AOC's Green New Deal and FDR's Green New Deal

FDR: "A forest is not solely so many thousand board feet of lumber to be logged when market conditions make it profitable. It is an integral part of our natural land covering, and the most potent factor in maintaining Nature's delicate balance in the organic and inorganic worlds. In his struggle for selfish gain, man has often needlessly tipped the scales so that Nature's balance has been destroyed, and the public welfare has usually been on the short-weighted side."

--"Statement on being awarded the Schlich Forestry Medal," January 29, 1935.

Above: A work crew on the New Deal's Withlacoochee Land Use Project, Florida, 1937. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Above: A sign at the Withlacoochee Land Use Project. The Resettlement Administration was a New Deal program that addressed "soil erosion, stream pollution, seacoast erosion, reforestation, forestation, and flood control" (see "Resettlement Administration," Living New Deal). Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

AOC's Green New Deal is inspiring, not terrifying

On February 7, 2019, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC, D-NY) introduced House Resolution 109, "Recognizing the duty of the Federal Government to create a Green New Deal." AOC's ideas have sent the political right into a teeth-gnashing frenzy of fear, anger, and disbelief. Some are afraid that the Green New Deal will be the end of all modern technology and force them, perhaps under threat of imprisonment, to trade in their cars for bicycles. They're afraid that airlines will be replaced by stagecoach lines.

The reactions to AOC's Green New Deal are unhinged and absurd, to say the least. For example, with respect to the fear that we will no longer have modern modes of transportation, the Green New Deal promotes "overhauling transportation systems in the United States to remove pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector as much as is technologically feasible, including through investment in (i) zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and manufacturing; (ii) clean, affordable, and accessible public transit; and (iii) high-speed rail" (emphasis added).

The irrational fear that our cars will be taken, is the same type of irrational fear that makes some on the right fear that our guns will be confiscated if we allow, for example, more comprehensive background checks. Wealthy Republican donors, politicians, and talk show hosts prey on this fear, whipping up as much hysteria as they can in order to win elections and power, and to avoid being taxed more. They want their followers to live in perpetual fear of progress. FDR called it the "gospel of fear" and warned: "This policy of seeking to win by fear of ruin is selfish in its motive, brutal in its method and false in its promise."

The fact is, AOC's proposals are not that extreme (especially in light of our repeated climate science findings & warnings) and much of the Green New Deal is similar to FDR's (Green) New Deal. In other words - many of the proposals have already been done before, to greater or lesser degrees. For example...

Better Public Works:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to "to invest in the infrastructure and industry of the United States to sustainably meet the challenges of the 21st century." Above we see a bridge in Chicago, built by the New Deal's Public Works Administration (PWA), ca. 1935-1940. Most Americans don't know that business, the middle-class, and the economy expanded after World War II along New Deal roads, across New Deal bridges, and out of New Deal airports. New Deal infrastructure met the needs of the 20th century. We can do the same today, for the 21st century, if we put fear aside. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

More Efficient Buildings:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to upgrade "all existing buildings in the United States and [build] new buildings to achieve maximum energy efficiency, water efficiency, safety, affordability, comfort, and durability..." The description for the photograph above, taken in 1938, reads, "Montgomery, Alabama. Roof of State Highway Building, showing how water is used to insulate against heat. Building constructed by WPA." Many New Deal-constructed buildings were innovative and aesthetically pleasing. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Healthy Food For All:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to build "a more sustainable food system that ensures universal access to healthy food." The description for the photograph above, taken in 1938, reads, "August, Ga. - WPA garden project - Produce raised here is used for school lunches and surplus commodities." WPA school lunches brought healthy food to undernourished children, and New Deal surplus commodities brought food and goods to struggling Americans (see "Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation," Living New Deal). Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Climate Science:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to promote "the international exchange of technology, expertise, products, funding, and services, with the aim of making the United States the international leader on climate action, and to help other countries achieve a Green New Deal." In the photo above, a woman and a man work with climate data on the WPA's Ocean Climate Survey Project in New Orleans, Louisiana, ca. 1935-1943. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Respect for American Indians:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to obtain "the free, prior, and informed consent of indigenous peoples for all decisions that affect indigenous peoples and their traditional territories, honoring all treaties and agreements with indigenous peoples, and protecting and enforcing the sovereignty and land rights of indigenous peoples." In a multitude of ways, for example, jobs in the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, the New Deal restored and improved American Indian land, provided jobs and economic hope, and facilitated a degree of sovereignty through self-government. In the photo above, taken in Washington state, ca. 1935-1940, Charlie Edwards of the Swinomish Tribe works on a totem pole to recognize the assistance provided by President Roosevelt. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Protecting Biodiversity:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to restore and protect "threatened, endangered, and fragile ecosystems through locally appropriate and science-based projects that enhance biodiversity and support climate resiliency." In the photo above, taken in 2011, we see the Merriam Laboratory building at the Patuxent Research Refuge (PRR) in Maryland. PRR was built by the WPA and CCC, and in subsequent years scientists at PRR conducted extensive research on the effects of DDT and lead shot on birds and waterfowl, resulting in protective legislation. Photo by Brent McKee.

