The group came out against last fall’s bipartisan infrastructure bill, calling it the “ Exxon Plan,” even though it contained hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for things like renewable energy and environmental cleanup.
Some critics charge that Sunrise’s recent activism has been more hindrance than help. If the November vote results in Democrats losing the House or Senate as most observers predict, major climate legislation is unlikely until at least 2025.
But despite its best efforts, that historic investment now appears dead as the midterm elections loom. The Administration included $550 billion in climate spending in the Build Back Better package that was to be the linchpin of President Biden’s agenda, and Sunrise pushed hard to get the bill passed. Since Democrats took control of the White House and Congress last year, Sunrise has focused its efforts on getting major climate legislation enacted at the federal level. “They’ve brought new energy and new ambition to the climate community and made a big impact in a short period of time,” says Eric Pooley, senior vice president of the Environmental Defense Fund. The group pressured Democratic presidential candidates to embrace their sweeping climate agenda, helping popularize the idea of a Green New Deal for climate and jobs. It boasts millions in funding from donors and foundations, hundreds of “hubs” across the country, and thousands of volunteers. Conceived by environmentalists hoping to inject their cause with people power, and launched into the seething desperation of the early Trump era, Sunrise has been celebrated in the liberal press and feted by top Democrats. Girma is a member of the Sunrise Movement, a six-year-old youth climate organization that has shot to prominence in its short existence. And Girma and his fellow activists, having done everything in their power to force change, were left wondering what went wrong. The White House hadn’t responded billions in proposed climate spending remained stuck in limbo in the Senate. Ten days later, the hunger strike was over, but the climate crisis was no closer to being solved.
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