Tuesday, December 20, 2016

As the first offshore wind project in New York gets approval, a huge crowd rallies to support Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) and ask for offshore wind commitment in New York

>>CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS<<

Hempstead, N.Y.— One week after the Block Island Wind Farm began producing power, New York labor unions, civic and environmental organizations and elected officials hosted a rally outside of Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) today praising them for their support of offshore wind power and next month’s expected vote to move forward on the nation’s largest offshore wind project. Over 100 gathered in front of LIPA, representing Long Island’s largest showing of support for offshore wind to date. Located off the east end of Long Island, Deepwater Wind’s 90-megawatt, 15-turbine project will produce enough energy to power about 50,000 Long Island homes by 2022.  Additionally, groups are calling on LIPA to move forward on the Island-Wide renewable energy Request for Proposal in early 2017 which could include another 210 MW of offshore wind off of Long Island’s south fork.

With states like Massachusetts and Rhode Island already moving forward with offshore wind power now, New York must act quickly to become a regional hub for this new clean energy industry. On December 15, Statoil Wind US LLC won the most recent Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) offshore wind lease auction securing 80,000 acres off the Rockaways.  

Now it is more urgent than ever for Governor Cuomo to commit to a large-scale, long-term offshore wind program in the State of the State, which is critical to ensure that he meets his goal of powering 50 percent of New York’s energy from renewables by 2030 and provide thousands of new jobs and economic development opportunities throughout the state.  

#350BK #350NYC #Activism #ActOnClimate #AllOurEnergy #BeyondCoal #ClimateChange #climatejustice #Energy #EnergyDemocracy #energyefficiency #FossilFree #GoFossilFree #hearing #IBEW #LIPA #MakeREVreal #NationalWildlifeFoundation #NewYork #NWF #NYC #NYPIRG #rally #RenewableEnergy #SaneEnergyProject #SaneSolutions #SierraClub #UnitedForAction #WindPower #WinWindNY #YOUAREHERE

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Sunday, December 18, 2016

Thousands March and Rally to Support Immigrant New York on International Migrants Day

>>CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS<<


On Sunday, December 18th, thousands of New Yorkers came out on globally recognized International Migrants Day to attend “The March for Immigrant New York”. Organized by the New York Immigration Coalition and sponsored by 85 organizations representing immigrant rights and advocacy, legal services, labor, faith, civil rights, LGBTQI, women’s rights, and anti-violence groups, today’s march brought together New Yorkers to send a clear message to President-elect Trump and his administration that immigrant communities are here to stay. Rally participants pledged to help protect and defend immigrant New Yorkers, and help fight back against hate and anti-immigrant policies.

Before marching, DACA recipients, members of the Muslim community, and immigrants at risk of deportation, faith leaders, and allies spoke, sharing their stories, and calling on New Yorkers regardless of immigration status to stand together.

The “March for Immigrant NY” travelled from the Dag Hammerskjold Plaza near the United Nations to Trump Tower to take this message of resilience and hope directly to the president-elect. Making it's way up 5th avenue, passerbys joined the march, adding to the thousands who pledged to protect "Immigrant New York." The hashtag #ImmigrantNY was the number 1 trending hashtag on twitter nationwide.

At the rally before the march, Steven Choi, executive director of New York Immigration Coalition said, “We have four simple demands for the president-elect: defend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, which provides 50,000 New Yorkers work permits and other essential resources, protect immigrant communities from deportation, prevent the creation of a Muslim registry and support critical refugee resettlement programs. This is what we are marching for at the “March for Immigrant New York” today and we call on all New Yorkers to join us in our pledge to protect our neighbors, family members, and friends.”

New York City elected officials, Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Public Advocate Letitia James, State Senator-elect Marisol Alcantara, Assembly Member Jo Anne Simone, Assembly Member-elect Carmen De La Rosa and Council Members Carlos Menchaca and Ydanis Rodriguez joined the rally, pledging their support for New York’s immigrants, many who feel tremendous fear and uncertainty.

