2081 Earth Day

Did we all have a good Earth Day?  Did we do something -- anything -- to protect our battered planet?  Hopefully, yes. Probably, no. Do we even remember that it took place two days ago?

Did you sense the excitement in the air?  Was there any?  There certainly was in 1970 when US Senator Gaylord Nelson founded the first one.

The Long Island Daily Review newspaper, of which I was a reporter/editor at that time, covered the events in great detail.  But the Review was a business paper and the response from readers was unenthusiastic.

April 22, 1970 was a Wednesday. There was no such thing as Email.  We didn’t have a fax machine or a Telex.  But we got telegrams.  Lots of telegrams. The response was not pretty.

The executive editor, Ben Avery was shocked.  The publisher, Paul Townsend was shocked.  I was not shocked.  The reporters were not shocked.  There was a sharp divide at the paper.

On one side were the business people who subscribed, Townsend and Avery and the bondholders, the Franklin National Bank and later-to-be CIA chief Bill Casey (R/C-Roslyn.) On the other side was me. And the reporters.  And the typesetters. The art director. The shipping guys. The receptionists. The librarian.

Telegrams poured in, followed by two weeks of intense letters to the editor. And we staff-commies who favored the occasion were in deep do-do.

There were calls for our heads.  There were threats. The “business community” was up in arms… including three major defense contractors, the regional manager of a household-name department store chain, the regional chamber of commerce.

On the other side was Wendy.  A small girl. A college student. A firecracker. She invaded the newsroom Thursday morning with a bouquet of flowers and without stopping at the front desk, planted them firmly on the desk of the librarian who was for several reasons one of the most visible of the newsroom staff.

When owner Townsend came storming out of his lair that morning, she stood up to him, all 4’10” of her and told him what she thought.

No one talked to Townsend that way. He was visibly shaken.  He should have been.  Because by Friday, the tide of letters began to change.

Congratulations to us.  Thanks for taking a stand for the planet.  Thanks for the coverage.  The CEO of a large hospital thanked us. So did the congressman Lester Wolff (D-Great Neck) who is still with us at the age of 100.

Now, here we are 49 years later.  Nothing has changed here among many of the politicians with clout.  But there have been changes in the atmosphere, the state of the glaciers, the state of the landfills, oceans, mines and power plants.  And some of it, parts we can control, we can still control.  So let’s.

I’m Wes Richards. My opinions are my own but you’re welcome to them. ®

Comments? Send them here: wesrichards@gmail.com

© WJR 2019