Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org, 914-261-4626
Washington, DC -- On Tuesday, December 11, Tribal leaders from across the country will be joined by members of Congress to mark the 58th anniversary of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and stand with the Gwich’in Nation in opposition to destructive drilling there.
Representatives from the Gwich’in Nation, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Navajo Nation, Lummi Nation, and others will come together to draw connections between their fights to defend their homelands and stand in solidarity against the Trump administration’s dangerous attempts to prioritize the interests of corporate polluters over the human rights, culture, and way of life of Indigenous people.
Since day one, the Trump administration has showed a total disregard for Indigenous rights -- from the removal of protections from Bears Ears National Monument against the wishes of local tribes, to the approval of dirty fossil fuel pipelines like Dakota Access through Native communities, to their push to open the Arctic Refuge for drilling. The Department of the Interior is rushing ahead with plans to hold a lease sale for drilling in the Arctic Refuge’s coastal plain -- considered sacred by the Gwich’in people and central to their food security and way of life -- as soon as next spring.
Representative Raul Grijalva and other members will join the group to discuss legislative avenues in the next congress to protect the Refuge from the Trump administration’s dangerous plans.
WHAT: Press conference and rally to call for immediate action to protect the Arctic Refuge
WHO:
- Reps. Raul Grijalva, Steny Hoyer, Ruben Gallego, and Jared Huffman
- Bernadette Demientieff, Executive Director, Gwich’in Steering Committee
- Mekasi Camp Horinek, Ponca Nation
- Daniel Tso, Navajo Council Delegate-elect
- Frankie Orona, Executive Director, Society of Native Nations
-
Rain Bear Stands Last, Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council
- Additional speakers TBA
WHEN: Tuesday, December 11 at 12pm
WHERE: House Triangle, US Capitol, Washington DC
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.