



Statement on the Fires in the Amazon

A statement drafted by the SPUSA Ecosocialist Working Group Statement approved by the SPUSA National Action Committee

The Amazon is burning. These fires, enabled by Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for the profit of giant agribusiness, are a deliberate tactic to clear land for development. The Insitiututo Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais reported a 79% increase in forest fires from this same period in 2018. As promised by the Bolsonaro regime, large hectares of Amazon forest will be opened up for Western development.

The burning of the Rainforest has the effect of destroying its capacity to reduce carbon pollution and provide breathable air for the entirety of the world. These fires directly threaten the survivability of life on this planet and hasten our descent into climate extinction.

Along with environmental protections being lifted, the rights of Indigenous people in the Brazilian Amazon have come under brutal attack. Unimaginable suffering has been brought to bear as indigenous people are driven from their homes and way of life in the name of capitalist profiteering that is devoid of even basic morals or human decency.

These fires directly threaten the survivability of life on this planet and should be a concern to all - not just the Indigionous and Brazillian people. It is the responsibility of everyone to resist the Bolsonaro regime and the capitalists destroying the Rainforest for profit.

In the United States, one method of resistance is through boycotting corporations that are directly responsible for the profit-driven deforestation. An example of this is JBS, which is the largest meat processing corporation in the world. Companies like JBS directly benefit from the destruction of the Amazon because it creates new grazing land where an ecological paradise once stood. In turn, this allows for increased exports of beef and, ultimately, increased profits. Boycotting the products of corporations that are directly implicated in the destruction of the Amazon would send a clear message to those capitalists using the medium they care most about.

The Socialist Party calls for a boycott of JBS beef whenever possible. JBS is distributed by U.S. Foods, sold at Walmart and Kroger, and can be found in multiple fast food establishments and small markets around the nation.

The Socialist Party stands in solidarity with the Indigenous people of the Brazilian Amazon who are being systematically removed by wildfire and military force for grazing land and development.

We further condemn the Bolsonaro regime for enabling this deadly wave of capitalist exploitation against the Amazon Rainforest, Indigenous people, and the planet as a whole.

Only through a rapid shift to socialism can the planet and its inhabitants be saved from climate extinction. We encourage you to consider joining the Socialist Party today.

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September 6, 2019