Culture and Coexistence into the Great Unknown
The boom in North Dakota shale oil and the growth in Alberta tar sands, as well as the political costs of building pipelines has encouraged a move to ship more oil by rail. The move comes after high-profile disasters and the threat of massive climate disruption has caused heightened scrutiny of unconventional oil shipped by train to the global market.
Join SoCal Climate Action Coalition 350 and Tar Sands Action SoCal to Draw the Line Against Extreme Fossil Fuels on September 21st!
Idle No More Los Angeles offered drumming, prayer, poetry, and healing at the September 3rd protest at the downtown Pacific Oil Conference and Trade Show. Called “The Western Summit” for petroleum marketers, around 50 people demonstrated peacefully, holding down the corner of a busy thoroughfare of LA Live! for three hours, in the shadow of the towering new Marriott-Ritz Carlton.
David Osborn from Rising Tide asserts all new fossil fuel extraction must immediately stop if we want any chance of a habitable climate and a livable future. The climate movement needs more actions like Swamp Line 9 in Ontario, which shut down a pumping station to protest the Enbridge Line 9 Tar Sands Pipeline Reversal.
As we walked, I pondered all of the battlefields that the emerging international movement to stop the tar sands and its associated infrastructure of pipelines, refineries, and shipping lanes is engaged with. I was overcome by the magnitude of our undertaking, picking a fight with the most inhumane and wealthiest corporations on the planet.
As part of President Obama’s fundraising trip to Southern California, a crowd of over 300 activists greeted him in Santa Monica, calling for action on climate change, foremost by rejecting the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline.
The Forward on Climate LA Solidarity March and Rally took place on February 17th, 2013, where more than 1,200 people supported by 101 Southern California organizations and businesses told Mr. Obama: “Solve the Climate Crisis, Take a stand, Mr. President!” Following is a media resource list from the event, including press, photography and videos. Let’s keep it moving forward to heal the climate and our planet!