APCC was asked to remove a reference to advocating from some advertising copy because there was pressure to “go along to get along.” APCC’s essential reason for being is to be a tireless advocate for a better environment. To have been asked to describe who we are without mentioning that we are—and always will be—advocates would have betrayed our reason for being. We rejected, not so nicely, the request and made it clear that our copy would be read the way we wrote it or not at all. The advertiser relented.
The point here is that organizations like ours, ones that advocate for the environment or other worthy causes and that are willing to speak out against what we consider to be bad policy choices are under enormous pressure to be quiet. APCC will not be quiet. Self-editing in the hope of not drawing attention to oneself might seem the easier path, but is nothing more than appeasement.
The elimination of federal funding for clean water investments in modern wastewater treatment and water supply systems is bad and we need to say so. The elimination of funding for natural resource restoration projects is bad and we need to say so. The elimination of research that informs the establishment of standards that protect air, land and water is bad and we need to say so. Turning a blind eye to regulatory enforcement that gives polluters a free pass to pollute is bad and we need to say so.
The methodical dismantling of federal environmental programs and standards requires our collective pushback. Silence makes it all the easier for regressive policies to be implemented. Speaking out in opposition may not prevent bad policies from being adopted, but silence all but ensures them. Silence is simply complicity.
The hard truth here is that if speaking out draws reprisals, they were likely coming eventually. Ducking and covering would do nothing more than betray our founding principles and violate our promise to you. APCC will remain a vocal advocate for the environment. Our silence, should it come someday, will not be self-imposed.
