EPA Headquarters Named After Bill Clinton - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - - - - - - - - - And Dr. Marsha Coleman Adebayo?

PRESIDENT'S CORNER
By Norris McDonald

EPA HQ South Building Should Be Named After Dr. Marsha Coleman-Adebayo

EPA Headquarters was named after former President Bill Clinton at a ceremony in Washington, DC this week.  Legislation sponsored by Senate Environment and Public Works Chairwoman Barbara Boxer making the change passed last December.   It wasn't easy.  She had to tack on naming a federal court building in Texas after the Bush presidents in order to get it passed.

Yet, Bill Clinton was not seen as being a particularly distinguished environmentalist during his two terms.  In fact, the consensus in the environmental community is that his adminstration was very disappointing, particularly in regards to global warming.  This disappointment was exacerbated by Al Gore being vice president, who was seen as being in the environmental protection vanguard.  Gore appeared to be handcuffed for eight years and made up for it after he was out of office.



EPA Headquarters

I always have to be the curmudgeon.  Sigh.  EPA, under the Clinton administration, was convicted of racial and sexual discrimination and fined $600,000 in the Marsha Coleman-Adebayo court case.  She went on to get the No Fear Act passed in Congress, that addressed such problems throughout the Executive Branch.  I guess her invitation to the naming ceremony was lost in the mail.  So not only was Bill Clinton not considered to be a notable environmentalist, his administration has the ugly Adebayo stain on it.  But Coleman-Adebayo's antagonists were all promoted and now their boss has the federal government's environmental protection building named after him.

EPA has two wings, a north building and a south building.  I think it only fair that the south building should be named after Marsha Coleman-Adebayo [The Marsha Coleman-Adebayo Building].  (Wash Post, 7/17/2013)