SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Protesters Forcibly Removed by Police As Arctic Drilling Ship Escapes Blockade
After blocking vessel for nearly two days, activists said to be 'tired and hot, but filled with gratitude'
Jul 31, 2015
Ending a nearly two-day standoff, Greenpeace activists who had successfully blocked passage of a Shell Oil drilling vessel were dramatically removed from their positions on the St. Johns Bridge in Portland, Oregon on Thurdsay evening as a special team of law enforcement officers cut them away to allow passage of the ship.
"Now all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic." --GreenpeaceAs the local KOIN TV reported the events:
Hours after anti-Arctic drilling activists successfully stopped Shell's icebreaker Fennica from leaving a Portland drydock, the ship slowly but effectively passed safely underneath the St. Johns Bridge.
After turning back around 7:45 a.m. on its first attempt to leave Portland, local, state and federal agencies took steps to ensure the ship could leave the dock on its way to the Arctic.
The efforts began around 2:20 p.m. when the St. Johns Bridge was closed. A PF&R High Angle Rope Rescue team was sent to the bridge to prepare. A Portland police officer began rappelling down the bridge around 3:45 p.m.
By 4:45 p.m., 3 climbers were lowered from the St. Johns Bridge in a coordinated effort from law enforcement agencies - local, state and federal. As they got to the boat, they were arrested and handcuffed. Their lines and platforms were pulled down and gathered.
A protester tweeted the authorities were cutting the climbers' tag lines, then attaching them to the authorities' lines, taking control in order to lower them off the bridge.
Authorities did not bother clearing all 13 rappelling protesters. Rather, they cleared just enough for the Fennica to have a clear path to make its way under the bridge.
As the events unfolded, an enormous crowd gathered on the shore to watch as boaters and kayakers in the harbor also tried to get in the path of the ship.
Though the activists could not ultimately stop the ship entirely, organizers involved with the blockade effort said the attention the two-day action brought to issue and the courage shown by the many, many people involved constitutes a significant fight in the ongoing campaign to save the Arctic from oil and gas drilling.
"Scientists have sounded the alarm, telling us we need to keep most of our known fossil fuel reserves in the ground," said Maya Jarrad with 350PDX, "and we have heeded the call with direct action in defense of our planet. Hundreds of Portlanders joined us in saying, 'Shell No!' and 'Stop that boat!' and we are grateful for their support."
Rev. Marilyn Sewell of the First Unitarian Church of Portland said, "There is no greater moral issue before us today than global warming. Our generation has a sacred calling to prevent the worst: flooding of our cities, refugees fleeing rising water, failed states, and armed conflict over resources. The activists who created the blockade with their very bodies are spiritual warriors of the highest degree."
And Daphne Wysham, director of the Sustainable Energy and Economy Network, added, "When our elected officials refuse to act on climate change and permit extreme energy extraction such as Shell's reckless drilling in the Arctic, we are prepared to take direct, nonviolent action to preserve a planet for all of our children's sake, and hope others will do the same."
After the Fennica moved beyond the bridge, Greenpeace later announced that all other climbers soon came off the bridge. "Now," the group stated, "all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic."
Watch:
On Twitter:
In a statement released later on Thursday evening, Shell said, "The Fennica is now safely on its way to Alaska and will join Shell's exploration fleet in the Chukchi Sea - where the Transocean Polar Pioneer commenced initial drilling operations at approximately 5:00 tonight AKDT."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Ending a nearly two-day standoff, Greenpeace activists who had successfully blocked passage of a Shell Oil drilling vessel were dramatically removed from their positions on the St. Johns Bridge in Portland, Oregon on Thurdsay evening as a special team of law enforcement officers cut them away to allow passage of the ship.
"Now all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic." --GreenpeaceAs the local KOIN TV reported the events:
Hours after anti-Arctic drilling activists successfully stopped Shell's icebreaker Fennica from leaving a Portland drydock, the ship slowly but effectively passed safely underneath the St. Johns Bridge.
After turning back around 7:45 a.m. on its first attempt to leave Portland, local, state and federal agencies took steps to ensure the ship could leave the dock on its way to the Arctic.
The efforts began around 2:20 p.m. when the St. Johns Bridge was closed. A PF&R High Angle Rope Rescue team was sent to the bridge to prepare. A Portland police officer began rappelling down the bridge around 3:45 p.m.
By 4:45 p.m., 3 climbers were lowered from the St. Johns Bridge in a coordinated effort from law enforcement agencies - local, state and federal. As they got to the boat, they were arrested and handcuffed. Their lines and platforms were pulled down and gathered.
A protester tweeted the authorities were cutting the climbers' tag lines, then attaching them to the authorities' lines, taking control in order to lower them off the bridge.
Authorities did not bother clearing all 13 rappelling protesters. Rather, they cleared just enough for the Fennica to have a clear path to make its way under the bridge.
