The Baltimore branch of the youth-led climate advocacy group the Sunrise Movement held a “Launch Party” on Homewood Campus to promote the Green New Deal. The event, which took place on Jan. 29, was one of over 2500 Sunrise launch parties held nationwide.
The evening included group discussions and the screenings of two new Sunrise mini-documentaries titled Generation Green New Deal and 2020 Plan to Win. The videos stressed the political and social importance of climate change and described Sunrise’s plans to put the Green New Deal at the forefront of the 2020 election. The Green New Deal is a package of legislation that would radically change U.S. laws regarding climate impact and economic reforms.
The Green New Deal, as described by the videos at the launch party, is a proposed series of reforms and regulations that would tackle both climate change and economic inequality.
Sunrise member Laís Santoro organized the event with the help of Refuel Our Future, a student-run organization that encourages University divestment from fossil fuels.
In an interview with The News-Letter, she explained that the main purpose of the launch party was to encourage students to get involved in the fight against climate change.
“If you’re going to get engaged with this kind of work, the time is now. You have to get engaged and sacrifice some of your time and some of your privilege as a Hopkins student to this cause,” she said.
After seeing the mini-documentaries for the first time at the launch party, Santoro expressed her approval of their content, praising the optimistic tone that the second video ended on.
“I definitely see a strategy with the videos they had. The first one was to make people realize just how big of an issue it [climate change] is. It’s depressing,” she said. “You feel so, so small, and like you can do so little. But I really think in the next video, people saw what we meant, and they could see into the future. I think now people will be able to visualize that future that I’ve been visualizing for a while.”
Sunrise’s videos stressed that activists and governments were running out of time to fix climate change. They then showed what Sunrise was doing to fight the issue, such as occupying the offices of top Democrats and rallying at environmental protests.
In addition, the videos endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign. With just five days until the Iowa Caucus, Sunrise’s launch parties were also meant to advocate for Sanders as the Democratic nominee.
Earlier in January, Sunrise announced their support for Sanders. In an official statement, Founder and Executive Director of the Sunrise Movement Varshini Prakash stated that Sanders was the best candidate to turn the Green New Deal into legislation.
“Senator Sanders has made it clear throughout his political career and in this campaign that he grasps the scale of the climate crisis, the urgency with which we must act to address it, and the opportunity we have in coming together to do so,” she said. “We believe a Bernie Sanders presidency would provide the best political terrain in which to engage in and ultimately win that struggle for the world we deserve.”
The videos also advocated for mass strikes and protests, repeatedly urging viewers to “organize, vote and strike.” The members featured insisted that no political change on the scale of the Green New Deal had ever been passed without a major, destructive social movement backing it.
Junior Benjamin Laurin, who attended the launch party, told The News-Letter that although he liked the videos, he still had his doubts about the movement.
“I support the Green New Deal, but I don’t know how feasible it is, politically or economically,” he said.
Hopkins alum Olivia Chan, who also attended the launch party, said that the videos inspired her.
“I was pretty energized and motivated by the messages,” she said. “I love the vision of the Green New Deal, and I think it’s important to think big. People say that things aren’t pragmatic or feasible in politics. If everyone’s hands are on deck, then I think anything is possible.”
Chan stressed that, as a community largely made up of pre-meds and medical students, the University should be more concerned about the long-term health effects of climate change.
“Hopkins should care more,” she said. “A lot of people [at Hopkins] want to be doctors or in some kind of medical profession, and it’s kind of astonishing how much apathy people have for these issues, especially as young people.”
Although Sunrise does not currently have an official branch at Hopkins, Santoro said that there were plans in the works for climate strikes involving Homewood students.
She explained that by bringing the launch party to Homewood, Sunrise was seeking to connect with students who would not otherwise reach out to them.
“There’s a lot of people who care about this issue on campus, but it’s Hopkins. There’s a lot of stress, there’s a lot of homework,” she said. “I know a lot of people… are interested, but don’t have time to come to [Sunrise’s] hub meetings because those are off-campus. So I think that it’s nice that this event is held on campus where people can come and go as they please.”
