Hip Hop Caucus Clean Energy Now! Bus Tour Wraps-Up On Capitol Hill

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson Leads Call to Action for Clean Energy Solutions

WASHINGTON, Feb. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- After touring the nation and meeting with young people in urban communities all along the way, the Hip Hop Caucus' Clean Energy Now! Bus Tour brought its message of clean energy solutions to the steps of the Capitol for a closing rally.  The tour, a partnership between the Alliance for Climate Protection's Repower America campaign and the Hip Hop Caucus, kicked-off in New Orleans last week and has included celebrities such as D. Woods, DJ Biz Markie, actress and Alliance for Climate Protection special advisor Gloria Reuben, as well as many others.

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Since its inception in New Orleans last week, The Clean Energy Now! Bus Tour traveled over 2,000 miles through 9 cities and held events at churches, nightclubs, and job training centers. The Tour visited 5 college campuses, including three historically black colleges and universities and distributed energy efficiency kits to urban communities.

Today, hundreds joined with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson; Rep. Andre Carson (D-IN-7); Rev. Lennox Yearwood, President of the Hip Hop Caucus; Maggie L. Fox, President & CEO of The Alliance for Climate Protection; Gary Flowers, President & CEO of the Black Leadership Forum; Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, CEO, Green For All; DJ Biz Markie; and Gloria Reuben, Actress & Alliance for Climate Protection special advisor.

"The tour has been across the country listening to young voices calling for good jobs, lower energy costs and cleaner communities," said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson.  "This is the time to seize global leadership in clean energy innovation and answer the young people and urban communities who are asking for clean energy now."

"The Hip Hop Caucus Clean Energy Now! Tour helped amplify and unite the voices of young people, African Americans, the Hip Hop community, and the faith community around the critical need for clean energy jobs now and a clean energy future for our country.  People around this country are hurting because our economy has failed them," said Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr., President of the Hip Hop Caucus. "Comprehensive clean energy policies will help our communities create a brighter future through solutions that will fight poverty and pollution at the same time."

"It is clear that our young people and communities of color will benefit greatly from the economic opportunities that come from investing in clean energy," said Maggie L. Fox, President and CEO of The Alliance for Climate Protection.  "Together, we support comprehensive new energy policies that will start us on the path to creating millions of new jobs, reducing our dependence on foreign oil and stopping the devastating effects of carbon pollution."

Studies show that comprehensive clean energy and climate policies could create up to 1.9 million new jobs nationwide and save households up to $1,175 per year by 2020.

For more information about the tour, visit: http://www.hiphopcaucus.org/bustour

The following organizations are partners on the tour:

Alliance for Climate Education

American Association of Blacks in Energy

Blacks in Government

Black Leadership Forum

Black Youth Vote

Campus Progress

Constituency for Africa

Energy Action Coalition

Environmental Justice and Climate Change Initiative

Green for All

Headcount

Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

Kids Vs. Global Warming

Leon H Sullivan Foundation

National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education

National Association of Black County Officials

National Coalition on Black Civic Participation

National Bar Association

National Black Caucus of State Legislators

National Congress of Black Women

National Council of Black Mayors

National Forum for Black Public Administrators

National Urban League

National Wildlife Federation

Rainbow PUSH Coalition

Rock The Vote

Sierra Club

Southern Energy Network

Student PIRGs

About the Hip Hop Caucus:

The Hip Hop Caucus organizes young people in urban communities to be active in elections, policymaking, and service projects. The Hip Hop Caucus is a member of the Black Leadership Forum and the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.  With nearly 700,000 members around the country, in 2008, the Hip Hop Caucus created the "Respect My Vote!" campaign with recording artists T.I. and Keyshia Cole, and in 2004, Hip Hop Caucus President Rev Yearwood co-created the "Vote or Die!" campaign with P Diddy. The Hip Hop Caucus is a non-partisan, non-profit organization.

About the Alliance for Climate Protection's Repower America:

The Alliance for Climate Protection launched the Repower America campaign to galvanize the American public around a bold new clean energy plan and a revitalized national energy infrastructure that will jumpstart our economy and create millions of jobs; help end our dependence on foreign oil; reward innovation and job creation, not polluters; and reduce greenhouse gas emissions and slow the threat of climate change.

SOURCE Alliance for Climate Protection