March 8, 2011

The Power of Civil Disobedience

Climate activist Tim DeChristopher, who was put on trial in Salt Lake City, Utah, this week for his interference with an oil and gas auction held at the end of the Bush administration, on Thursday was found guilty by a jury. He faces a sentence of up to 10 years, to be determined by a judge.


After finding out the jury's decision, DeChristopher spoke to supporters outside of the courthouse. "We now know I'll have to go to prison. That's the job I have to do," he said.


In a recent interview with Grist, DeChristopher talked about the power of nonviolent civil disobedience and the role it can play in fighting climate change. He compares the need for action in the climate movement to the action taken by the Freedom Riders during the Civil Rights Movement.


Watch the interview here:

2 comments:

Eric Sandeen said...

There's a pretty powerful video of the aftermath of the court proceedings: http://vimeo.com/20640469

Unknown said...

Thank you for that video.