UPDATE: action cancelled; Spectra stopped construction.

It’s Erin here from BC. By now you have likely received an email (or a couple) regarding direct actions taking place at the construction site of the West Roxbury lateral extension of Spectra Corporation’s Algonquin Incremental Market (AIM) project. Despite massive resistance from the region, Spectra sued the City of Boston, won the suit, and has begun construction on the pipeline extension.

But people aren’t backing down- in the past month, waves of civil disobedience have been able to stall construction. Before construction closes for the winter, we aim to escalate resistance by bringing a large group of students together for an action that will have both arrestable and non-arrestable roles next Saturday morning.

On our respective campuses, we are doing the imperative and arduous work of building a student power movement and pressuring our universities to divest from fossil fuels. At the same time, fossil fuel corporations are continuing to trump our political processes. These are the same corporations like Spectra are continuing our extractive economy’s legacy of putting profit over people, furthering climate chaos, and taking advantaged of oppressed communities- particularly indigenous communities, communities of color, and poor communities. This is unacceptable.

We as young people and members of higher-educational communities are responding to a call to action and are uniting to fight against this infrastructure as it embodies the sacrifice of our future for the fossil fuel industry’s profit, and also as it perpetuates the systems of oppression in which we live. Through the last few months we have seen the power and the necessity of aligning the climate movement with fights against oppression throughout the current business-as-usual system. We aim to bring that narrative to this local fight.

LOGISTICAL INFO:

Action: Saturday, 21 November at the pipeline construction site (exact street TBD)

• meet at 7:30AM
• action begins around 8:30AM
• for those who are risking arrest, it usually takes an hour for police to arrest those blocking construction from taking place
• those who are arrested are not being held by police currently (more details at the training!
• the action will consist of people blocking construction equipment, in addition to people rallying around those risking arrest

Non-violent Civil Disobedience training:
Friday, 20 November 6:00-9:00pm
Theodore Parker Unitarian Church

1859 Centre St, West Roxbury, Massachusetts 02132

There will also be a pre-planning meeting early next week in the Boston area; I will follow up tomorrow with more details.

I will be checking in with folks throughout the weekend to discuss the action, recruitment throughout the next week, and any questions that you may have. (Including the legal process, transportation and lodging, etc.)

With love,
Erin
erincsutton(AT)gmail.com

—
http://floodboston.wordpress.com
—

It’s no secret that People of Color, religious minorities, and other “suspect communities” are targeted by criminal justice and national security agencies. From police scrutiny of Black Lives Matter activists to the Muslim-focused “countering violent extremism” (CVE) initiative, government surveillance divides communities, interferes with First Amendment protected activity, and impedes movement organizing.

This event will examine parallels and intersections between state profiling of Black communities, Muslims, and other Communities of Color in Boston and beyond, with special focus on the new federal CVE initiative.

Come engage with a panel of inspiring activists to explore how we can resist surveillance and strengthen the movement for racial justice through building solidarity across our diverse local communities.

Panelists:

• Said Ahmed, Co-Founder & Executive Director, United Somali Youth, inc.
• Shannon Erwin, Executive Director, Muslim Justice League
• Aisha Shillingford, Innovation Guru, Intelligent Mischief
• Carl Williams, Staff Attorney, ACLU Massachusetts

Tues Nov 17 @ 7 PM
First Church of Roxbury http://heyevent.com/venue/gqdfpxsbserawa
10 Putnam St

Moderator: Andrew Cohen, Boston Workmen’s Circle Center for Jewish Culture and Social Justice

This event is co-sponsored by the ACLU Massachusetts, Black and Pink, Boston Workmen’s Circle Center for Jewish Culture and Social Justice, Intelligent Mischief, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, Moishe Kavod House Boston, Muslim Justice League, Safe Hub Collective, and United Somali Youth, inc.

http://heyevent.com/event/nooavmx7hr6dga/resisting-surveillance-racial-religious-profiling-in-boston-beyond

Thursday 11/19 7pm, Jamaica Plain Forum

Tim DeChristopher, Wen Stephenson, Marla Marcum, Jay O’Hara:

What We’re Fighting For Now is Each Other:
Dispatches from the Front Lines of Climate Justice

We are facing catastrophic climate change and yet our political system is incapable of responding. The powerful fossil fuel industry is blocking policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and continuing to build fossil fuel infrastructure even though science is clear that we should keep coal, oil and gas in the ground.

