Wellfleet's Harriet Jerusha Korim, to the extreme left above, was among the 70 protesters arrested in Washington, DC yesterday, an event that has not yet appeared in the mainstream media here in the USA, as far as I know, but was covered by the Guardian on Friday.
Harriet sent this email before leaving:
"NOW I'M SIXTY-FOUR, BUT... I’ll be sixty-five next Sunday, August 21st and plan to observe the occasion at the White House, as a tiny part of Tar Sands Action, a sustained wave of direct non-violent action from August 20 until September 3, aiming to defuse what some call 'the biggest carbon bomb in North America.' I will be one of more than 2,000 US and Canadian participants in the largest act of collective civil disobedience in the history of the climate movement. The decision on the Tar Sands Keystone XL pipeline rests with Obama alone; we plan to remind him of his promises to stand up to the fossil fuel industries and work for a sustainable future. Those who want to take a stand, but can’t come to D.C. can sign a petition that will be delivered to the White House. Those who can come, but choose not to risk arrest, can join the support team or attend a closing rally, open to all, on September 3. Why am I choosing to go to one of my least favorite places to be in August to protest something I didn't even know about a month ago? Here's a sample bit of general inspiration (5 minutes). If you’d like to learn about the Tar Sands Pipeline you take a quick look here or check out Wikipedia. Wherever you are on Sunday, I’ll be thinking of you."
Last year we had a green guest from Canada who explained her opposition to the Tar Sands exploitation and her distress that a change in government has endangered the area. Many Canadians share the same feelings, she said.
If you have the August National Geographic there are photos of the Tar Sands. Or, simply check out this Huffpost article. There was also an explanation of what could go wrong in MotherJones last January. Today the New York Times came out strongly against the Tar Sands pipeline.
Yesterday Harriet posted the following message to Facebook:
"My most interesting birthday ever, i think, getting arrested at the White House and lead away in handcuffs, while supporters sang Happy Birthday....There is a wonderful group of people from all over Canada and US, protesting Tar Sands Pipeline and reminding Barack of his promises to all of us (including his kids) ..."
You can read Harriet's blog at Cape Cool.
Have you signed the petition? If not, what are you waiting for?
