Ensayo

Earth Day

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          By the early 1960s Americans were becoming aware of the effects of pollution on the environment. Rachel Carson's 1962 bestseller "Silent Spring" raised the specter ofthe dangerous effects of pestisides on America's countrysides. Later in the decade, a 1969 fire on Cleveland's Cuyahoga River shed light on the problem of chemical waste disposal. Until that time,protecting the planet's natural resources was not part of the national political agenda, and the number of activists devoted to large-scale issues such as industrial pollution was minimal. Factoriespumped pollutants into the air, lakes and rivers with few legal consequences. Big, gas-guzzling cars were considered a sign of prosperity. Only a small portion of the American population was familiarwith–let alone practiced–recycling.

          Elected to the U.S. Senate in 1962, Senator Gaylord Nelson, a Democrat fromWisconsin, was determined to convince the federal government that the planet wasat risk. In 1969, Nelson, considered one of the leaders of the modern environmental movement, developed the idea for Earth Day after being inspired by the anti-Vietnam War "teach-ins" that were takingplace on college campuses around the United States. According to Nelson, he envisioned a large-scale, grassroots environmental demonstration "to shake up the political establishment and force thisissue onto the national agenda."

          Nelson announced the Earth Day concept at a conference in Seattle in the fall of 1969 and invited the entire nation to get involved. He later recalled, "Thewire services carried the story from coast to coast. The response was electric. It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country. TheAmerican people finally had a forum to express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes and air—and they did so with spectacular exuberance." Dennis Hayes, a young activist who...