Trees:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to "remov[e] greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and reduc[e] pollution by restoring natural ecosystems through proven low-tech solutions that increase soil carbon storage, such as land preservation and afforestation [new forest creation]." In the photo above, CCC boys perform tree surgery at Fort Hunt Park in Fairfax County, Virgnia, just south of Washington, DC, ca. 1933-1942. The CCC planted billions of trees, worked on sick trees, removed dead trees, fought wildfires, and built cabins and campgrounds that we still use today. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Clean Water:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to guarantee "universal access to clean water." This is important because today our water supplies and delivery systems are frequently compromised by contaminants, not the least of which is lead. To ensure our water is clean, drinking water must be kept affordable and free of pollutants, sewage must be properly handled and treated, waterways must be kept clean, and Americans must be able to afford plumbing upgrades in and around their homes. In the photo above, workers are laying new, PWA-funded sewer lines in Goshen, Indiana, ca. 1935-1940. Many thousands of miles of new water and sewer lines were installed by New Deal work programs; hundreds of new utility plants were constructed; and rivers and streams were cleaned of trash. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Cleaner and more efficient transportation:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to invest in "clean, affordable, and accessible public transit; and high-speed rail." The description for the photo above, taken in New Jersey, ca. 1935-1940, reads, "High speed line (Camden-Philadelphia) view of train and station. PWA financed this work." Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Unions:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to partner with labor unions, create "high-quality union jobs," and strengthen & protect "the right of all workers to organize, unionize, and collectively bargain free of coercion, intimidation, and harassment." The description for the photo above, taken in 1936, reads, "A Workers Education group discussing the American Labor Movement. This group is comprised of members of a Philadelphia Garment Union in cooperation with WPA." The New Deal also protected collective bargaining through the Wagner Act. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Economic Security:

Above: The Green New Deal promotes economic security in several ways, for example, "guaranteeing a job with a family-sustaining wage, adequate family and medical leave, paid vacations, and retirement security to all people of the United States" (this is reminiscent of FDR's Second Bill of Rights). In the photo above, we see WPA Administrator Harry Hopkins (left) and Assistant Administrator Corrington Gill arriving at the White House for a meeting with President Roosevelt, March 13, 1936. Both men were advocates of some type of job guarantee. For example, Gill wrote: "I believe that a program of large public works ought to become a permanent part of our public investment program, complemented by an employment program of the WPA type" (Corrington Gill, Wasted Manpower: The Challenge of Unemployment, 1939, p. 272). Photo by Acme News Pictures, scanned from personal copy and used here for educational, non-commercial purposes.

Progress or unjustified terror?

Make no mistake about it, we can do all of the things that the Green New Deal resolves to do... if we ignore the merchants of fear, i.e., wealthy conservative donors; Republican politicians; President Trump; the mouthy and well-funded talking heads who peddle "limited government" (in other words, limits on We the People); as well as the centrist Democrats who whine, "we can't afford it!"; and the right-wing, multi-millionaire talk show hosts who try to brainwash us into voting against our own economic well-being (thereby, and just coincidentally of course, preserving their own economic well-being... and dominance).

As the merchants of fear repeatedly try to scare us with their bogeyman cries of "Socialism!"--when all we really seek (in our traditional and long-standing mixed economy) is a better balance between social programs and private profit--and as they repeatedly try to convince us that we can't afford anything but tax breaks for the rich and perpetual war, we would do well to remember FDR's thoughts about fear, spoken at the very beginning of the New Deal:

"[T]he only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." (First inaugural address, March 4, 1933)

FDR was able to get the nation to overcome its fear, and then implement ambitious, nationwide programs that we still enjoy today - Social Security; new and improved state and national parks; financial regulations to stabilize the markets; unemployment insurance; restrictions on child labor; wide-ranging public works; and more.

The accomplishments and legacy of FDR's Green New Deal prove that AOC's Green New Deal is sensible and achievable. So let's move forward with courage... and let the merchants of fear retreat under their beds, blabbering to themselves about the horrors of clean water.