Unnatural Capitalism

We Can Change Things

Other things, like capitalism... are not forces of nature; we invented them. They are not immutable and we can change them. --Dr. David Suzuki, Canadian environmental activist

It's the beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, so here's a meme giving us a glaring example of capitalism gone off the deep end and the damage it has done--and continues to do--to our planet:

All the waste of water, pollution of the soil and air, and the degradation to our environment--and for what? To make a handful of predominantly white males billions of dollars  in profits each year. A monoculture lawn of non-native grass sprayed with cancer-causing Round-Up doesn't exactly feed your family like a vegetable garden would. It doesn't help with massive rain run off or prevent drought that a stand of trees would in the same place, either. Why have we allowed ourselves to be fooled into supporting billionaires at the expense of our health and future by becoming lawn mower jockeys?

After I read Ruth's comments (below) on "unnatural capitalism"  many seemingly disparate things gelled in my mind. The unnatural, immoral aspects of late-stage capitalism are at the root of most (if not all) of our problems. Can you see how this selfish concept of making profits off the misery of our fellow human beings plays out in the following news items?

Killing Gaza--A documentary film about life for Palestinians under siege in Gaza. Watch the movie here:   https://killinggaza.com/ 

US Suicide Rates Have Climbed Dramatically:
https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/06/07/617897261/cdc-u-s-suicide-rates-have-climbed-dramatically?utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social

Immigrant families separated and deported without due process:
https://www.salon.com/2018/04/24/do-immigrants-in-ice-detention-centers-have-any-human-rights-at-all/

Border Control Kicked, Punched Immigrant Children, Threatened Some with Sexual Abuse:
http://www.newsweek.com/customs-and-border-control-beat-kicked-and-threatened-migrant-children-under-941385

Sandusky, Ohio--114 workers arrested in an immigration raid, leaving young children behind
https://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/50491-utter-chaos-ice-arrests-114-workers-in-immigration

(Dirk Droll covers the immigration topic well at his Beanstock's World blog:  https://beanstocksworld.wordpress.com/2018/06/08/ending-mass-migration/#more-6650 )

CEO Pay: Rewarding or Hoarding? (Or how CEOs make 300+ times more than their employees):  https://youtu.be/IUTcuB5TZdY

4,645 Deaths in Puerto Rico from Hurricane Maria were "State-Sponsored Mass Killing":
https://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/50534-naomi-klein-4645-deaths-in-puerto-rico-from-hurricane-maria-were-qstate-sponsored-mass-killingq

Puerto Rico Deaths Post-Maria: Nearly 70% Were Over 70 Years
https://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/50592-puerto-rico-deaths-post-maria-nearly-70-were-over-70-years 

In each of these stories and videos, it's  clear what has caused (or exacerbated) the suffering of our fellow human beings--greed. A small handful of individuals stand to make a lot of money off of ongoing wars for oil and resources and selling military grade weapons to Americans who shouldn't have them in the first place. Profits flow like unpolluted, unblocked streams for those who take advantage of immigrant labor/human trafficking/slave wages. And "disaster capitalism"  makes wealth from the pain and despair of others when, through no fault of their own, they lose their homes and livelihoods because of a hurricane or similar destructive natural event (which are predicted to become more intense in severity due to climate change).

If you don't see what I mean, read Ruth's article and think on it awhile. The pieces of the puzzle might just come together. --C.A.M.

Unnatural Capitalism
by Ruth Ann Oskolkoff

Traveling on a bus for over ten hours this weekend, and seeing lots of road, I had a lot of time to think. What really struck me is how unnatural capitalism seems. That's right. UNNATURAL.

The same stores all over--bilking ordinary people from their hard earned money. The same restaurants all over charging exorbitant prices for unhealthy food. The same environmental destruction everywhere. Yes, it makes the one-percent even wealthier, but it leaves the rest of us tired and damaged from working so hard...and sick, then bankrupt. We try to remedy all this with expensive healthcare.
 
Of course, the one-percent actively controls the world to make it increasingly impossible to change anything. Police enforcement becomes terror. Protest is increasingly illegal. Media is shunted off into the back roads, or in the case of Julian Assange put in solitary confinement. Tortured really. Even a highly popular politician like Bernie is just plain cheated--differently in each state. Though so many turned out to vote for him it was already decided.

The way forward is hard, but one thing is certain. Many many of us are wide awake now. Eyes wide open. I'm personally not so sure what tactic will fail or succeed, and I have doubts the old playbook is even that relevant anymore. I've long been a proponent of trying to figure out things in the moment.

