Pittsburgh, PA: Noise Demonstrations Fight Corporation Behind Mountain Valley Pipeline

The following action report details noise demonstrations outside the home of a former CEO connected to the building of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) and at a shareholder meeting.

In the early morning hours of July 10th, a protest was held outside the home of the now former EQT Corporation CEO Robert McNally in the town of Wexford, PA. EQT Corporation is the largest fracking company in the United States and is responsible for the construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline that communities in the Mid-Atlantic region have been resisting since it was announced.

At the action, McNally hid in his two million dollar home while the protesters banged on drums, blared cars horns, and shouted chants and obscenities at him. Police didn’t arrive until a half hour later to tell the protestors they were being “too loud for this hour of the night.”

About 8 officers arrived on the scene and also attracted the attention of a local news team that covered the protest. No arrests were made although the protesters did have fun taunting the police who were basically powerless to do anything since no real criminal activity had taken place (at least not by the protestors).

Later in the morning a second noise demo was held along with a banner drop in downtown Pittsburgh to protest the annual shareholder meeting of EQT. Members of EQT’s board and other shareholders were forced to go around the demo while protestors chanted “1-2-3, Fuck EQT” as they banged on buckets and scrap metal to make as much of a disturbance as possible. After the meeting it was announced that McNally would be removed as CEO due to a successful proxy fight by shareholders who wanted to gain control of the company. Rest assured we will be at their homes soon enough

Report from: Unity Division, a Pittsburgh-based anarchist collective dedicated to street theater and direct action to promote systemic change.