http://forestpolicy.posterous.com/west-virginia-direct-action-st
The arrival of such a famous environmental activist went unnoticed by
most media and townspeople. That changed Feb. 3, when Roselle and 12
others chained themselves to a Massey Energy Corp. bulldozer at a mine
site on Coal River Mountain in Raleigh County. He was detained and
cited, but not arrested, in his first direct action in West Virginia.
His newest group, Climate Ground Zero, is small. Only he and a few
nuclear members moved to town. But that's how it's always been for his
grassroots efforts. His disobedience may be nonviolent, but it's
unlawful all the same. Roselle has been arrested about 40 times for
civil disobedience actions, such as trespassing and chaining himself
to equipment.
Final formatting of post available at http://forestpolicyresearch.org
Get full text; support writer, producer of the words:
http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=52024
Just a few months ago, three little coal company houses stood along
the Coal River, gutted and near the end of their lives. Now, those
three little homes are considered the Appalachian base for Climate
Ground Zero and Coal River Wind. Their new tenant, 54-year-old
national environmentalist Mike Roselle, is setting up shop to get
ready for a long summer of disobedience in the coalfields. Earth
First!, Roselle described it as "a painfully small group." One of the
group's first actions featured him and his roommate headed from
California to Oregon in 1982, where logging had started in a
wilderness area. He said Earth First!'s first meeting had about 40
people in attendance and then 20 at the second. At their first action,
about eight people came and four were arrested. In 12 separate actions
from April to July of that year, about 85 people were arrested. At
that time, he said, none of the more traditional conservation groups
would go in with Earth First! members on the 14-mile hike up a couple
thousand feet of vertical elevation to the protest site. For some
Earth First! activists, it was their first time in the state. It was
the first time direct action and civil disobedience had been used in
an organized long-term campaign, Roselle said. "So that campaign
resulted in probably a couple 100,000 acres of old-growth (forest)
being protected, and from then Earth First! grew into a national
organization," he said. In larger campaigns, he has had up to 10,000
activists in attendance, with celebrities such as Bonnie Raitt and Don
Henley there to help, Roselle said.
http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=52024
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Roselle was one of 13 activists detained and cited for trespassing
after they chained themselves to a bulldozer Feb. 3 at a Massey Energy
Corp. mine site. Protests and citations came in two waves, at 9 a.m.
and 1 p.m., with five activists involved in the first round and eight
in the second. A videographer also was arrested during the first
protest. About 50 people from West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee
gathered at the Coal River Mountain Watch headquarters by noon that
day, according to Lorelei Scarbro, a Coal River Mountain Watch
community organizer on the Coal River Project. Charles Suggs, with
environmental groups Climate Ground Zero and Mountain Justice Summer,
said, "We won't stop until they do. There is a wind farm going on that
mountain or some other healthy, safe, clean form of economic
activity." The first five activists cited were members of Climate
Ground Zero and Mountain Justice Summer, including Roselle. He said he
previously has been involved with Greenpeace and Earth First! and
moved to West Virginia in July to begin work on the mountaintop
removal issue. He's been coming to West Virginia for five years but
said he's here for the duration of this battle. He and others made the
long hike to get around a guard at the front gate. "Trespassing is
certainly a serious offense, but destroying a mountain is more
serious," Roselle said.
Get full text; support writer, producer of the
words:http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=51398
Final formatting of post available at http://forestpolicyresearch.org
The arrival of such a famous environmental activist went unnoticed by
most media and townspeople. That changed Feb. 3, when Roselle and 12
others chained themselves to a Massey Energy Corp. bulldozer at a mine
site on Coal River Mountain in Raleigh County. He was detained and
cited, but not arrested, in his first direct action in West Virginia.
His newest group, Climate Ground Zero, is small. Only he and a few
nuclear members moved to town. But that's how it's always been for his
grassroots efforts. His disobedience may be nonviolent, but it's
unlawful all the same. Roselle has been arrested about 40 times for
civil disobedience actions, such as trespassing and chaining himself
to equipment.
Final formatting of post available at http://forestpolicyresearch.org
Get full text; support writer, producer of the words:
http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=52024
Just a few months ago, three little coal company houses stood along
the Coal River, gutted and near the end of their lives. Now, those
three little homes are considered the Appalachian base for Climate
Ground Zero and Coal River Wind. Their new tenant, 54-year-old
national environmentalist Mike Roselle, is setting up shop to get
ready for a long summer of disobedience in the coalfields. Earth
First!, Roselle described it as "a painfully small group." One of the
group's first actions featured him and his roommate headed from
California to Oregon in 1982, where logging had started in a
wilderness area. He said Earth First!'s first meeting had about 40
people in attendance and then 20 at the second. At their first action,
about eight people came and four were arrested. In 12 separate actions
from April to July of that year, about 85 people were arrested. At
that time, he said, none of the more traditional conservation groups
would go in with Earth First! members on the 14-mile hike up a couple
thousand feet of vertical elevation to the protest site. For some
Earth First! activists, it was their first time in the state. It was
the first time direct action and civil disobedience had been used in
an organized long-term campaign, Roselle said. "So that campaign
resulted in probably a couple 100,000 acres of old-growth (forest)
being protected, and from then Earth First! grew into a national
organization," he said. In larger campaigns, he has had up to 10,000
activists in attendance, with celebrities such as Bonnie Raitt and Don
Henley there to help, Roselle said.
http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=52024
Get full text; support writer, producer of the words:
http://wowktv.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=52024
Roselle was one of 13 activists detained and cited for trespassing
after they chained themselves to a bulldozer Feb. 3 at a Massey Energy
Corp. mine site. Protests and citations came in two waves, at 9 a.m.
and 1 p.m., with five activists involved in the first round and eight
in the second. A videographer also was arrested during the first
protest. About 50 people from West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee
gathered at the Coal River Mountain Watch headquarters by noon that
day, according to Lorelei Scarbro, a Coal River Mountain Watch
community organizer on the Coal River Project. Charles Suggs, with
environmental groups Climate Ground Zero and Mountain Justice Summer,
said, "We won't stop until they do. There is a wind farm going on that
mountain or some other healthy, safe, clean form of economic
activity." The first five activists cited were members of Climate
Ground Zero and Mountain Justice Summer, including Roselle. He said he
previously has been involved with Greenpeace and Earth First! and
moved to West Virginia in July to begin work on the mountaintop
removal issue. He's been coming to West Virginia for five years but
said he's here for the duration of this battle. He and others made the
long hike to get around a guard at the front gate. "Trespassing is
certainly a serious offense, but destroying a mountain is more
serious," Roselle said.
Get full text; support writer, producer of the
words:http://www.statejournal.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=51398
Final formatting of post available at http://forestpolicyresearch.org
