By Jessica Corbett
Common Dreams
The bill aims to ensure “an intersectional response” to the climate crisis, coronavirus pandemic, economic inequity, and racial injustice “that is proportionate to the scope of the problems we face.”
On the heels of President Joe Biden unveiling the second prong of his infrastructure proposal, progressives in Congress came together Thursday to formally introduce sweeping legislation that would invest $10 trillion over a decade in advancing climate, economic, and racial justice while putting 15 million people nationwide to work.
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) are spearheading the Transform, Heal, and Renew by Investing in a Vibrant Economy (THRIVE) Act (pdf), which they announced last month, building on a resolution introduced last September. Several other Democratic lawmakers and advocacy groups are supporting the bill.
The THRIVE Act’s introduction comes as Biden is pushing for his American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan and as people worldwide are still dealing with the human and economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has killed over 574,000 people in the United States, nearly a fifth of the global death toll.