Given a week’s notice, our team mobilized around the national #DayAgainstDenial. We set up a Facebook event page (Tell our Senators: No Climate Deniers in the Cabinet), sent out an email blast, and reached out to our many ally organizations to get the word out, notably:
- Sierra Club, Southeastern PA Group
- Food and Water Watch
- Pennsylvania Interfaith Power and Light
- Brandywine Peace Community
- Veterans for Peace, Philadelphia Chapter
- Moms Clean Air Force
- Delaware Riverkeeper Network
- Green Justice Philly
- Eastwick Friends and Neighbors Coalition
- Clean Air Council
- The Shalom Center
Three days before the planned action, we got our first media coverage, from Frank Kummer of philly.com who reported: Trump “climate denial” cabinet galvanizes environmental groups, sparks rallies. Here’s where I learned that our ally organization, 350 Bucks County, had also planned a rally for the same day. And of PennFuture & Conservation Voters of PA‘s strategic alliance.
If you missed it, see our live-stream of the event here, which drew over 300 people on a bitterly cold day, amongst them StateImpact’s Jon Hurdle, who reported this: Protestors urge Senators to reject Trump nominees to environment posts. And CBS, who reported this: Philadelphians brave the cold to prevent climate change.
Hanbit, a local photographer, has shared his album from this action, capturing many of the signs stating
Stop the Trump agenda
Protect the next generation, Stop climate denier cabinet
We should be a leader in clean energy development
SAY NO to Rick Petter for Secretary of Energy
SAY NO to Scott Pruitt for EPA Administrator
SAY NO to Re Tillerson for Secretary of State
No Science Deniers
SAY NO to Ryan Zinke for Department of the Interior
photo of a child, stating simply: Protect Him
The next day, Julia Terruso of philly.com reported this: 300 Demonstrators hold separate protests on same Center City block.
Our Philly action was also mentioned in this national report from Sharon Kelly of DeSmog blog: #DayAgainstDenial Protests Across the U.S. Call Attention to Climate Change as Trump Cabinet Confirmation Hearings Begin, with a quote from the key organizer of our event, Mitch Chanin.
“Scientists and Pennsylvanians have spoken: climate change is an urgent threat to the health and safety of our communities and to people all over the world. We need cabinet officials who recognize those realities and who will work for a just and rapid transition to renewable energy, rather than denying the threats that we face and advancing the interests of the fossil-fuel industry.”
I also found this worthy of quoting
Climate scientists have warned that because of methane leaks, a switch from coal to natural gas for powering the nation’s electrical grid could actually be worse for the climate than a continued reliance on coal. In other words, carbon emissions are not the only greenhouse gas emissions that matter; methane leaks matter too.
6ABC’s 11’oclock news ran a report about the 350 Bucks action. We heard they had 175 people for the indoor talk and about 100 for the march in frigid 17 degrees.
And the Newtown Patch had this story: 175 anti-Trump Protestors Rally on State Street in Newtown.
modified Jan 13 2017 by meenal
350 Philadelphia 