PORT TOWNSEND — Protesters are returning to Sims Way to protest Wells Fargo and Chase banks’ investments in the Dakota Access Pipeline now that the project is back on track.
Saturday’s protest will take place from noon until 2:15 p.m. Protesters can meet on the corner of Sims Way and Kearney Street, near Port Townsend’s Chase and Wells Fargo locations.
A community photo is planned at 1 p.m. and the event will feature local speakers and musicians, said Joan Fabian, an organizer.
The Saturday protests were a staple through November, but stopped when, on Dec. 4 in the final days of President Barack Obama’s administration, Jo-Ellen Darcy, the assistant secretary of the Army for civil works, announced that an easement would not be granted for the pipeline to cross under Lake Oahe on the Missouri River in North Dakota.
However, after President Donald Trump took office, the project was granted an easement after a Feb. 7 decision by Robert Speer, the acting secretary of the Army, to terminate the notice of intent to perform an environmental impact statement and to notify Congress of the Army’s intent to grant permission for the Oahe crossing
The Energy Transfer Partners’ pipeline had been protested by the neighboring Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, a protest joined by thousands of others.
Saturday’s protest “is to continue to encourage people to divest from banks like Wells Fargo who are funding big oil,” Fabian said.
She and other organizers feel their movement has picked up steam with the city of Seattle removing $3 million from Wells Fargo on Tuesday and the Muckleshoot Tribe also pulling their funds.
“Really the main fight is arguably in the courts,” said Danny Milholland, one of the protesters who participated in November and one of the Peninsula residents that went to Standing Rock over Thanksgiving, “but there are still Water Protectors out there and the fight isn’t over.”
Aside from reigniting the bank protests, roughly 20 Jefferson County residents are organizing to head back to the Standing Rock reservation Feb. 24 and stay for five days.
“Basically there’s a group going out there to help clean up and move the camp to higher ground,” said Milholland, who will be among those traveling to North Dakota.
“There were thousands of people out there before winter storms set in and so there’s a lot of gear and trash that got buried that needs to be picked up. They’re also expecting spring floods so the camp itself needs to be moved.”
Before they leave, Port Townsend protesters are planning an event Feb. 18 to raise money for donations to the Water Protectors. No details were in place as of Thursday.
“There’s still a really strong community of people who support this,” Fabian said. “That enthusiasm has never faltered.”
The Dakota Access Pipeline is a $3.8 billion pipeline that, if completed, will move oil from Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf of Mexico.
The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe filed in court Thursday for a temporary order to halt pipeline construction. Oral arguments will be heard Monday, according to The Associated Press.
For more information about Port Townsend events, contact Milholland at daniel@thunderbull productions.com.
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Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Cydney McFarland can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 55052, or atcmcfarland@ peninsuladailynews.com.