#2016 #Activism #CarlosMenchaca #demonstration #deportation #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump #FirstAmendment #HereToStay #humanrights #ImmigrantNY #immigration #InternationalMigrantsDay #LoveTrumpsHate #MuslimRights #NewYork #NotMyPresident #NYC #NYIC #PeacefulProtest #Protest #rally #RejectPresidentElect #revolution #‎Solidarity #StopTheHate #trump #trumpvsallofus #WhiteSupremacy

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Friday, December 16, 2016

New York stands in solidarity with Aleppo

What's happening in Aleppo is absolutely disgusting and we should all be in mourning for humanity right now. We CANNOT stand at the sidelines. We MUST act now. I know it feels hopeless but we have to educate the masses and we have to fight back and not be complacent in people's oppression. 

New Yorkers gathered on Friday the 16th at Washington Sq. Park to hold a peaceful protest and a candlelight vigil to stand in solidarity with Syrian people. Demanding to stop the slaughter of civilian targets and rescue workers. Stop the sieges and demand that the UN and the international community stop the war criminals. Save Syria! Save Aleppo! Stop the Massacres!, Stop the Genocide! 

#2016 #Activism #Aleppo #Art #CandlelightVigil #demonstration #FreeSyria #NewYork #NYC #NYC2Syria #PeacefulProtest #rally #SaveAleppo #SaveSyria #‎Solidarity #StandWithSyria #Syria #SyriaCrisis #WashingtonSquare


© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Rally at Trump Tower calling to Delay the Vote of the Electoral College pending a full investigation into interference in our election by groups allied with the Russian government


A diverse group of New Yorkers, including armed service veterans, millennial organizers, and concerned citizens gathered at Trump Tower on Wednesday, December 14 to denounce the hacking of the election by groups close to the Putin government, and call for a delay in the Electoral College vote scheduled for Monday pending the completion of a full, transparent, and unbiased investigation of interference in our election by groups allied with the Russian government.  

The CIA and other intelligence agencies have come to the explosive conclusion that Putin's government not only interfered in our election, but did so to tip the scales for Trump. Former acting CIA director under George W. Bush Michael Morell has called the hacking of our election “the political equivalent of 9/11” and “an existential threat to our way of life.” Donald Trump, who already lost the popular vote by almost 3 million votes, may only have won the electoral college as a result of this interference from groups close to the Putin government. Organizers will call for the Electoral College vote scheduled for December 19th to be postponed pending the conclusion of a full, public, and bipartisan investigation of electoral interference by Russian hackers.  

"After serving in uniform overseas, protecting U.S. operations from espionage by Russia and other countries whose leaders wish to do us harm, seeing the fairness and freedom of America's democracy undermined here at home is a nightmare made real. If our leaders do not act immediately to address Russian interference in our election, they are failing the millions of veterans, active duty service members, and intelligence officers who've sacrificed so much to defend our democracy,” said Alexander McCoy. McCoy is a former United States Marine Corps Sergeant who served in U.S. Embassies in Saudi Arabia, Honduras, and Germany. He represents Common Defense, a diverse, grassroots organization of U.S. veterans who are fighting to preserve the core values they swore to uphold and defend by protecting our communities from hate and violence, serving on the front lines for social, economic, and environmental justice, and by championing a truly equitable and representative democracy. 

“Our country is in crisis,” said Yong Jung Cho, co-founder of #AllofUs. “We refuse to stand idly by while our democracy is under attack. If we don’t act now, in just a few short days the Electoral College will make Donald Trump president—despite his losing the popular vote by almost 3 million votes, and despite these new shocking revelations about interference. Without a full public airing of the facts related to the hacking of our election, the outcome has no legitimacy. We demand that the Electoral College vote scheduled for Monday be delayed pending the completion of a full, transparent, bipartisan investigation into the hacking of our election.” 

