sHellNo!

A Message Of Hope For The New Year

January 6, 2016 Jack Balkwill, www.dissidentvoice.org Strategize! #BlackLiveMatter, Antarctica, Banks, Bolivia, BXE, Capitalism, China, Climate Change, Cooperatives, Democracy, Ecuador, Elections, Empire, Energy, Environment, Finance and the Economy, Greece, Kurds, Marijuana, Media, militarism, Occupy, Portugal, Russia, sHellNo!, Spain, TPP, Ukraine, Venezuela, Wall Street, Zapatistas

By Jack Balkwill for Dissident Voice. There have been many victories and we need to celebrate them. Among the victories was stopping the northern portion of the KXL pipeline, various new laws in 24 states to prevent police violence and an increase inprosecutions of police who commit violence, and the increase in wages across the country and winning the critically important battle for net neutrality. These were people-powered victories that showed when we act together we have the power to defeat corporate interests. Another ongoing series of victories is seeing local people, who have not been involved in activism, working along with experienced, often young, energy activists, taking on big energy companies in an aggressive way. This is a victory.

Why Shell Lost The Arctic

September 29, 2015 Hannah McKinnon, www.priceofoil.org Resist! Arctic drilling, Climate Change, Environment, shell, sHellNo!

By Hannah McKinnon in Price of Oil - Royal Dutch Shell announced this morning that it would be abandoning its exploration program in the U.S. offshore Arctic for the “foreseeable future” (see our response here). After more than 7 billion dollars and many seasons of almost unbelievable mishaps – Shell made the call along with an announcement that this season’s efforts had failed to turn up any worthwhile find. This is a huge win for the climate. We know that Arctic oil is incompatible with a safe global climate. Big oil’s high cost, high risk hunt for unburnable carbon at the ends of the earth was indicative of just how far the industry is willing to go to cling to last century’s dirty energy. So what went right for those opposing Shell’s arctic drilling? Shell has many drilling seasons under its belt where it did not uncover any huge Arctic reserves, but for some reason this time, enough was enough and the company is calling it quits.

Major Victory: Shell Abandons Arctic Drilling

September 28, 2015 Terry Macalister, www.theguardian.com Petitions and Online Actions Arctic drilling, shell, sHellNo!

By Terry Macalister for the Guardian - The movement has done an incredible job over the last three years protesting Shell's arctic drilling culminating with the #SHellNo campaign this summer. The stock of Shell was dropping, its' public image was taking a major hit and the company was going to see an escalation of protest against it. This was always a risky and foolish invesment. An important lesson for the movement, one we have seen repeated in our experience on a wide range of issues: you never know how close you are to victory. It looked the protests had failed to stop Shell. They got their equipment into the Artic and began drilling. There were no indications of Shell giving up even last week. This should hearten all of those fighting what seem like impossible campaigs. You may be closer than you think. Keep fighting, never give up. Of course, this is not over. There is still a rapacious desire for oil and we need to continue to push for an end to all licenses for drilling in the arctic. We are urging people to take action to finish the job. Send an email to President Obama today urging him to ban arctic drilling.

‘Bold, Cultural Revolution’ Comes To Portland

August 3, 2015 Patrick Mazza, www.cascadiaplanet.blogspot.com Resist! Arctic, Environment, Oil & Gas, sHellNo!

By Patrick Mazza in Cascadia Planet - The climbers and kayaktavists in both Portland and Seattle actions exhibited in the most profound way possible the meaning of “a bold, cultural revolution” against “the dominant technocratic paradigm.” They put their bodies and lives in the path of massive machines that could not more acutely represent that paradigm and its global insanity – The third largest corporation in the world, whose own projections show catastrophic global warming of 4°C, furthering that scenario by continuing to expand the fossil fuel frontier and doing it in a region where warming-driven ice melt makes it more possible, the Arctic. To even have a chance of holding warming below the standard safety barrier of 2°C, most fossil reserves must be kept in the ground including all Arctic gas and oil, a new study in Nature concludes.

Newsletter: Their Greed Is Our Ally

August 2, 2015 Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers, www.PopularResistance.org Newsletter #BlackLivesMatter, Black Lives Matter (BLM), Cleveland, Kayactivists, Police abuse, Police violence, Shell Oil, sHellNo!, TPP, Trade

By Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flower for Popular Resistance. The radical transformation that is needed is not on the agenda of anyone running for president in either the Democratic or Republican primary. The reality is that nothing offered by mainstream politics will achieve the transformational change that is needed. A normally mainstream Democrat, Robert Kuttner writes: “This is one of those moments when there is broad popular frustration, a moment when liberal goals require measures that seem radical by today’s standards. . . . Muddle-through and token gestures won’t fool anybody.” Consciousness is rising and with that so will the demands and actions of an organized populace. Sometimes it will take the shape of protests, other times a rebellion, sometimes cities will be shut down and there will be riots. The system is not responding to the reasonable demands for social, economic, racial and environmental justice.

