Coloradans Stand Against BLM Auction of CO Public Lands for Fracking!
Thanks so much to everyone who came out on this frigid morning to protest the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) auction of public lands to oil and gas companies for fracking. BLM has now moved the auctions online and proposed a new rule to make protests at auctions a criminal offense! And this is after reports of BLM & Lakewood police having undercover agents spying on protectors at the auction last May. (Read more here.)
Today we delivered a letter, signed by over 20 local organizations, letting them know that we will not comply with these efforts to silence our voices, avert our right to protest this unfair system of giving our land to polluters for pennies, or limit our constitutionally-protected rights of free speech and assembly in order to promote the fossil fuel leasing program. (Read more about that here.) We will stand up to collusion between the fossil fuel industry and our government – in N. Dakota and here in Colorado. The Obama Administration and BLM will be held accountable for auctioning public lands for fossil fuel development in a time when research has made clear that no new fossil fuels can be brought online if we are to stay below 1.5-2°C.
Standing Rock has made clear that we must come together to protect ourselves, and that united we win. We will not let the fossil fuel industry run roughshod over people in Colorado and criminalize our freedom of speech and assembly as we demand clean water, clean air, and a safe climate.
If you weren’t able to make it to today’s action, here’s a video to watch, here’s the press release, and here are 3 actions you can take online now:
- Make sure you aren’t inadvertently supporting the fossil fuel industry – sign our Pledge to Divest TODAY!
- Deliver a letter to your bank to let them know that you will be forced to move your money elsewhere if they are investing your funds in fossil fuel industry projects that are damaging our water, air, land and global climate, like fracking or the Dakota Access Pipeline.
- Make a call now to CO BLM State Director Ruth Welch – 303-239-3700. Tell BLM to:
- 1) Stop auctioning CO public lands for fracking,
- 2) Stop the federal leasing program because developing new fossil fuels will make it impossible for our nation to meet our commitments to keep global temperature rise below 1.5-2°C, which is necessary to prevent the worst impacts of climate change, and
- 3) withdraw the proposal to criminalize protesting public land auctions, since it is in conflict with our 1st Amendment Rights of free speech and assembly and undermines our basic democratic rights as Americans.
Thank you!