#2016 #Activism #AllofUs #CommonDefense #DefendDemocracy #DelaytheVote #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump #ElectoralCollege #ElectoralVote #FirstAmendment #LoveTrumpsHate #NewYork #NotMyPresident #NYC #PeacefulProtest #Protest #rally #RejectPresidentElect #‎Solidarity #StopTheHate #trump #trumpvsallofus 

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963

PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Monday, December 12, 2016

Women and Allies stand and march in solidarity as a statement against Trump’s hate in New York City, as part of a Nationwide Protest 


On the 12th of December, women and allies (This includes but is not limited to: People of Color, LGBTQA/GNC, Immigrants, Disabled Persons, and any other marginalized communities, and allies) in cities across the country unify to demonstrate collective power, and to deliver the message in a unified voice that women are ready to stand against any government action that would serve to erode the rights of women and other vulnerable groups.

Women and Allies Protest will demand that electoral college voters who have declared their votes for the president-elect change their decision and support Hillary Clinton, who won the popular vote by 2.6 million. While it's unlikely that 38 electoral college voters will change their minds, this election has proven that anything could happen. At the least, this protest will unite millions of people—whether straight, queer, trans, black, Latino, white, documented, undocumented, civilian, military, young, old, male, female—who refuse to normalize bigoted invective and hate crimes. 

The objectives of Monday’s strike are clear. Nationwide, in 20 different cities (four of which were still pending permits as of last week), women and allies will stand and march in solidarity as a statement against Trump’s hate. There will be point people at each march to encourage participants to sign a Change.org petition that encourages the Electoral College to cast their votes for Hillary Clinton when they meet on December 19. It already has over 4 million signatures. And for those who can’t take the day off to strike, Massaro and Gutierrez and the rest of the country’s organizers have concocted an alternate way to express solidarity.

Strike out message: The president-elect has demonstrated overt contempt for women and a troubling sexual misogyny before and during his campaign. As such, we have no reason to believe that the new president or his nominees or the Republican Congress will stand up for women's rights. So we must take action ourselves. By striking out on December 12th we demonstrate our collective power as citizens and our determination to act as a check against any effort to erode the rights of women. In addition, we stand in solidarity with the myriad other groups the president-elect has maligned during his shameful campaign.

#2016 #Activism #Art #ColumbusCircle #demonstration #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump #Election2016 #ElectoralCollege #ElectoralElectors #NewYork #NotMyPresident #NYC #nycprotest #PeacefulProtest #ProtestDec12th #pussygrabsback #rally #RejectPresidentElect #‎Solidarity #strikeout #trump #TrumpTower #trumpvsallofus #VoteHimOut #womenandallies #WomenRights

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Saturday, December 10, 2016

Bread and Puppet Theater presents The Whatforward Circus! at the Theater for the New City

Back by popular demand for the first two weeks in December at the Theater for the New City, 155 1st Avenue, New York, Theater for the New City presents the internationally acclaimed Bread and Puppet Theater! Bread and Puppet makes its annual return to New York with The Whatforward Circus, in which a group of stoneage technology puppeteers, brass players, and percussionists check out the prominent forwardmoving passions and politics of our capitalist culture, and make real and unreal against-the-grain proposals to identify and fight the anonymous monster, the big fat Wrong; complete with Mongolian hordes, singing toilets and stilted flying businessmen!

The “Whatforward Circus,” a nearly 60-minute cavalcade of vibrant circus animal puppet acts, delightful dances, and appearances by such performers as Fritz the Magnificent, Genghis Khan, and representatives from Pluto.

Of course, this is Bread and Puppet, for whom theater and politics is as essential a pairing as the bread and aioli they serve after every performance. In this circus, a seemingly simple dance by a trio of monster puppets with outsize heads becomes an indictment of the United Nations’s unwillingness to provide reparations for the thousands of Haitians infected with cholera by water the UN provided; or a hilarious dancercise class actually illustrates how Puerto Rico is being crushed by US colonization.

Founder and artistic director Peter Schumann once again creates vibrant and evocative clouds, waves, animals, and trees from the simplest combinations of color and papier mache. The “Whatforward Circus” represented a collection of wins and losses in Bread and Puppet’s chronicle of social justice in the United States, ranging from the murder of a Honduran activist to a shoutout in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. But certainly one of the standouts was the chorus line of toilets that performed a kick line, complete with flipping toilet lids rather than top hats, to decry South Carolina’s attempt to limit transgender access to bathrooms.