I am really only certain of one thing: We can't rely on elected leaders. We the people are the revolution, and the big lie is that some people are better and some are lesser. Why can't we all be artists part of the time after working a four or five hour shift? Who says some people are gifted but most of the rest are not? Why are only some allowed to fulfill their dreams? Why are only some people seen as special or gifted or talented? The rest are left to labor to build a world to profit the one-percent and the rulers with their vision of the complete enslavement of mankind.

BIO: Ruth is a progressive activist in Seattle and a frequent commentator on Facebook.

Here's another good piece to think on.
Character Building

by Sean Nestor

People who experience difficult and even traumatic events tend to be better at developing empathy and compassion -- traits we consider virtuous. They also tend to suffer from depression and suicidal inclinations - traits we consider unfortunate. There is a deep irony and tragedy to all of this.

From personal experience, the desperation I feel from suicidal inclinations has given me the motivation to take risks that have in turn helped me do great things, both for myself and others. And it's never been lost on me that people love what I am motivated to do, but saddened by what motivates me to do it.

I think this dynamic is more important than we think, because people who architect societies often take advantage of this difficult truth. Historically, the powerful have always said that it's actually good to have a society of miserable people, because being miserable is what motivates people to improve themselves -- "It builds character." That's why it makes sense for a few people to get everything while everyone else suffers, or so they say.

Personally, I think that between illness, death, and natural disasters, life is hard enough that we don't need governments and economies manufacturing more "character building" exercises for us. But, that's me -- and that's why I use the desperation I feel as a motivating force to dismantle the power structures behind it.

BIO: Sean Nestor is an educator and activist from Toledo, Ohio. He currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Single Payer Action Network and Co-Chair of the Lucas County Green Party.

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The Revolution Continues blog turns three years old this month, and we are sad to inform you that one of its co-creators, Barb McMillen, has passed away. Barb will be sorely missed by her family and friends in the political revolution. Barb was a Bernie delegate at the Philadelphia convention in 2016, and she never lost her enthusiasm for the progressive senator from Vermont. 

RIP Barb. May we fight on in your name to build a future to believe in!

BARBARA FIALKOWSKI MCMILLEN (1946-2018)

Barbara Ann Fialkowski McMillen passed away on June 2, 2018, at the age of 71 following a long and brave battle against heart failure.

Barbara was born on July 18, 1946, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was the first of eleven children born to Marion Fialkowski and Leona Lankford Fialkowski.

Following high school, she spent half a year working at the Sears store near her home on James Street and then volunteered for VISTA, the federal Volunteers in Service to America program. She was assigned to rural West Virginia where she lived with a large family and taught in a one-room schoolhouse. Returning to Philadelphia, she lived at home while attending Temple University where she majored in English in the College of Education. Four years later she completed her undergraduate degree and decided to apply to graduate schools. Ohio University in Athens offered her a teaching assistantship in English beginning in the fall of 1969. There she met another first year graduate student William (Bill) McMillen. They fell in love and were married on January 17, 1970, a scant four months after they met. At the time of her death, they had been married for more than 48 years. She received her Master’s degree in 1972 and her doctorate in 1976 from Ohio University.

Barbara and Bill adopted a second son, Mark, who was nearly four when he came to live with his new family. Mark had special education needs that Barbara recognized because she had two younger brothers who were severely mentally and physically disabled. In the sixties, Barbara’s parents had challenged the Philadelphia school system and the state of Pennsylvania that they could not discriminate against the two boys and deny them a public education. The Fialkowski law suit became the legal cornerstone of the ground-breaking federal law PL 94-142 establishing free and equal public education for all children.

Barbara always had a keen interest in politics and as a teenager in Philadelphia shook hands with President John F. Kennedy. She was a supporter of President Barack Obama. In 2016, she supported presidential candidate Bernie Sanders and was elected to be a delegate for Bernie at the Philadelphia Democratic National Convention. It was one of the great experiences of her life.

In loving memory of Barbara, please consider making a donation to her personal charity of choice, the Fialkowski Scholarship at Temple University, which grants yearly scholarships to students majoring in disability studies. Checks should be made out to Temple University Institute on Disabilities (denote: Fialkowski Scholarship). The mailing address is Institute on Disabilities, Temple University, Fialkowski Scholarship, 411 Student Center South, 1755 N. 13th St., Philadelphia, PA 19122.

***

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You can donate via Paypal at http://paypal.me/camatthews 
Power to the people and not the corporations!

