and Gas

Horizontal hydraulic fracturing will now be allowed in Illinois as the much touted regulatory bill passed the legislature. This is despite the tireless efforts of health and community opposition ...

Green Shadow Cabinet: stop the Trans Pacific partnership

On June 10 the Green Shadow Cabinet released an urgent call for resistance to the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP). The TPP is a massive new free trade agreement currently being ...

Why we need to end‘corporate personhood’

The need for the constitutional amendment against ‘corporate personhood’ advocated by Move to Amend was demonstrated clearly by a recent vote in the U.S. Senate. On the eve of the late-May ...

Operation Green Jobs:Unemployed March to Save Jobs and Save the Planet

On May 18, a group of marchers set out from Philadelphia, PA to march on the US Chamber of Commerce in Washington, DC. “What are the most dire issues we face?” asked march organizers ...

Tar Sand Oil Transported to Gulf Coast Via Mobile, Alabama

The Extraction Industry will not stop trying to find ways to deliver their toxic Dilbit product to Gulf Coast Refineries. The Upper Gulf Coast has long been known as America’s Energy ...

Illinois Fracking Front Update

Illinois’ “best in the nation” fracking regulatory bill has been stalled due to an amendment. This amendment number 3 would require a licensed, union water-well drill operator, on site at all times, while drilling ...

In Defense of the Earth: The People vs Corporate Plunder

 The blows of Hurricane Sandy on the East Coast, and a summer of floods, severe droughts and monster forest fires, left the people of...

Why is the price of gasoline so high?

 Today, the average car owner spends $3,000 per year on gasoline. Pain at the pump? It’s more than that. It’s highway robbery combined with...

Eaarth: Making a life on a tough new planet

Book Review You must read this book! In it, the founder of the environmental group 350.org delivers the bad news that global warming has already...

Good Riddance To Emergency Manager Joseph Harris

After several tumultuous years, Joseph Harris, the Emergency Financial Manager in Benton Harbor, Michigan, is finally gone. He was a total failure. Joseph Harris...

Michigan Sizzles: Organize, organize, organize—that is the way out! 

 DETROIT—As Michigan sizzles—its cities of Pontiac, Saginaw, Flint, and Detroit burn. These cities represent, along with others, the face of industry—past.  Gone are the...

Foul Water and Fracked Politics

 This article is in two parts. Part two will appear in the March 2013 edition of the People’s TribuneCROSSVILLE, IL—Driving down a small road...

Governor Snyder: Take This Law and Shove It! Michigan voters defeat dictator bill

A statewide bus tour, letters to the editor, TV ads, big donors, and more, did not keep Michigan’s Governor Snyder from suffering a stunning defeat on November 6 ...

Water fight heats up in Michigan

The water fight is heating up again in Michigan. The state, which is the representative of corporate interests, is now trying to take over the Highland Park and Detroit ...