#2016 #Art #BreadAndPuppet #NewYork #NYC #Performance #PeterSchumann #Puppets #Theater #TNC #WhatforwardCircus

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Thursday, December 8, 2016

Rally to Make the CUNY School System Sanctuary at CUNY Headquarters in New York


December 8th marks a month since the night of the elections. While many of the City University of New York (CUNY) students have been living with anxiety and fear of what the future holds for them, CUNY has not taken a stance to protect its large undocumented community. 

CUNY- starting with The City College of New York (CCNY), was funded with the values of helping immigrants and minorities succeed and gave many the opportunity of having a college education; this was a big challenge to the status quo during its time. 

Today, we demand that CUNY reflects on those values and make them stronger than ever. We ask CUNY to stand up and protect the community of undocumented students against the offensive rhetoric that president-elect Donald Trump has pledge to act upon once reaching office on January 20th. As well as maintain a safe learning environment for ALL its students by becoming a sanctuary university as many colleges and universities across the nation have already done so. 

We bring forth many petitions, written by students, to make their individual college a sanctuary campus. However, we urge CUNY to lead by example, as an umbrella for these individual colleges, to stand up, protect, and continue challenging the status quo in order to keep on incubating some of the sharpest minds in the nation.

#2016 #Activism #demonstration #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump #EndWhiteSupremacy #FirstAmendment #humanrights #immigration #LoveTrumpsHate #MuslimRights #NewYork #NoDAPL #NotMyPresident #NYC #PeacefulProtest #Protest #rally #RejectPresidentElect #revolution #‎Solidarity #StopTheHate #trump #trumpvsallofus #WhiteSupremacy #CarlosMenchaca #CUNY #CUNYrising #deportation #ErikMcGregor #MakeCUNYsanctuary #PSCCUNY

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

New Yorkers unite for a peaceful rally outside the Waldorf Astoria NYC to disrupt the Wells Fargo Pipeline Investors Symposium


In Solidarity with Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, #NoDAPL allies unite for a peaceful rally outside the Waldorf Astoria NYC, at the 15th Annual Wells Fargo Pipeline Symposium, to hold Wells Fargo Accountable for funding DAPL and to raise awareness of pipelines being built in New York.

The day of action protesting the Wells Fargo Pipeline Symposium is part of a global month of mobilization by water protectors at Sacred Stone Camp that calls on all customers to divest from the banks funding DAPL in order to pressure them to cancel loans for the pipeline.

Despite the recent halt on Dakota Access Pipeline construction, on Tuesday, December 6th from 12 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., New Yorkers concerned about the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline and its violations of the indigenous rights, treaty provisions, and environmental sovereignty of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe will join together to reject the 15th Annual Wells Fargo Pipeline, MLP and Utility Symposium held at the Waldorf Astoria New York luxury hotel located in midtown Manhattan (301 Park Ave). New Yorkers will also be speaking to a broader message of defunding all extractive infrastructures, including projects that threaten their own communities. This includes Spectra Energy’s now third attempt to run a pipeline through the Hudson River this week and Pilgrim Pipeline Holdings’ projects, which also threatens to cross the Hudson.

Earth Guardians NY Regional Director and Clearwater Board Member Rachel Marco-Havens, who will be speaking at this rally, writes, "New York stands in solidarity, literally mirroring Standing Rock, as Spectra (soon to merge with DAPL stakeholder, Enbridge) makes its third attempt to go under the Hudson River. With Spectra already running through Ramapough Lunaape Nation land and the Pilgrim Pipeline seeking right of way, these investments hurt all of us. The return on industry investment in the massive buildout of fossil fuel infrastructure comes at the expense of the health and safety of millions of people in every stage of these projects. We must transition to renewable energy now."

