FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 27, 2021

NEW YORK, NY — Today, progressive groups gathered in Times Square to demand higher taxes on big corporations and the rich, saying the ongoing space race between billionaires, underscores their extreme wealth and shows how the tax code has been rigged in their favor.

The Tax The Rich Game Show was hosted by Tax March, Patriotic Millionaires, Strong Economy For All and New York Communities for Change with support from a coalition of a dozen other national economic justice groups. In a festival-like event, the groups called on Congress to raise taxes on corporations and capital gains,, and lower taxes on American families by extending the Child Tax Credit.

The action and ad come as part of a new $2 million ad campaign first reported by NBC News, which calls on Congress to raise taxes on big corporations and the rich as a part of Congress’ upcoming economic package. Recent polling shows that even in conservative-leaning districts, voters overwhelmingly support these tax proposals.

Congresswoman Yvette Clarke of Brooklyn commented on the demonstration: “I believe that our nation is in the midst of a reckoning across our civil society, which has been brought about not only by the interrelated crises of COVID-19 and the ensuing economic hardship, but also as a direct result of the enduring crises that we have faced for countless years with racial injustice and climate change. These many disparities have also underscored the deeply-rooted systemic racism and inequality that continue to plague our institutions. My constituents in Brooklyn, and people all across this nation, are now demanding for us to be bold — to rise up and meet the magnitude of this moment — and I am convinced we have the once-in-a-century opportunity in this Congress, right now, to truly set our nation on the path to healing and recovery. We need investments that build upon the THRIVE Agenda and provide the support that our communities all across this nation so desperately deserve. To accomplish this, we need a national Renewable Energy Standard that places renewable sources of energy, like wind and solar, at the center of our transformation to a carbon-free energy sector. And we must ensure that these renewable resources are deployed in and around the environmental justice communities who have been most harmed by our current system. That’s why I am proud to have recently introduced the American Renewable Energy Act that will set our nation on the path to 70% renewable electricity generation by 2030. As we begin to develop the framework and details of an infrastructure package that we can pass through Budget Reconciliation, I will continue to fight for the inclusion of all these priorities and more.”

Tax March Executive Director Maura Quint added: “While billionaires are taking 10-minute joyrides in space, too many everyday Americans here on earth are struggling. Yet the ultra-wealthy aren’t even asked to do the bare minimum in our society: pay their fair share in taxes. We’re here to say that needs to change now. For years, we’ve been calling on Congress to tax the rich, and now there’s a real opportunity to take a step toward a fairer tax code. President Biden is behind it, and so are Democratic leaders in Congress. It’s time to fulfill their promise and tax the rich now!”

Jamell Henderson of New York Communities for Change spoke to the crowd: “Why do we need to tax the rich? I see a lot of construction workers out there. NYC is a union town is it not? NYC is an education town, we have some of the best teachers but they’re not treated the same as whitey on the moon!”

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