***

From Credo:

Four years after it began, Flint, Michigan's water crisis is not over. Earlier this year, tests found lead levels above the federal limit in the water at nine percent of Flint’s high schools.¹

But we now know that the crisis goes far, far beyond Flint – and the children poisoned in Flint are not alone. Over 3,000 American neighborhoods have childhood lead poisoning rates at least double those in Flint during the peak of its contamination crisis.² Over 1,000 areas tested with a rate of elevated blood levels at least four times as high as Flint’s at the height of the crisis.³ In one neighborhood in Cleveland, nearly half the children have lead poisoning.⁴
No family should fear that turning on the tap could poison their child and harm them for life – no matter what their zip code is. Reps. Keith Ellison and Ro Khanna recently introduced the Water Affordability, Transparency Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act of 2018, which would start the process of addressing this crisis. We must build grassroots support for this crucial legislation now.

Tell Congress: Pass the WATER Act. Click here to sign the petition.
 
Lead is a cumulative toxin particularly harmful to young children, who can suffer profound and permanent damage to the brain and nervous system.⁵ There is no known level of lead exposure that is considered safe. In the wake of its water contamination crisis, Flint saw a measurable rise in miscarriages, fetal deaths and illnesses.⁶ 

In 2016, Congress finally directed $170 million in aid to Flint.⁷ But the Center for Disease Control's entire budget for assisting states with lead poisoning this year is just one-tenth of that.⁸ We must do better.

The WATER Act would provide $35 billion a year in federal funding to improve community drinking water and wastewater services.⁹ It would also provide grants to replace lead service lines going into homes, remove lead pipes and plumbing in schools, and upgrade home wells and septic systems.¹⁰

In thousands of neighborhoods across the country, systematic neglect and denial of basic infrastructure are limiting children's futures. No one bill will solve the problem, but we have the opportunity to make a meaningful difference – if our legislators act.

Tell Congress: Pass the WATER Act. Click the link below to sign the petition:
https://act.credoaction.com/sign/save-our-water?t=7&akid=28841%2E9999572%2EI6e2LH

Thanks for fighting back,
Brandy Doyle, Campaign Manager CREDO Action from Working Assets

Add your name:

References:

1. Joe Diazo, "Flint, Michigan, water crisis update: Government spends thousands per day for bottled water," Newsweek, March 14, 2018.
2. M.B. Pell and Joshua Schneyer, Special Report: Thousands of U.S. areas afflicted with lead poisoning beyond Flint's," Reuters, Dec. 19, 2016.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid.
5. World Health Organization, "Lead poisoning and health: Key facts," Feb. 9, 2018.
6. Ayana Byrd, "New Legislation Aims to Prevent the Next Flint Water Crisis," Colorlines, April 25, 2018.
7. M.B. Pell and Joshua Schneyer, Special Report: Thousands of U.S. areas afflicted with lead poisoning beyond Flint's," Reuters, Dec. 19, 2016.
8. Ibid.
9. Byrd, "New Legislation Aims to Prevent the Next Flint Water Crisis."
10. Ibid.

***

Why stand apart, when we can rise together

Labels for GMOs are coming to a grocery store near you. When the USDA proposed the symbols below to indicate that a food product is genetically engineered, the agency specifically requested research on how people interpret the symbols. Let's give 'em what they wanted! Take our survey and tell the USDA how you interpret these symbols for genetically engineered food.

TAKE SURVEY

We'll be submitting these (anonymized) survey results with the rest of your public comments on the USDA's overall plan to label genetically engineered food.

In it together,
The SierraRise Team

***

A single banana wrapped in plastic? Seriously?

Let's tackle #PointlessPlastic in your grocery store! 

Take Action

Have you noticed how much ridiculous plastic packaging is on the shelves of your local grocery store? A single potato wrapped in plastic. A cucumber. A banana. Seriously?

Not only is it absurd to wrap produce that already has a peel in plastic, this excessive single-use plastic pollutes our communities, rivers, and oceans. Plus, plastic isn’t actually keeping our food clean and many types of plastics leach harmful chemicals into our bodies.  

But it doesn't have to be like this. When supermarkets realize that people like you are rising up and demanding that they do better, we've seen them change. Ten years ago, every supermarket had a failing score on selling unsustainable seafood — but after years of corporate campaigning, we've seen massive improvement across the sector that has lead to real protections in the ocean. 

We know the same thing can happen for plastic pollution if retailers hear from enough of us — and that's where you come in.