Leaders of 70+ oil companies will be attending the Wells Fargo’s symposium. This roster includes the Dallas-based company responsible for the Dakota Access Pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners, which is expected to be represented by its President/COO Matt Ramsey and Vice President Brent Ratliff. Through  peaceful action, activists will hold these individuals, and Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan, accountable for funding the Dakota Access Pipeline. Adam Elfers, an activist involved with organizing this rally and the co-founder of  Defund DAPL, urges that “Wells Fargo needs to follow its obligations to environmental  protection and indigenous rights under the Equator Principles by immediately withdrawing loans from the Dakota Access Pipeline.” As the Wells Fargo’s symposium is happening inside the Waldorf Astoria’s Grand Ballroom, New Yorkers outside will be making solidarity pledges to close their bank accounts with companies that support big oil.

#2016 #ClimateChange #climatejustice #CorporateGreed #DakotaAccess #DakotaAccessPipeline #DefendTheSacred #DefundDAPL #demonstration #divest #DivestDAPL #FossilFree #IndigenousRights #JoshFox #KeepItIntheGround #mniwiconi #NewYork #NoDAPL #NYC #NYC2StandingRock #PeacefulProtest #PeacefulResistance #ProtectTheSacred #Protest #‎Solidarity #StandingRock #StandWithStandingRock #StopTheBlackSnake #StopThePipeline #WaldorfAstoriaNYC #WaterDefenders #WaterIsLife #WaterProtectors ‪#‎weareallconnected‬ #WellsFargo

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE
 

WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Hundreds of New York activists march in solidarity with water protectors as 2000 veterans deploy to North Dakota, demanding an end to main stream media silence on Standing Rock

NEW YORK, NY-- On December 4, over 2000 veterans, including Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, will join the water protectors in North Dakota in opposition to the militarized police force. As a sign of solidarity with water protectors as 2000 veterans deploy to North Dakota, The Climate Mobilization, as allies, peacefully gathered in Union Square and then began to march to Columbus/Indigenous Circle at 3 pm, where CNN's New York HQ are located. Activists demand that CNN and the rest of the mainstream media end the white-out on the events at Standing Rock.

Media coverage has been presenting the events at Standing Rock as police "clashing" with protesters, when the reality of the situation is very different. The militarized police force has been attacking peaceful, unarmed water protectors with rubber bullets, tear gas, and spraying water in sub-freezing temperatures. We demand accurate coverage of these atrocious events. Standing Rock is to 2016 what Selma was to 1965, and it should be on the evening news.

“Hopefully the media will be forced to confront reality in the face of our actions,” said Wes Clark Jr., co- organizer of Veterans Standing for Standing Rock and a member of TCM’s Climate Year program. “With the army corps of engineers’ eviction notice for Dec 5, the timing could not be more important or newsworthy."

Co-sponsored by Veterans for Peace- NYC Chapter 34, Bronx Climate Justice North, NYC Grassroots Alliance, and Grassroots Action Network.

#2016 #ArmyCorpsOfEngineers #ClimateMobilization #CorporateGreed #DakotaAccess #DakotaAccessPipeline #DefendTheSacred #demonstration #FossilFree #indigenous #IndigenousRights #IndigenousRising #KeepItIntheGround #mniwiconi #NewYork #NoDAPL #NYC #NYC2StandingRock #PeacefulProtest #PeacefulResistance #ProtectTheSacred #Protest #resistenciaindigena #Solidarity #StandingRock #StandWithStandingRock #StopTheBlackSnake #StopThePipeline #VeteransForPeace #WaterDefenders #WaterIsLife #WaterProtectors ‪#‎weareallconnected

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Saturday, December 3, 2016

America Was Never Great: New Yorkers Rally and Protest Against White Supremacy


On December 3, People’s Power Assemblies called for a rally and march at Columbus Circle to protest the continual rise of white supremacy with the election of Donald Trump. 

AMERICA WAS NEVER GREAT because America was built on white supremacy. white supremacy has decimated communities of color from slavery & genocide to land theft & police brutality. 

* Today Flint, Michigan still has no clean water. 
* Black children across the country are being poisoned and disabled through state neglect. 
* Standing Rock Water Protectors are being maimed by militarized police as they defend land and life against white supremacy.

