Thousands of young people descended on the Capitol on Monday as part of Powershift09, braving a freak spring storm on the Eastern seaboard that underscores the urgency of the climate crisis. And during that afternoon, more than 2500 people participated in non-violent civil disobedience at the coal-fired Capitol Power Plant as part of Capitol Climate Action to protest the continued use of coal in the U.S. despite the nefarious role it plays as a major contributor of greenhouse gases and other environmental ills. It was the largest anti-coal action in the United States to date.
As part of Powershift, students, young people and activists of all ages from across the country rallied at the Capitol and afterwards, participated in more than 350 lobby visits with members of Congress from all 50 states to lobby for clean energy and comprehensive action on the climate crisis. The organizers were able to reach out to a diversity of participants by using the power of the web, and sites like Facebook and Twitter allowed for virtual participation in the events.
While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi did not make it to give her scheduled speech to the Powershift rally because she was stuck in San Francisco due to the weather, there were a host of other notable speakers, like the new EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and Massachusetts Congressman Ed Markey (See Jesse Jenkins piece at Huffington Post to watch some of those speeches). The citizen lobbyists had attended various trainings over the weekend to prepare to talk with their representatives about the need for clean energy, green jobs and environmental social justice. Several young activists also testified before the Select Committee for Energy Independence and Global Warming, chaired by Congressman Markey.
30 year old Pete Griffin wrote about his experience at Powershift09 on the MTV blog:
"I was in D.C. at the Power Shift conference, and this was by far the largest, most organized and most passionate conference I've ever seen. In talking with these people who came in by the busload from all over the country, it is clear they all see the urgency of the issue. Rally attendee Summer Rayne Oakes summed it up best, saying, "We need to hold our elected officials accountable and make sure they pass significant climate and energy legislation in 2009 on green jobs, renewable energy and energy efficiency. I'm just one of over 12,000 that have come to D.C. today to showcase the solutions we have to combat climate change now, and I'm making sure my representatives know this issue is a critical one for myself, my generation and our planet."
Those that might be tempted to guffaw at climate activists in D.C. on a particularly cold day have not been paying attention. The reality of the climate crisis is not just warming temperatures, but more severe weather, more intense storms and dramatically shifting weather patterns. So while it was storming on the East Coast, it was 75 degrees in Denver and California's governor Schwarzenegger was declaring a state of emergency due to drought. Or take a look at Australia which the late Johnny Rook pointed out is burning up and drowning at the same time. For a more detailed explanation of the difference between weather and climate, check out the Climate Denial Crock of the Week (hat tip to A. Siegel for pointing it out).
The Capitol Power Plant protestors, who could be watched via live stream on the Capitol Climate Action website, chanted "Hey hey, ho ho, dirty coal has got to go!" "Shut It Down" and "Support the workers, not the plants!" There was a simultaneous counter-protest organized by the Competitive Enterprise Institute that included a reported 4 people carrying signs that read ‘Our Economy Runs on Coal' and ‘Al Gore, Not Evil, Just Wrong'. They called it the "Celebrate Coal! and Keep Energy Affordable" rally. But as Greenpeace's Glenn Hurowitz wrote at Grist, another name might have been more appropriate:
A better name might be the "Celebrate 24,000 Dead Americans!" rally, because that's how many people toxic pollution from coal-fired power plants kills every year, costing Americans $167 billion in additional health care costs.
Bill McKibben of 350.org, one of the organizations behind the protest along with Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network and Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN), said of the inclement weather, "'see what a real movement can accomplish? Give us another week and we'll trigger the next ice age.'' And environmental luminaries, including Bobby Kennedy Jr., James Hansen and Wendell Berry, were not put off by the cold, and addressed the protestors who blockaded the gates to the power plant and shut it down for the day.
There were no arrests at the event. According to McKibben's report for Grist, the police conceded that because of the number of people involved, they could not jail them all and so decided not to arrest anyone. It is also noteworthy that the majority of protestors were wearing dress clothes at the request of the organizers who wanted to show "that there's nothing radical about shutting down coal-fired power." One impact of the protest pre-dated the action itself as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sent a letter the previous week requesting that the Capitol Power Plant switch over to 100% natural gas. Choosing the Capitol Power Plant was only symbolic, however, as the activists were really there to draw attention to the folly of America's continued reliance on coal across the country.
At the end of the day, organizers sent this message on Twitter - "Thanks for all the follows and retweets today. I can promise you this is just the beginning. No more coal. Onward!"
More Video from Powershift09 available here.
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