Rise, Rally, Resist: March for Climate, Jobs, and Justice Sat. April 29, 2017

You are the sky. Everything else is just the weather.
— Pema Chodrun

Unless it’s not weather but climate change…

On the first day of his presidency, along with a few million others, I marched.

Now on the 100th day of his presidency, along with a million or more, I will march again, this time for Climate, Jobs, and Justice, in an event that I am co-organizing that takes a stand for climate justice and a clean energy economy.

Even for someone like me who considers herself an activist, it seems like it has been non-stop from one March or action to the next, including spelling out RESIST at the beach and waving at cars about education in the pouring rain.

Because times have changed. Just watch this Simpson’s episode if you have doubts.

The biggest March for Climate Jobs and Justice will be in Washington DC. Because DC, right? They’ve been planning it for over a year to coincide with the 100th Day of whoever will be in office.

And it just so happened to be the train wreck pictured in the Simpson’s cartoon above who inspired last weekend’s March for Science held on Earth Day.

“The Science March is about respecting science, the Peoples Climate March is about acting on it,” added Ploy Achakulwisut, a PhD candidate in atmospheric science at Harvard University.

“The Trump administration’s dismissive attitude toward climate change, and its efforts to roll back multiple Obama-era environmental regulations, have added fuel to the movement’s urgency.”

When we join the the March for Climate Jobs, and Justice, we “show the Trump administration that there is a strong resistance at the end of 100 days” to these policies that wreak environmental havoc that destroys communities of all species.

On September 21, 2014 the Peoples Climate Movement organized the historic Peoples Climate March on the eve of the UN Climate Summit. As heads of state from around the world gathered, 400,000 people from every walk of life marched through the streets of New York City demanding bold and urgent action of the global climate crisis.

And in Ventura, we marched too — from City Hall to the Ventura Pier and back– and we participated in workshops throughout the day. Here’s photos of the event.

On the 100th Day of the Trump Administration, we hit the streets again — in Washington D.C. and in our hometowns– to show the world and our leaders that we will resist attacks on our people, our communities and our planet, write organizers.

We will come together from across the United States to strengthen our movement. We will demonstrate our power and resistance at the gates of the White House. We will bring our solutions to the climate crisis, the problems that affect our communities and the threats to peace to our leaders in Congress to demand action.

You are invited to join the Peoples Climate Movement on Saturday, April 29th as we march to:

• Advance solutions to the climate crisis rooted in racial, social and economic justice, and committed to protecting front-line communities and workers.
• Protect our right to clean air, water, land, healthy communities and a world at peace.
• Immediately stop attacks on immigrants, communities of color, indigenous and tribal people and lands and workers.
• Ensure public funds and investments create good paying jobs that provide a family-sustaining wage and benefits and preserve workers’ rights, including the right to unionize.
• Fund investments in our communities, people and environment to transition to a new clean and renewable energy economy that works for all, not an economy that feeds the machinery of war.
• Protect our basic rights to a free press, protest and free speech.

Many communities across the United States have held events all week and plan to host one on Saturday April 29. Find a Sister March close to home. 

In Ventura on Monday April 24 iMatter led a Youth Climate March from Plaza Park to City Hall where they presented a climate resolution that passed 7-0.

In our area on Sat. April 29, there are three events — one at noon at Santa Barbara City College, one at 10am in Oak View, and the one in Ventura that I am co-organizing at 2pm.

• Carbon-Neutral Rally, Oak View
  Oak View Park And Resource Center 555 Mahoney Ave, Oak View, California 93022
• People’s Climate Mobilization Rally, Santa Barbara
  Saturday, April 29, begins 12:00 p.m. at Santa Barbara City College’s La Playa Stadium. 
• People’s Climate Rally, March, and Thermo-Climb, Ventura
  Saturday, April 29, begins 2pm at Mission Park, Ventura and ends at Ventura Botanical Gardens

Please join us in Ventura at a rally in Mission Park across from the Mission San Buenaventura (185 E. Santa Clara) where we will start our mission to express our commitment to climate, jobs, and justice. We will start with a ceremony by Barbara Bain (Shasta tribe) where we will express our gratitude to our ancestors and to the planet and set our intentions to care for each other and the land during the march taking great care to be loving and thoughtful of plants and people on the trail at the Ventura Botanical Garden, and to express our care for people and planet into a future that holds unity and justice for all.  We will also hear from Jim Hines of the Sierra Club, and possibly Rachel Morris formerly of VCCool who may even sing a song if we can get correct amplification for her. Our photographer will share a little about what he is hoping to achieve with the images we are gathering, and we may hear from one or two more people, myself included.

But this is not a rally with a lot of long winded speeches; instead it is one more of action. And ART!

Choose your color of the rainbow to wear and help us create art that conceptualizes our commitment to diversity and unity and justice for all!

After these few words of inspiration, encouragement, and education, we will form a Rainbow arcing around a HUGE Moreton fig, then we will turn that rainbow into a Circle to show our commitment to unity and justice.

Next some of us may “swarm” up Valdez Alley to Poli and then travel east, but most of us will likely swarm east on Main St and then up California to the Ventura Botanical Gardens located behind City Hall at 901 Poli. We hope this method will keep people moving so they are not stuck at street lights. People will have an hour to swarm which gives them time to get a cup of coffee, buy  slice of pizza, or find a public restroom,

At the Ventura Botanical Trail,  we will be welcomed by Barbara Brown of the Ventura Botanical Garden, we will hear more from Jim Hines, we possibly might hear from iMatter Youth, and before we take our next action, Bhante Sutadhara of the Ventura Buddhist Mission will speak with us to focus our intention.

After these brief messages, we will organize by color to create a human thermometer and ascend the trail for a “thermo-climb. Those wearing red shirts will lead the way, followed by those in orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and, finally, violet for photographs of our human thermometer: an artistic representation of global warming.

or as my friend and arts activist Tracy Hudak put it:  we are making a visible ribbon of support for addressing climate change…

Choose a color and RSVP to this FREE event:
https://www.facebook.com/events/275301409589868/
 https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ventura-county-climate-rally-march-and-thermo-climb-tickets-33914938494?aff=ebapi

Climate march color flyer here to print out.

Get a postcard of our finished image in the mail!

During the event, please find someone with a clipboard so you can make a donation to cover expenses of our event (two portapotties cost over $500!) and write your address on a mailing label so that we can send you a postcard of our finished image!

While we encourage public and active transportation, if you need to park your car, you will probably be able to find free on-street parking in the vicinity of Mission Park. You might also choose the free public parking garage located on Santa Clara to the east of California St. There’s limited parking available at the Ventura Botanical garden; ADA permits only. City Hall has parking and there’s a big free lot about a block away off Chestnut between  Main and Poli by Theodora Burr Shepherd’s garden site

Stay tuned for details about the after-party!

Love what is lovable and have compassion for what is not.