White supremacy disables communities of color physically, mentally, and emotionally, and disabled people of color are disproportionately harmed by state violence. The police continue to disable and kill black and brown people with impunity. Over 50% of people murdered by police have a mental and/or physical disability. Police routinely misinterpret a person’s inability to comply with their demands due to a mental or physical disability as an intent to resist.

2 years ago today, the cop who killed Eric Garner, Daniel Pantaleo was not indicted. This year cops have killed over a thousand people, disproportionately people of color. 

White supremacy and the racist police war on oppressed communities across this country must come to an end, and it will only end with thousands upon thousands in the streets demanding it.

#2016 #Activism #AmericaWasNeverGreat #BlackLivesMatter #demonstration #DonaldTrump #DumpTrump #EndWhiteSupremacy #FirstAmendment #humanrights #immigration #LoveTrumpsHate #MuslimRights #NewYork #NoDAPL #NotMyPresident #NYC #PeacefulProtest #Protest #rally #RejectPresidentElect #revolution #‎Solidarity #StopTheHate #trump #trumpvsallofus #WhiteSupremacy 

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Friday, December 2, 2016

Judge McCarthy finds Montrose 9 guilty of blocking a Spectra Energy ware yard to halt pipeline construction, sentencing January 6th.


Cortlandt, NY — Four months after conclusion of the trial, today Judge Daniel McCarthy found the “Montrose 9” guilty of disorderly conduct for blocking traffic in Cortlandt Town Court. The “Montrose 9,” local residents and environmental advocates who were arrested for blocking access to a ware yard in Montrose to halt construction of Spectra Energy’s AIM pipeline on November 9, 2015, claimed that their actions were necessary to prevent a greater harm.

At the Press Conference after Judge McCarthy's verdict, Defense Counsel, Martin Stolar, a prominent social justice attorney, said “I am extremely disappointed with respect to the necessity defense, which seems so obviously true. We will take it up on appeal. They (the defendants) are heroes, not criminals.”

After months of delay, testimony from the final defendants ended on July 22, 2016. Many of the defendants expressed their concerns about global climate change and environmental damage from the fracked methane gas the pipeline will carry, fear of pipeline explosions and the possibility of another “Fukushima on the Hudson.”


Their goal at trial was to prove that the violation they committed - blockading Spectra from constructing a fracked gas pipeline - was necessary to prevent a greater harm. They demonstrated that Spectra Energy's AIM pipeline presents immediate risks from explosions and impacts the health and safety of the community. Additionally, they noted that the fossil fuel industry is locking our nation into an unsustainable future of fossil fuels at a time when the country has to move towards renewable energy resources. They made clear that although members of the community had been diligently working through regulatory channels, their efforts were stymied by interminable delays and legal maneuvers, leaving them no recourse but to pursue non-violent direct action.

Although today’s ruling was not the outcome that many present had hoped for, the Montrose 9 and their allies said that they plan to continue the fight.


Marty Stolar: “Judge McCarthy’s verdict is guilty. The Judge rejects the justification as being speculative and the harm is not imminent or about to occur. He then rejects our first amendment defense, and find that the prosecution has proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt. The justification defense which he rejects, we all know, and you all know, the actions were justified, the harm is imminent, and the pipeline is extraordinarily dangerous, and constitutes a present harm and a present threat to every resident in this town, in this county and of the areas surrounding Indian Point. An appeal will be led after the sentence is imposed on January 6th.”

Susan Rutman: “It is absolutely staggering. This decision is disrespectful. But we will persevere. We cannot be thwarted by the limited scope of the legal system. He (the judge) wouldn't even make a declaratory statement.”


Andrew Ryan: “This furthers my belief that we are run by a Corp-ocracy. They are people who care only about profits. They create and they interpret the law.”


For over three years, these concerned residents along with a number of groups in Westchester County, petitioned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) asking for an independent and transparent study to be done before allowing Spectra’s dangerous Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) pipeline to be built. Their concerns, and those of elected officials at all levels of government, were ignored; FERC similarly dismissed the concerns of nuclear safety experts and pipeline experts. This refusal of FERC to acknowledge or address health and safety concerns meant that the local community had no legal or policy recourse, which supported their claim of necessity defense.

