Tuesday, several local activist groups rallied in front of Eugene’s downtown post office to call on Congress to redirect the country’s tax dollars.
The theme of this year’s tax day gathering was “Fight Climate Change, Not War.” As local taxpayers mailed their returns to the IRS, leaders of social and environmental groups took turns speaking and singing. They asked the government to spend less on defense and allocate more for the environment.
Kelsey Juliana took time from her lunch hour at South Eugene High School to speak to the crowd. She’s involved with ‘Our Children’s Trust,' a national organization supporting young people in legal actions.
Juliana: “So what youth are saying, is we’re saying, ‘hey, we are not politicians, we are not lawyers, we are not teachers. I’m not employed, I don’t have a job, I’m not making any income that I can put toward a campaign.'”
She wants students to have a say on how tax dollars are spent.
Juliana and another student have filed a suit against the state of Oregon, asking the government to do more about climate change. She expects to hear the Oregon Court of Appeals’ decision in the next week or two, and is traveling to Washington D.C. in early May for a similar, federal case.