We are preparing to launch a new campaign challenging supermarkets to cut single use plastic and we want our most committed plastic pollution fighters — folks like you — to help lay the groundwork by calling out the #PointlessPlastic you see on the shelves. 

All it takes is posting a photo of #PointlessPlastic on social media. Click here for a simple how-to.

It’s a simple action that can have major reverberations through the supermarket industry. Companies care about their brand image and what their customers think, and if enough of us push them to reduce their plastic footprint they will. 

It’s an exciting moment to take on this issue — cities are passing laws to transition away from single-use plastic packaging and big corporations are stepping up too. Bon Appétit Management Company just announced that it would ban plastic straws and stirrers in its 1,000 cafés and restaurants throughout 33 states. Ikea just committed to phasing out single-use plastics by 2020, and Iceland supermarket in the UK is phasing out single-use plastic in all its own-brand products. If they can do it, so can your local grocery store. 

The tide is turning, and when we all work together we can make massive change happen. 

So let's get rid of #PointlessPlastic once and for all!

Anna Wagner
Senior National Organizer, Greenpeace USA

P.S. Sick of all that pointless plastic at your local grocery store? Click here to help be part of the solution! 

Holding the Establishment Accountable

We need to hold the establishment accountable. It's up to us, the 99%, ordinary Americans to do so. We can't trust anyone in power currently. We can only trust our own instincts.

Coast Watcher's article below shows us how Trump is destroying our country's standing in the world, all for his and his fellow billionaires' private gain. It's high time we hold the Cheeto-in-Chief accountable, isn't it?

Trump and the Death of Protocol

by Coast Watcher

Protocol exists in diplomacy for a reason. It forms the rules of the diplomatic road, smoothing out the awkwardness in engaging with different cultures and creating a path for dialogue. It can, literally, prevent wars.

Trump doesn’t believe in protocol. He’s the perpetual pig-headed bullying CEO, and his word goes, no matter the circumstances or situation. The world witnessed this witless fool’s take on diplomacy during his recent visit to the Far East.

Japanese culture is carefully structured with established protocols governing bowing upon greeting others. Trump gave Japanese Emperor Akihito, ruler of a nation far older than the US, a handshake and a nod. During a photo op where he and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe fed valuable koi carp, Trump lost patience with the slow, careful measuring out of food and instead dumped his entire box into the water. At a state banquet given in his honor, Trump demanded the Japanese food be taken away and a hamburger brought to his table in its place. He’s guilty not only of breaching protocol but of eating and behaving like a five year old.

His sturm-und-drang approach to North Korea toned down significantly while he was within range of the wayward regime’s artillery and missiles, only to pick up again when he was well away from the country. 

His campaign trail rhetoric against China, so full of threats and bluster, disappeared when he stood on Beijing’s doorstep. He even kowtowed (A Mandarin Chinese word that means "to show obsequious deference") to the Chinese politburo by acceding to their demand to not hold a press conference about their various meetings. No other US president has ever condoned such a restriction.

“But Donald Trump doesn't like talking things out, or principled beliefs, or people not kowtowing to him.” ~ Luke Darby, GQ, 23 September 2017.

Trump waited until he was safely in Vietnam before resuming his blustery rhetoric against China. He wants others to kowtow to him, yet he’s not above sucking up to a bigger bully when one comes along.

I wonder how his more racist, gun-waving gung-ho followers feel about that?

Oh, by the way – gung ho is another Mandarin word – gōng hé – meaning work together. Will those macho militarist types like knowing one of their favorite phrases is actually Socialist in origin?

I can’t help thinking there’s a White House protocol officer somewhere, crying into his or her cups because their boss is determined to do things his way. With the United States becoming increasingly isolated and even marginalized on the world stage, the need for diplomacy and proper protocol has never been greater. Yet Trump in his wisdom (stop laughing at the back!) thinks otherwise. 



And who do we really have to blame for Trump gaining the presidency? This meme says it all:

BIO: Coast Watcher keeps an eye out for any signs there will be a break in the hot-air gushing out from 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. As a Brit living abroad, he wonders how long Americans will put up with the Mangled Apricot Hellbeast. He hopes it's not much longer.

***

 To our veterans...who don't always receive their due reward from a grateful government. Happy Veterans' Day.

 

Now some suggestions on how to hold the establishment 

accountable for their actions against the 99%.

