A large number of Asheville citizens went out of their way recently to send President Obama a strong message about stopping the Keystone XL Pipeline. Starting at Camp David, Md., an intergenerational group of dedicated folks, some from nearby states and some from as far away as California, walked all the way to the White House — 100 miles in the summer heat.
We walked to emphasize the importance of preventing tar-sands oil from being brought to market. Noted climatologist James Hansen has said that if this pipeline goes through, "It's game over for the climate." Some of us joined as day-walkers, doing a 12-mile stint. Many gray-haired folks carried photos of their grandchildren, for whose future they walked.
We are in solidarity with the people losing their homes due to floods, fires, droughts and other climate disasters — which will only get worse if there is no change in our country's suicidal trajectory. Fifty-four brave souls got arrested for sitting-in at the Department of Environmental Resources Management; it was the agency that gave thumbs-up to the Keystone Pipeline, fraudulently declaring it would pose no hazard to the environment.
Carrying suns and windmills, we marched for a future of renewable fuels, clean air and water — a future for all the grandchildren of the planet!
— Cathy Holt
Asheville
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