A growing movement for Climate Justice is adopting nonviolent direct action and strategies of active resistance. What will you do to protect the earth and one another? At this program, we will celebrate the publication of Wen Stephenson’s new book and hear from three leaders featured in the book who have co-founded the new Climate Disobedience Center. http://www.climatedisobedience.org/

• Tim DeChristopher, climate activist and co-founder of Peaceful Uprising, also known as “Bidder 70”, served 21 months in 2012 and 2013 in prison for bidding on oil and gas leases in Utah to block their development. http://www.timdechristopher.org/
• Wen Stephenson, Nation correspondent and author of the new book, What We’re Fighting For Now is Each Other: Dispatches from the Front Lines of Climate Justice. http://www.thenation.com/authors/wen-stephenson/
• Marla Marcum, co-founder, Better Future Project and 350Mass., and co-founder, Climate Summer.
• Jay O’Hara, Quaker, and captain of the Henry David T, a lobster boat that blockaded coal ship, the Energy Enterprise, in front of the Somerset, MA coal plant.

RSVP: https://www.facebook.com/events/1653416858240304/

Be there 11/18/15 at the State House!

State House Day of Action
Sentencing Commission Hearing
Wednesday November 18, 2015
10:30 a.m. Room # tba

Help us move the RMV Collateral Sanctions Bill S.64/H.1429 and Justice Reinvestment Act S.64/H.1429.

Join us for a short rally and training and demonstrate our presence at the Sentencing Commission. If you or someone you know could testify and strengthen our case for repealing mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders, please email: LewFinfer(AT)gmail.com and erin(AT)n2nma.org.

Background and Next Steps

A. After the June 9 and October 10 Judiciary Committee meetings, it’s now up to them move the Justice Reinvestment Act as an omnibus bill or in pieces. It seems the Senate is ready to act. We need to reach out to House members and ask them to support the Justice Reinvestment Act S.64/H.1429 and request House Speaker DeLeo to take up our legislation.

B. The Senate passed a repeal of the Registry of Motor Vehicles fine (RMV Collateral Sanctions Bill) and the waiting period for people with non-driving related drug offenses to regain their driver’s licenses. This bill is a part of the Justice Reinvestment Act and also a single file bill. We must ask House members to request Speaker DeLeo to schedule a vote on this.

C. The State Sentencing Commission is holding an all day hearing on November 18 starting at 9:30 in Gardiner Auditorium. This is the place to make the case for two sections of the Justice Reinvestment Act: repeal of Mandatory Minimums and reducing some felonies to misdemeanors. Join us at 11:00 am for a short rally and meeting with our legislators prior to the hearing.

The Justice Reinvestment Act will improve justice and safety, reduce incarceration and invest millions of dollars to create jobs for struggling families. Your involvement is key to the success of ending mass incarceration in Massachusetts.

Jobs NOT Jails is forming a network of people who are fighting to end mass incarceration and ensure living wage jobs for all people. Please join us! We are working to create powerful actions in small teams.

Join the #WageAction Coalition on November 10, as underpaid workers stand together throughout the country for fair and equitable wages.

When 42% of working people in the United States are paid less than $15 per hour, it means the economy is way out of balance. Wages have remained stagnant for years — hurting families, communities, and the economy. In particular, women and people of color are disproportionately impacted by corporations that refuse to pay fair and equitable wages. On Tuesday, November 10th, one year from Election Day, we’re standing up as workers, voters, and advocates to say we’re with the ‘42%.’ We’ll call on corporate CEOs to raise pay and respect our right to form unions without retaliation. Workers are demanding that elected leaders recognize the need for fair pay, a pathway to citizenship, affordable housing, and that #BlackLivesMatter.

JOIN US IN BOSTON ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 10!
3:30 PM – Rally at Historic Faneuil Hall – 1 Faneuil Hall Sq. Boston, MA
4:30 PM – March to the Massachusetts State House

https://www.facebook.com/events/893263514060156