From Rootstrikers:

After Wells Fargo fraudulently opened 3.5 million customer accounts without permission, you would think everyone would agree it’s time to crack down. 
Nope! Wall Street’s cronies in Congress and the White House just voted in the dead of night to protect banks like Wells Fargo from getting held accountable in court, killing the Consumer Bureau’s rule against banks’ forced arbitration “ripoff clauses.” 

We’re calling on bank regulators in Washington to step up. 
With the power to pull Wells Fargo’s bank charter or access to public FDIC deposit insurance, they can deliver real accountability for the crimes at Wells Fargo. They just need the courage to do it. 

Sign and share the petition to banking regulators: Cut off government support to Wells Fargo. 

Every major bank in the U.S. enjoys major public subsidies and benefits.
Bank charters are publicly granted, and the FDIC insurance for their deposit accounts is backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government.
Wells Fargo’s regulators at the OCC (Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) and FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation) have a rule: Engage in “unsafe and unsound practices” like breaking the law and you can lose those public benefits.¹ 

Wells Fargo has repeatedly violated the law. Cutting off their public benefits could even force Wells Fargo to wind down, and send a clear message that banks can’t expect to get away with breaking the law. 

Sign and share the petition to banking regulators: Cut off government support to Wells Fargo. 

Wells Fargo got issued $185 million in fines last year for the fake accounts scandal, but that’s virtually a rounding error in a year they made $22 billion in profits.² 

Since then, news keeps coming out about more ways Wells has broken the law – illegal overdraft charges, bogus auto loans forced on 800,000 people, illegal student loan servicing.³ 

It’s clear Wells Fargo won’t clean house on its own. Twelve out of 15 members on the board of directors today were overseeing the bank during the fake accounts scandal.⁴ Even the executives who left walked away with millions and no jail time.

Bank regulators have a big opportunity to do the right thing. Staff at OCC have already found unsafe and unsound practices at Wells Fargo and recommended tough enforcement action (even if the former Wells Fargo lawyer Trump installed to head the agency⁵ tries to cover it up).

And the situation is even more promising at the FDIC, where only one out of the four current members of the board of directors is a Trump pick. They just need to know the public is with them if they launch a serious investigation into Wells Fargo’s illegal behavior – and cutting off its public deposit insurance. 

Sign and share the petition to banking regulators: Cut off government support to Wells Fargo. 

Thank you,
The Team at Rootstrikers

DONATE 

Sources:
1. Demand Progress, "Joint Letters: Key Consumer, Labor, and Financial Reform Groups Push Regulators to Revoke Wells Fargo’s Charter and Deposit Insurance," Oct. 4, 2017.
2. Wells Fargo, "Wells Fargo Reports $5.3 Billion in Quarterly Net Income," Jan. 13, 2017.
3. Demand Progress, "Joint Letters: Key Consumer, Labor, and Financial Reform Groups Push Regulators to Revoke Wells Fargo’s Charter and Deposit Insurance," Oct. 4, 2017.
4. Elizabeth Warren, "Warren Highlights New Evidence of Wells Fargo Misconduct, Renews Call for Federal Reserve to Remove Bank Board Members," Aug. 16, 2017.
5. The Intercept, "More Trump Populism: Hiring a Bank Lawyer to Attack CFPB Bank Rules," July 20, 2017.

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Get Transphobic Professor Out of the Classroom Playing a game called "Female or Shemale" sounds like something out of a terrible 1990s coming-of-age comedy. Unfortunately, this transphobic game took place in 2017, in a classroom, and was orchestrated by the professor himself. State University of New York Professor David Sorbello thought he was being edgy and funny when he gave this quiz to his sociology students. They were shown photos of women and had to guess whether they were "real" women or not. This behavior has no place in society, and it especially does not belong in a college course. As a group, trans women face higher rates of violence, and and the current statistics suggest the rates numbers aren't declining. Actions like this quiz dehumanize trans women and have dangerous implications. Sorbello was hired to shape the minds of young students. Instead of helping them learn compassion and empathy, he's chosen to teach them it's OK to ostracize an entire group of people for a laugh. The state of trans rights in America are no laughing matter. Sign your name and demand the SUNY fires David Sorbello for bringing transphobia into the classroom! Thank you for making a difference, Angie L. The Care2 Petitions Team

 ***

From Rainforest Action Network:

We have a chance right now to pressure two of the biggest banks on Wall St. to say NO to the Keystone XL pipeline — JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo.

