Press release from Cheryl T. Orengo:
Elders in Asheville are holding a protest rally today, March 21, 2023 in Pritchard Park, at noon. The National Day of Action in Asheville, one of 100 events across the country, is being organized by Third Act Asheville. Anyone concerned about climate change, regardless of age, is welcome to join the rally whether or not they bank with any of the four banks we are protesting.
In addition to three National climate specialists speaking, the protest rally will feature music by the Green Grannies and attendees will be invited to cut a symbolic, giant bank card and perhaps one of their own, to protest the hundreds of billions of dollars in lending and underwriting banks provide to fossil fuel companies and projects.
The first speaker at noon is Mallory McDuff, author, professor of environmental studies, mother and a person of faith. Mallory lives and works in the Asheville area. Her latest book is “Love Your Mother”. As a mother and a professor of environmental education, Mallory wanted to give her two daughters and her students a roadmap to engage in climate justice in their communities. She set out to find women of diverse ages, backgrounds, and vocations–one from each of the fifty US states–as inspiration for a new kind of leadership focused on the heart of the climate crisis
Will Harman is unable to speak today because of a work emergency so Karin Heiman the Deputy Director of the Southeast Regional Land Conservancy will be speaking. Karin heads environmental operations and she has performed environmental work for nearly every type of federal and state agency, including the US Forest Service, USDA, National Park Service and the US Fish & Wildlife Service. Karin is certified with the State of North Carolina as a Forest Stewardship Contractor and she has been a resident of WNC since 1981.
Susan Joy Hassol is an award-winning climate change communicator who has spent more than 30 years on the front lines of the climate wars. She was the Senior Science Writer on the first three U.S. National Climate Assessments and wrote an HBO documentary. She speaks and publishes widely, including in the New York Times, Washington Post, Time, Newsweek, etc., and is interviewed in media outlets including NBC, NPR, and BBC. Susan lives in Asheville and will speak about how divesting our financial resources from fossil fuels can help protect our climate.
The Green Grannies will be singing today at the Third Act protest rally downtown at Pritchard Park. They wear Green Granny T-shirts and green hats. They will be all about, “Say NO to dirty fuels and YES to clean energy!”
One of the goals of the protest is to educate the public about the importance of protecting our climate for our own well-being and that of generations to come. According to Susan Hassol, “Doing what we need to do to preserve a livable climate will also give us clean air, friendlier, more walkable communities, and send fewer kids to the hospital with asthma. It’ll be the best thing for our personal health as well as our planetary health.”
The protest rally is being held as temperatures in Asheville (and around the world) continue to rise, summers become longer, hotter, and more humid, and rainfall comes in heavier deluges, increasing flooding and related damage.
Signs, banners, music, chants, speakers, huge scissors to cut giant symbolic bank card.
Before you comment
The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.