Rep. Hilda Solis: The Carbon Neutral Economy Creates Union Jobs

by: Matt Stoller

Thu Aug 16, 2007 at 11:05

Moving to a non-fossil fuel economy is going to create unionized jobs, improve the economic prospects of low income Americans and working class minorities, and generate an entirely new growth sector of the economy.  Scratch that.  I shouldn't have used the future tense.  It is creating jobs and economic opportunities.  I got an email from Don Lyster, Congressman Solis's Chief of Staff, letting me know what Solis was up to during the recess.

The Congresswoman visited the East LA Skills Center today.  The Center is run by LA Unified School District and is the only educational facility in Southern California which provides solar panel installation training. The teacher of the class will be one of the featured speakers at Solis' forum this Thursday.

The Congresswoman met with the students in the solar installation training class, a group of mostly Latino males, but also African Americans and Anglos. After completing the training, they will be placed in a pipeline for solar installation jobs - mostly union (IBEW) and well-paying jobs.  Others will become contractors.  Some want to start their own solar installation contracting firms.  One trainee was a 56 year old Latino male who said he was inspired to return to the classroom because of the economic promise of the renewable energy industries.  He has spent his career working as a custodial worker in LA schools.  Others mentioned that they are excited to play their own role in conserving energy and reducing American dependence on foreign oil in their own way.

You can find out more about the forum here.  There's a new economy coming, and the leaders in bringing it to us are progressive Democrats like Solis, rural Democrat Tim Walz, and Governors like Eliot Spitzer, who just announced the completion of the first green affordable public housing project in New York state.

Get on board the new economy.

Diversity: Be Specific, Dammit

by: Matt Stoller

Tue Aug 07, 2007 at 10:54

If you want to discuss diversity, you have to talk about African-American politics, including problems at the NAACP and newer vital organizations like the Ella Baker Center and ColorofChange.org.  You have to talk primaries.  That's why I covered Donna Edwards and Al Wynn last cycle, and it's why I talk about the CBC and corrupt black billionaires like Robert Johnson.  And not to play the 'why isn't everyone working on my pet issue', but doesn't it seem strange that Robert Johnson's push to use race to justify light taxes on his investment funds - after he did the same thing on the estate tax - gets no play anywhere except on a blog written by a Jewish liberal?  I don't mean to whine but, to be selfish, I want a lot more discussion of ethnic politics on the blogs so I can read about it.  I find the specifics really interesting.  And the specifics - whether AIPAC is supporting Artur Davis in Alabama or was involved in beating Cynthia McKinney - are not just important but critical for progressives.

If you want to discuss diversity, you have to talk about Latino politics.  That means Joe Baca and his awful stewardship of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and the fight between the male and female members within the CHC.  You have to talk about how Latino groups like Southwest Voter failed to bump up registration rates among Hispanics last cycle after the huge immigrants rights marches, and how labor screwed up on immigration.

If you want to discuss why women are so disempowered in our political system, you have to look not only at our cultural roots but at clear examples of problematic organizational structures, such as Emily's List or NARAL.

Like it or not, politics is politics, and specifics are the whole ball game.  In Connecticut, I remember who was there with us.  It was Al Sharpton, Maxine Waters, and Danny Glover, and they helped us beat Lieberman in the primary.  Maxine Waters is heroic, while Bobby Rush takes millions from AT&T to his charities and Harold Ford Jr is a contributor to Fox News and an employee of the financial service industry.

Politics is about power, and power in America cuts through race and identity.  It's a fascinating story to tell, but it has to be told if you want to make any change.