Will you add your voice? https://www.ran.org/chase_stop_kxl

Tar sands oil is one of the dirtiest on the planet — yet Wall Street banks, like JPMorgan Chase, continue to pour billions into this extreme fossil fuel. This December, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and 17 other major global banks face a crucial choice on Keystone XL, tar sands, Indigenous rights and the climate. 

On Dec. 15, two credit facilities totaling $1.5 billion will expire. This is the credit that would allow TransCanada to build the Keystone XL pipeline. It’s up to these banks, with JPMorgan Chase in the lead, to decide whether or not to renew this critical funding.

JPMorgan Chase and the other big banks have a huge decision to make: Will they continue to profit off climate chaos? Will they continue to pour billions into the toxic tar sands oil sector? Will they continue to support projects that trample on Indigenous rights?

Or will they finally do the right thing and say NO to Keystone XL?

Add your voice: Tell JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and 17 other global banks to say NO to Keystone XL on December 15. www.ran.org/chase_stop_kxl

Indigenous nations, ranchers, farmers, grassroots leaders and individuals — from the epicenter of tar sands extraction and along the pipeline route — have united in opposition to Keystone XL.

The time to turn up the pressure on JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo is now! A crucial decision from the Nebraska Public Service Commission is imminent— and that could determine the fate of the pipeline.There are three possible scenarios. The commission could reject, reroute or approve the pipeline. But even if the commission rejects the pipeline, TransCanada is likely to appeal. Regardless, TransCanada will need funds to construct KXL. 

JPMorgan Chase and Wall Street banks don’t want to be bothered with the inconvenient fact that funding Keystone XL means funding climate chaos and abuse of Indigenous rights. We need to tell them loud and clear: ”Business as usual” created this climate crisis — and “business as usual” is over!

Demand Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase defund TransCanada’s KXL pipeline. www.ran.org/chase_stop_kxl

We need to send a clear message to banks like Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase that the funding of extreme fossil fuels like tar sands is no longer acceptable. We will not tolerate threats to our climate, health, land, and water.

Right now, at this year’s international climate conference in Bonn, Germany, countries and corporations are discussing how to put the Paris climate accord into practice. Stopping finance for expansion of tar sands oil would start to put big banks into alignment with climate stability. Continued funding of extreme fossil fuels means extreme weather. Climate change is not a threat of the future, but a critical challenge that is causing catastrophic impacts around the world and requires immediate action now.

We need your voice — today. Tell JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo that you expect banks to live up to their commitments to Indigenous rights and the environment. www.ran.org/chase_stop_kxl

For Indigenous rights and a climate stable future,

Ruth Breech
Senior Campaigner, Climate and Energy

***

My name is Bonnie Wright and I am very excited to be with Greenpeace on board The Arctic Sunrise. You may recognize me as Ginny Weasley from the Harry Potter films, but for the last 24 hours I have been a deckhand. I am here to learn more about Greenpeace’s Ocean Plastics campaign and how we can end single-use plastics.

Every minute of every day the equivalent of one garbage truck load of plastic enters our oceans. Plastics are filling up our oceans and killing marine life around the globe. From straws to soda rings, these plastics choke or entangle species like seabirds, turtles, and whales.

We can no longer tolerate this cycle of destruction for so-called "convenience". I know you've already added your name to Greenpeace's petition demanding corporations come up with better designs and methods for the delivery of goods. Thank you. Will you take the next step? Before one more truck load of plastic enters the ocean, share this message with your friends and family and ask them to take action to end corporate plastic pollution.

You can simply forward this email or share the petition on facebook.

Yesterday, we trawled once just after departing from Freeport in The Bahamas and secondly when we were within The Gulf Stream. Trawling is like fishing, but unfortunately in this case for plastics. Greenpeace has been trawling, conducting beach cleanups and brand audits throughout their Atlantic Coast ship tour in order to gain a better understanding of just how much plastic we have polluting our waterways and connecting the waste back to the corporations responsible for it.

I was saddened to find lots of different types of plastic in our trawl, large pieces of soft plastic, fishing lines, and polystyrene. The turtles and fish that were on this planet long before us are now eating these plastics which clog up their organs and can cause death.

This should not be happening. Single-use plastic that we all use practically every day is what is harming ocean wildlife, but you can help stop plastic pollution. Share my message and ask your friends and family to sign the Greenpeace petition calling out the corporate polluters that are choking our oceans.

There is no planet B, so I believe it is our responsibility to think before we consume plastic that will eventually make its way into this beautiful ocean I am currently surrounded by.

I look forward to sharing more stories after my journey aboard The Arctic Sunrise.

Bonnie