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April 22 has come to be known as Earth Day, a grassroots celebration
to promote environmental
awareness and stewardship. Earth Day was the
brainchild of Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson. Nelson came up with the
idea of a national teach-in about the environment in the wake of the 1969
Santa Barbara oil spill. He hired a Harvard student named Denis Hayes to
be the national coordinator, and April 22, 1970 was the first nationally
recognized Earth Day. That year, over 20 million people took part in
peaceful demonstrations across the country. Speeches, teach-ins, sit-ins,
parades, marches, rallies and other community activities marked the
public’s concern for the deteriorating environment. In New York City, the
mayor shut down Fifth Avenue to demonstrate how quiet and clean the city
could be. Even Congress adjourned for a day, and many lawmakers attended
classes promoting environmental stewardship.
Popularity and participation in Earth Day experienced highs and lows
through the 1970's and 1980's.
The event was kept alive during this period by grassroots
movements, despite political agendas that trivialized environmental
protection. By 1990, the 20th anniversary of Earth Day, the event had
grown to have an international presence. Earth Day 1990 involved over 200
million people from 136 countries - ten times that of 1970 - and it
demonstrated that the environment had finally become a universal public
concern. Today, Earth Day continues to be celebrated on an international
scale; enjoyed in cities and country sides, streams and streets, on
beaches and highways, by school children, businesses and indeed,
conscientious people of all ages.
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