Shell Ice Breaker Leaves Portland After Inspiring Delay

July 31, 2015 Resist! Arctic drilling, Kayactivists, Portland, sHellNo!

By Staff for RT - The Arctic-bound vessel got through after police intervened, arresting campaigners. All protesters were eventually lowered into Willamette River by the Coast Guard, Oregon State Police and Portland Fire & Rescue crews and detained for alleged criminal trespassing and interfering with law enforcement, according to reports. After the human blockade was removed and the icebreaker, which is central to Royal Dutch Shell’s plans for extracting oil in the Arctic, began to depart, so-called “kayaktivists” tried to engage the vessel by rowing into its path. Greenpeace claimed the action was a success. “We found that the blockade was successful." Nicole added that the goal is to bring attention to the issue and persuade President Barack Obama to reconsider giving permission to Shell to drill in the Arctic.

Amazing Photos: sHELLNo Blockade Continues 30+ Hours

July 30, 2015 Bill Moyer, www.backbonecampaign.org Resist! Arctic drilling, Kayactivists, sHellNo!

By Bill Moyer for the Backbone Campaign - This is HUGE! We're showing the strength of the global uprising that's demanding Climate Justice for all. This battle is NOT over. RIGHT NOW we need as many people to join the #sHellNO BLOCKADE, especially on the water and to also support on land. STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND HEAD TO PORTLAND NOW! It could be only a matter of hours until they attempt to depart again. The courageous climbers and Kayaktivists need masses of people to form a moral shield defending them from the Coast Guard or Shell doing anything that would endanger their lives or safety. Shell's retreat this morning is a welcome victory. Now it is time for our society to retreat from our fossil fuel madness.

Newsletter – No Justice, No Peace

June 20, 2015 Margaret Flowers and Kevin Zeese, www.PopularResistance.org Newsletter Arctic drilling, Asian Pivot, BXE, Climate Justice, Criminal Justice and Prisons, fast track, Freedom of Speech, Gas, Housing, Inequality, Net Neutrality, New York City (NYC), Pipelines, Police violence, Pope Francis, Privacy, Racial Discrimination, Racism, Rikers, Shell Oil, sHellNo!, South Carolina, Terrorism, TPP, Wars and Militarism

By Margaret Flowers and Kevin Zeese for Popular Resistance. Glen Ford of Black Agenda Report writes that “No justice, no peace” is “a vow by the movement to transform the crisis that is inflicted on Black people into a generalized crisis for the larger society, and for those who currently rule.” In reality, given the violence being inflicted upon people, particularly people of color, whether directly or indirectly through rising poverty, unemployment, homelessness, lack of access to health care and more, and the government’s failures to address these crises and listen to the people, disruption is a necessary element of political change. In 1968 the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., spoke outside a prison in California where people were being held for protesting the Vietnam War. In the speech he drew the connections between the Civil Rights movement and the peace movement against the Vietnam War. Today we see the links between racism, inequality, imperialism, militarism and ecocide and his comment on that day continues to ring true: "There can be no justice without peace. And there can be no peace without justice."

Seattle’s Best From Lawrence Lessig To sHellno

June 11, 2015 Eleanor Goldfield, www.occupy.com Educate! Internet, Oil & Gas, Seattle, sHellNo!, TPP

By Eleanor Goldfield in Occupy - This week we’re bringing you Seattle’s Best, on land and on sea, starting with the Seattle premiere of the documentary "Killswitch: The Battle to Control the Internet," where Lawrence Lessig and Marianne Williamson talked money in politics to a packed Town Hall. Next up, #ShellNo continued their fight against the Arctic Destroyer, this time with the help of a seahorse, an Arctic Angel and a solar-powered barge. Finally, this could be the week that the House votes on Fast Track, the fast forward button for corporate trade deals. We’ll give you tools to help stop this train wreck as artist Stephanie McMillan gives you inspiration to keep fighting. @ActOutOnOccupy facebook.com/ActOutOnOccupy occupy.com/actout

ShellNo! Protestors Locked Down At Port Of Seattle Need You!

June 10, 2015 Back Bone Campaign, www.campaign.r20.constantcontact.com Resist! Oil & Gas, Seattle, sHellNo!

By Back Bone Campaign - Early this morning activists set up and deployed a range of technical blockades outside entrances to the port using U-locks, chains, lockboxes, rocking chairs, and other devices. Every entrance of the port was shut down, effectively stopping work on the rig. To sustain this bold action, we need YOU! Come on down and join us right now for an inspiring blockade. Bring your camera, musical instruments, banners, and passion for justice. As we all know, time is of the essence when it comes to stopping the Polar Polluter and its evil twin, the Noble Destroyer. "Shell only has until the end of June to make it up to the Arctic in time to drill this summer. We want to stop them from leaving," said Blaine Doherty, who is sitting in the road chained to another Seattle resident.

Daily movement news and resources