This week, a coalition of 13 attorneys general issued Multistate Guidance affirming the necessity and legality of environmental justice initiatives to ensure a healthy environment for all people to live, play, learn, work and worship.  Despite attempts by the Trump administration to eliminate this critical work by businesses, nonprofits, and other organizations as illegal through the use of Executive Orders, the attorneys general are pushing back.

The coalition of attorneys general issued its Multi-State Guidance Affirming the Importance and Legality of Environmental Justice Inititative.  https://www.mass.gov/doc/multi-state-guidance-affirming-the-importance-and-legality-of-environmental-justice-initiatives/download

In part, they write:

The federal actions attacking environmental justice have created concerns about – but do not impact – the continued legality and importance of environmental justice efforts. These actions include several executive orders issued by President Trump, as well as memoranda issued by United States Attorney General Pam Bondi. These federal actions inaccurately label environmental justice and diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility activities as “illegal discrimination.” They rescind prior executive orders embedding environmental justice principles throughout federal administrative programs. They discontinue enforcement actions aimed at addressing disproportionate environmental burdens and terminate federal environmental justice programs and funding.  The recent federal actions also direct the United States Department of Justice to de-prioritize environmental justice in its enforcement work and to take actions to stop the enforcement of state environmental justice laws that the United States Attorney General deems illegal. These actions cloud the meaning of environmental justice and the legality of the work itself. But the limited effect of these actions is clear: the President cannot alter the laws passed by Congress, nor can his executive orders or agency memoranda change the protections afforded by the Constitution or state law. Additionally, while complementary, environmental justice is a distinct concept that addresses distinct challenges from diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Like the best practices for workplace diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility addressed in the February 2025 guidance from multiple state attorneys general, the advancement of environmental justice is not only lawful but also benefits the public.

The Attorneys General of California, Massachusetts and New York led the effort to issue the multi-state guidance.  The Attorneys General of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont joined to form the 13-member coalition.  Together, they stand “committed to pursuing environmental justice and enforcing related laws in our jurisdictions.”

1. Join your neighbors and friends on Friday, June 20th from noon to 1 pm at the intersection of East Alameda and Sandoval for the weekly one-hour peaceful protest for nuclear disarmament and against expanded plutonium pit production at LANL. Join with Veterans for Peace, CCNS, Nuclear Watch NM, Loretto Community, New Mexico Peace Fest, Pax Christi and others. Bring your flags, signs and banners in support of nuclear weapons disarmament.

1. Watch the “Television Event” 2:13 minute trailer at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S5RGRsTwjM It is about the television movie of the week during about nuclear war during the Reagan administration.

1. Thursday, June 26th from 4 to 5 pm MT – <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignright wp-image-7831" src="http://nuclearactiv