As the events unfolded, an enormous crowd gathered on the shore to watch as boaters and kayakers in the harbor also tried to get in the path of the ship.
Though the activists could not ultimately stop the ship entirely, organizers involved with the blockade effort said the attention the two-day action brought to issue and the courage shown by the many, many people involved constitutes a significant fight in the ongoing campaign to save the Arctic from oil and gas drilling.
"Scientists have sounded the alarm, telling us we need to keep most of our known fossil fuel reserves in the ground," said Maya Jarrad with 350PDX, "and we have heeded the call with direct action in defense of our planet. Hundreds of Portlanders joined us in saying, 'Shell No!' and 'Stop that boat!' and we are grateful for their support."
Rev. Marilyn Sewell of the First Unitarian Church of Portland said, "There is no greater moral issue before us today than global warming. Our generation has a sacred calling to prevent the worst: flooding of our cities, refugees fleeing rising water, failed states, and armed conflict over resources. The activists who created the blockade with their very bodies are spiritual warriors of the highest degree."
And Daphne Wysham, director of the Sustainable Energy and Economy Network, added, "When our elected officials refuse to act on climate change and permit extreme energy extraction such as Shell's reckless drilling in the Arctic, we are prepared to take direct, nonviolent action to preserve a planet for all of our children's sake, and hope others will do the same."
After the Fennica moved beyond the bridge, Greenpeace later announced that all other climbers soon came off the bridge. "Now," the group stated, "all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic."
Watch:
On Twitter:
In a statement released later on Thursday evening, Shell said, "The Fennica is now safely on its way to Alaska and will join Shell's exploration fleet in the Chukchi Sea - where the Transocean Polar Pioneer commenced initial drilling operations at approximately 5:00 tonight AKDT."
Ending a nearly two-day standoff, Greenpeace activists who had successfully blocked passage of a Shell Oil drilling vessel were dramatically removed from their positions on the St. Johns Bridge in Portland, Oregon on Thurdsay evening as a special team of law enforcement officers cut them away to allow passage of the ship.
"Now all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic." --GreenpeaceAs the local KOIN TV reported the events:
Hours after anti-Arctic drilling activists successfully stopped Shell's icebreaker Fennica from leaving a Portland drydock, the ship slowly but effectively passed safely underneath the St. Johns Bridge.
After turning back around 7:45 a.m. on its first attempt to leave Portland, local, state and federal agencies took steps to ensure the ship could leave the dock on its way to the Arctic.
The efforts began around 2:20 p.m. when the St. Johns Bridge was closed. A PF&R High Angle Rope Rescue team was sent to the bridge to prepare. A Portland police officer began rappelling down the bridge around 3:45 p.m.
By 4:45 p.m., 3 climbers were lowered from the St. Johns Bridge in a coordinated effort from law enforcement agencies - local, state and federal. As they got to the boat, they were arrested and handcuffed. Their lines and platforms were pulled down and gathered.
A protester tweeted the authorities were cutting the climbers' tag lines, then attaching them to the authorities' lines, taking control in order to lower them off the bridge.
Authorities did not bother clearing all 13 rappelling protesters. Rather, they cleared just enough for the Fennica to have a clear path to make its way under the bridge.
As the events unfolded, an enormous crowd gathered on the shore to watch as boaters and kayakers in the harbor also tried to get in the path of the ship.
Though the activists could not ultimately stop the ship entirely, organizers involved with the blockade effort said the attention the two-day action brought to issue and the courage shown by the many, many people involved constitutes a significant fight in the ongoing campaign to save the Arctic from oil and gas drilling.
"Scientists have sounded the alarm, telling us we need to keep most of our known fossil fuel reserves in the ground," said Maya Jarrad with 350PDX, "and we have heeded the call with direct action in defense of our planet. Hundreds of Portlanders joined us in saying, 'Shell No!' and 'Stop that boat!' and we are grateful for their support."
Rev. Marilyn Sewell of the First Unitarian Church of Portland said, "There is no greater moral issue before us today than global warming. Our generation has a sacred calling to prevent the worst: flooding of our cities, refugees fleeing rising water, failed states, and armed conflict over resources. The activists who created the blockade with their very bodies are spiritual warriors of the highest degree."
And Daphne Wysham, director of the Sustainable Energy and Economy Network, added, "When our elected officials refuse to act on climate change and permit extreme energy extraction such as Shell's reckless drilling in the Arctic, we are prepared to take direct, nonviolent action to preserve a planet for all of our children's sake, and hope others will do the same."
After the Fennica moved beyond the bridge, Greenpeace later announced that all other climbers soon came off the bridge. "Now," the group stated, "all eyes on Pres. Obama to save the Arctic."
Watch:
On Twitter:
In a statement released later on Thursday evening, Shell said, "The Fennica is now safely on its way to Alaska and will join Shell's exploration fleet in the Chukchi Sea - where the Transocean Polar Pioneer commenced initial drilling operations at approximately 5:00 tonight AKDT."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.