Calls on new administration to get US back on track in the fight against COVID-19, poverty, inequality, and climate change
Oxfam congratulates President-elect Joe Biden in his hard-fought election victory to be the next President of the United States, and calls on him to deliver on a bold, new agenda that takes to scale fighting against structural injustices of poverty and inequality, and immediate action on climate change.
“After such a divisive moment in our history, we must all come together— across political parties and physical borders — to tackle our biggest challenges, from COVID-19 to climate change, from inequality to injustice,” said Abby Maxman, President and CEO of Oxfam America. “Americans across the country have shown tremendous resilience during a pandemic that has brought so much hardship for many of us, dealing with the grim realities of lost jobs, lost loved ones, a health crisis, social distancing, virtual schooling, and social uprising. As we recommit ourselves to pursue climate, gender, racial, and economic justice in the United States and around the world, we must put on our masks, roll up our sleeves, and get to work.”
Oxfam urges President-elect Biden to urgently follow through on his campaign promises to work with Congress to enact a transformational COVID-19 recovery plan that puts an end to the pandemic, saves the economy, and tackles the root causes of economic inequality that have been severely exacerbated by this crisis.
Specifically, we are calling on President-elect Biden and Congress to:
- Enact a People’s Vaccine that is free and accessible to all, based on need not wealth.
- Pass a multi-trillion-dollar economic recovery plan that challenges corporate power and invests in millions of dignified, green jobs for the people hardest hit by COVID, especially women and people of color.
- Work in partnership with our allies to provide significant new funding and debt-relief to the global fight against COVID-19.
To truly address the root causes of our current crisis, this plan must include reforms that protect the rights of workers and be paid for by finally ensuring the wealthy and large corporations pay their fair share of taxes.
Oxfam looks forward to working with President-elect Biden to usher in a new era that will prioritize peace, health, gender justice, and environmental integrity; enshrine, promote, and protect the human rights of all, recommit to multilateralism, and seek to tackle income inequality once and for all.
“This pandemic has shown us how our gravest challenges in the US are often the same challenges people face around the world,” said Maxman. “Systemic racism, economic inequality, gender discrimination, unequal access to healthcare, climate change, the refugee crisis: these issues can only be solved if we stand up for the equal rights of every person and commit to reaching beyond our borders. We call on President-elect Biden to strengthen alliances and fight for dignity for all.”