What’s in the air after the midterm elections? The powerful sound of American democracy at work on behalf of children’s health. The sound—the sight, the tug at the heart, the wonder—of Americans voting for clean air. Exercising their right to be heard, their right to choose, their right to say: This is the America I want. This is the America I believe in. And the equally beautiful sound of mothers taking a deep breath as they get ready to get back to work protecting our children’s health and future from the ravages of climate and air pollution and toxic chemicals—since this Environmental Pollution Agency sure isn’t doing its job.
And this America is an America making history—as we have always done, in ways both bad and great.
This is an America that delivered into positions of governance historic firsts:
The first Black female governor in the US, Keisha Lance Bottoms of Georgia
The first Muslim in the Senate: Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan
The first elected Latino governor in California, Xavier Becerra
The first Latina governor of Texas, Gina Hinojosa
The first female Native American governor, Deb Haaland of New Mexico
The first Black governor of Florida, Byron Donalds
The first openly gay man elected to the US Senate, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire
The first Black governor of Wisconsin, David Crowley
The first female governor of Ohio, Amy Acton
The first pediatrician elected to the US Senate, Dr. Annie Andrews from South Carolina.
So many firsts leap out at us, but as a lifelong feminist I’m thrilled by the leadership of women, who stuck through nearly impossible odds. Now the important and equally hard work ahead of us: protecting our children’s future in the face of an administration handing out free passes to pollute our air, denying the science, and the reality, of a rapidly warming climate, and fast tracking toxic chemicals into our stuff.
Most of all, we at Moms Clean Air Force want to say thank you to every single person who worked tirelessly to get kids through breakfast, get them to school, get themselves to work—and hit the streets to turn out the vote. That’s what this all comes down to: our democracy at work.
Tell Congress: The Climate Clock Is Ticking. Act Now for Our Kids’ Future.