[Cross-posted from Boston Rising Tide]
As the sun fell on Halloween, the undead victims of mountain top removal coal mining rose up and descend upon Bank of Americas and Citibanks in Boston. It is no coincidence that while Bank of America and Citibank make a killing on coal, coal is killing Appalachian communities that fall prey to dirty energy companies whose interests in profiting from strip mining outweigh the value of lives and mountain communities. In 2006, Bank of America invested twice as much in dirty energy as it did on clean energy projects. In 2006, Citi’s investments in coal were 200 times greater than their investments in clean energy, making them the number one financier of coal worldwide
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Mountaintop removal coal mining is the most destructive coal extraction process, where mountains are clear cut, blasted with tons of pounds of dynamite, then the “overburden”, or what used to be the mountain, is shoved into the streams carrying much of our nation’s freshest source of water. The coal is then extracted cheaply from what used to be the mountain, leaving a virtual moonscape. This process and the chemicals involved poisons the air and water of surrounding communities, resulting in cancer, asthma, a plethora of other sicknesses, and death.
Rising Tide Boston and Asheville Rising Tide organized the march with the spirit and energy of the holiday to bring attention to the fact that we are facing a climate and economic crisis. Despite this crisis, big banks are still guilty of irresponsibly funding dirty energy while renewable resources and community solutions are viable and in existence.
There have been hundreds of actions and demonstrations on these two banks over the past two years, from satirical demonstrations like zombie marches to acts of civil disobedience. It is clear that the nation wants CitiBank and Bank of America to stop making a killing on coal. We want banks to invest in the interests of the people and community-based solutions. Wind and solar technology are available, and are much more cost-effective than the mythical and unavailable “clean coal” technology.
If people want to know where to bank or invest responsibly, local credit unions are a good option, and to learn more about the campaign please visit www.dirtymoney.org. For information about Rising Tide Boston, please visit www.risingtideboston.org
Bravo! We need to keep one step ahead of the banks with creative actions like these. Banks put a lot of weight on their image, and the worst thing for them is when activists are witty and grab media attention with stunts like these and force the issue, and they’re held just as responsible as the mining companies. Without them, none of this could go on.
Bank Zombie! A nice way to hammer home your grieviances. I may try one in my local commmunity some day. The level of pollusion in this part of the world (Africa) is overwhelming and the city authorities seems to be doing so little about it. Solid waste scatter our streets in the same proportion as human. This may be one of the project i would to embark on in the near future after further studies. That is, to recycle solid waste into something else most especially rubbers/polythenes which is the most dominant of them.
But all the same i commend Rising Tide for this good course. They should keep it up even against stiffer opposition.
Regards
Steve