Marc Morial shares why air pollution as a health issue hits home

The issue of air pollution has been on our minds a lot in 2017. American cities are nothing like Delhi or Beijing, where toxic smog blankets the skyline and closes schools. But air quality is still very poor in far too many parts of the United States.

I had the pleasure of sitting down with a distinguished member of our Board of Advisors, Marc H. Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, one of the nation’s foremost civil rights organizations. He was mayor of New Orleans from 1994 to 2002, so he knows well the challenges that face a large city like the Big Easy.

But he also has a personal stake in the issue of air pollution: His father Ernest N. “Dutch” Morial, who also was mayor of New Orleans (1978-86), had asthma. He collapsed and died outside the home of a friend on Christmas Eve 1989. Marc Morial, who was 31 at the time, opened up to us about this experience and why clean air is so important to Americans everywhere.

Watch the full segment:

To learn more about Fuel Freedom’s efforts to improve air quality, in cities across the U.S., visit our Environment page. If you’re ready to get involved in the fight, check out our Take Action page.

Americans deserve to work, play and live in clean air. Eliminating our oil addiction is the key to that future. We can see it from here, but we need to act.

 

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