As of today’s date, Spectra still has not completed pipeline construction as the project has encountered environmental violations, noise complaints, and legal challenges. For months they have tried and failed to run the 42” pipeline under the Hudson River adjacent to Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant, with another attempt slated for this month. As a stop gap measure to bypass their failed river section and salvage the project, FERC granted permission to Spectra Energy to run additional gas through existing pipelines under the Hudson and Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant. This scenario, running additional gas through 50- and 60-year-old pipelines under the plant, was never examined by FERC or the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for safety and was not a condition granted in the FERC permit.

It is the latest in a string of examples of FERC’s failure to address safety concerns or act in the best interests of public heath and safety. In fact, today, members of Resist Spectra, Safe Energy Rights Group (SEnRG), and Stop the Algonquin Pipeline Expansion (SAPE) are in Washington DC attending The Peoples’ Hearing, where representatives of impacted communities will provide testimony and evidence of FERC’s abuses of power and law across the country. Their evidence will demonstrate to Congress the need to reform this rogue agency and reexamine their authority under the Natural Gas Act.

#Activism #ActOnClimate #AIMpipeline #BeyondExtremeEnergy #BXE #CFOW #ClimateChange #climatejustice #Cuomo #energyefficiency #FERC #FossilFree #Fracking #KeepItIntheGround #Methane #Montrose9 #NewYork #NoPipelines #ResistAIMpipeline #ResistSpectra #SaneEnergyProject #SAPE #SEnRG #‎Solidarity #StopAIMpipeline #StopSpectra ‪#‎weareallconnected‬ #WeSayNo #YOUAREHERE

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK

Thursday, December 1, 2016

New York City AIDS Memorial Park at St Vincent's Triangle is dedicated on World AIDS Day 2016 

Thursday, December 1st 2016, marks the public dedication of the New York City AIDS Memorial and the City-wide World AIDS Day ceremony. Paul Kelterborn and Christopher Tepper, Co-Founders, will join Keith Fox, Board Chair, formally dedicated the memorial.

The public dedication marks the culmination of over five years of planning and development to build the memorial, which involved significant private and public support. The Memorial project was launched in 2011 to recognize and preserve the history of the AIDS crisis through the creation of a memorial to honor New York City’s 100,000+ men, women and children who have died from AIDS, and to commemorate and celebrate the efforts of the caregivers and activists who responded heroically to the crisis.

The public dedication and City-wide World AIDS Day ceremony will be hosted by the New York City AIDS Memorial Board of Directors, the End AIDS NY 2020 Coalition, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the New York State Department of Health.

>>CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS<<


The Memorial is located in a new park, officially named the New York City AIDS Memorial Park at St. Vincent’s Triangle, and is the first significant public space dedicated to the AIDS epidemic in New York City.

NYC AIDS Memorial launched an international design competition in November 2011. Studio ai, led by Mateo Paiva, Lily Lim and Esteban Erlich, won the competition to become the park’s architect. Their design features an 18-foot steel canopy as the dramatic gateway to the new St. Vincent’s Hospital Park in the West Village.

The NYC AIDS Memorial also features the work of world-renowned visual artist Jenny Holzer. The engraved granite pavers includes sections from Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself. The Memorial also includes a central granite water feature and benches and will serve as the gateway to the new park.

#2016 #Activism #ActUp #ActUpNY #AIDS #BillDeBlasio #ceremony #DeBlasio #GayRights #GrandCentral #HIV #HIVJustice #HousingWorks #humanrights #LGBTQ #march #MayorDeBlasio #NewYork #NYC #NYCAidsMemorial #NYCParks #rally #‎Solidarity #StopTheHate #StVincentTriangle #WeAreNotAfraid #WestVillage

© Erik McGregor - erikrivas@hotmail.com - 917-225-8963


PLEASE


WE ALL ARE NON PROFITS THAT KEEP DOING OUR WORK 
OUT OF THE KIND DONATIONS FROM THE PEOPLE WHO 
APPRECIATE AND SUPPORT OUR WORK