North Kenwood Neighborhood Association

The Green Corner

Apr 01, 2009

Earth Day; April 22nd, 1970. Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, proposed the first nationwide environmental protest "to shake up the political establishment & force this issue onto the national agenda.?” That day in April 1970, 20 million Americans took to the streets to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories & power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, & the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values. Earth Day 1970 achieved a rare political alignment, enlisting support from Republicans & Democrats, rich & poor, city slickers & farmers, tycoons & labor leaders. The first Earth Day led to the creation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency & the passage of the Clean Air, Clean Water, & Endangered Species acts.