Bellingham: Tripod Blockade Halts Coal Train

From Earth First! Newswire

“Fight For What We Love” read a sign held up by a protestor who took direct action on Saturday, August 27, to halt the transport of fossil fuels through the Pacific Northwest.

The action takes place on the heels of a monumental event organized by the Lummi Nation that saw a 22-foot totem pole transported across 5,000 miles from Canada to the US in their fourth annual “totem journey.”

Along with oil trains and natural gas pipelines, coal trains have been a continuous source of protest in the region since mining was expanded in Montana’s Powder River Basin in 2009.

Earlier this year, the Lummi effectively smashed a permit for the Cherry Point coal terminal just 13 miles northwest of Bellingham, insisting that the environmentally destructive affair would have interfered with fishing grounds.

As the scientific consensus against climate change increases, greater stock is being taken of the companies responsible for bringing it about. Actions like this continue to apply the pressure to the perpetrators of climate change in solidarity with indigenous peoples who continue to stand against the legacy and perpetuation of colonialism.