Join the Fight to #ChangeTheChamber
By: Allison Behrens, Congress Watch intern
In the wake of seeing the terrible impacts of climate change on our planet, young people all over the world are rallying for action, holding protests and lobbying lawmakers to pass legislation to improve the future of our world. One such campaign led by students is being launched on July 8 by Lobby for Climate to call on large corporations to support strong climate legislation. Currently, many of them — including incredibly well-known names like Disney, Google, AT&T, and more — help fund the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and its work to block federal action to address climate change.
Contrary to public perception, the Chamber of Commerce isn’t part of the U.S. government. It’s a trade association that is the biggest lobbying spender in Washington, D.C., and it uses its influence on Capitol Hill to lobby against the interests of small businesses and advocate for big corporations like fossil fuel companies. Though its full membership list is secret, companies like Disney or Google are known members. By continuing to be a part of the Chamber and not speaking out against its efforts to promote the interests of fossil fuel companies and stymie climate action legislation and regulations, these companies are also complicit in the damage fossil fuel companies continue to do to our planet.
That’s why this student-led campaign will be holding social media storms, Tweeting at these corporations on every Wednesday and Friday from 1-3 pm ET using the hashtags #LobbyForClimate and #ChangeTheChamber. They will be pushing Chamber member companies to support proactive climate legislation, end the Chamber’s obstruction of federal actions to combat climate change, and end the Chamber’s support of politicians who vote against policies to limit climate pollution. The campaign is beginning with a Twitter storm on July 8 aimed at the Coca-Cola and Pepsi companies, both members of the Chamber of Commerce and thus complicit in the Chamber’s support for fossil fuel companies. You can also find the campaign on Instagram and Facebook.
A similar Twitter campaign last summer spearheaded by U.S. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y), U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D- Mass.) and others called #ChamberofCarbon led to the Chamber supporting the Paris Climate Agreement, an important step in the global fight to combat climate change. But the Chamber must be pressured to stop its climate obstructionism once and for all!
It’s vital for as many people as possible to participate in and support the students’ Change the Chamber campaign. See you on Twitter!
