The Case For Conversion -- Because #ClimateEmergency Is Not Going Away

Channeling Senator Susan Collins and her many corporate sponsors outside BIW in Bath prior to my arrest April 1, 2017

My husband and I and many friends have been arrested at General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works war ship factory multiple times protesting the celebration of wasteful, carbon-belching weapons of mass destruction.

Current rap sheet for Mark and me:

Aegis 9 group just prior to our arrest

April 1, 2017 Aegis 9 arrested and charged with criminal trespass. Acquitted February 1, 2018 by Justice Dan Billings  prior to jury deliberations, on the grounds that the state failed to make their case.

LBJ 25 group with supporters just after our arrest

April 27, 2019 LBJ 25 arrested and charged with obstructing a public way. Charges dropped by (new) Sagadahoc County District Attorney Natasha Irving.

In handcuffs after blocking a bus headed for a war ship celebration at Bath Iron Works on June 22

June 22, 2019 Inouye 22 arrested and charged with obstructing a public way. Awaiting mail from DA Irving notifying us that obstructing a public way charges have been dropped in favor of -- jaywalking! Our understanding is that a $150 fine will have to be paid or we will risk losing our drivers license. Ongoing legal strategizing on how to respond is still in process.


The publicity generated by our risking arrest is the point.

Because when we convene a news conference to lay out the case for conversion of Maine's military-industrial capacity to address climate emergency, corporate media and elected officials pay very little attention.



If the embedded video of our news conference does not work for you, here's a link to the video on YouTube: Climate Crisis Demands Conversion, Press Conference.

A Green New Deal that fails to address the Pentagon's enormous greenhouse gas emissions will not be successful. 

This is an inconvenient truth that is unaffected by Pentagon propaganda, or the refusal to count military emissions as part of the climate problem.

I will continue working to get the word out, before climate catastrophe overtakes us all.

Recently I was interviewed by Mutiny FM, an internet radio station out of San Francisco. (Big thanks to Inouye 22 member Sadie Fulton for arranging this!) You can hear host Roman Rimer interview with me beginning around the 27 minute mark in the archived podcast.

And, also this week, I did an interview for Bruce Gagnon's This Issue show on local access television about the urgent need for conversion. Please listen to our discussion and join in.



If the embedded video of Bruce's show does not work for you, here's a link to the video on YouTube: This Issue with Lisa Savage.


Climate emergency is not going away. We must all pull together, and soon.

Report Back From Jail Support For The 9 Incarcerated Members Of BIW Arrest Group #Inouye22

The No Bail Nine after their release June 24, 2019

Yesterday Mark and I spent the afternoon witnessing the Kafkaesque incarceration of nine of our friends who refused to pay a $60 bail commissioner's fee following arrest at Bath Iron Works on Saturday, June 22. All were calling for conversion of General Dynamics' BIW shipyard to building climate solutions rather than making the climate emergency worse by building yet another carbon belching war ship.

Our first stop was the district court in West Bath where we met up with jail support coordinator Peter Morgan. He had been there at 8am only to learn that the hearing would occur at 1pm. 

Our nine defendants -- Jim Freeman, Sadie Fulton, Bruce Gagnon,  Ken Jones, Natasha Mayers, George Ostensen, Dixie Searway, Mary Beth Sullivan, and Russell Wray -- appeared via video feed from the Two Bridges Jail Facility, a private for-profit jail used by Sagadahoc County.

Probably the presiding judge and the assistant district attorney could see them clearly, but from our vantage point in the front rows they appeared as nearly unrecognizable distant figures in jail-issued clothing. It was an alienating experience for us and, they later reported, for them. It was also the first time the men and women had seen each other since Saturday.

We could hear their voices pretty clearly through the video feed. After Jim Freeman entered his "not guilty" plea for the charge of obstructing a public way, Judge Matthews asked the assistant DA: if the charges were going to be dropped anyway couldn't they agree to just dismiss the charges right then and there? (Charges were dropped after a similar arrest of 25 people on April 27 at BIW).

South Gate of BIW, June 22, 2019 just before some arrests for obstructing a public way. Photo credit: Mike Donnelly

The assistant DA said that his boss, DA Natasha Irving, did intend to prosecute some of those arrested on June 22.

More on that later. (Our stellar attorney, Logan Perkins, advises that we should know in a week whom the DA intends to prosecute.)

So, the assembly line hearing rolled on. George Ostensen attempted to state what he was pleading not guilty to, but was silenced by Judge Matthews and threatened with contempt of court if he did more than enter his plea. 

All were released on personal recognizance with no bail fee required -- which is what all of us had asked for in the first place, before the State of Maine ran up a big bill incarcerating nine people for three days.

Next we were off to Two Bridges which is about 9 miles away in Wiscasset. The facility seemed quite new as Mark, Peter and I sat in an entirely empty waiting room with no human beings visible. All the workers were behind one way mirrors which we could see through only by pressing our noses up against the glass.



Eventually we were told the prisoners would exit from an outside door, so we moved to a picnic table in sight of the door. By now we numbered five having been joined by Martha Spiess and Melody Shank.

Many happy reunions then occurred up until 5pm or so when the last prisoner was finally released. 

The No Bail Nine had spent their time well, connecting with prisoners mostly in for drug and alcohol related offenses they could not afford the bail fee for, mixed in with a few accused murderers both male and female.

The Nine reported that they were greeted warmly by the other prisoners who had read of their arrests the Portland Press Herald article (a reprint of the Times Record's weekend story). "Are you these guys?" they asked holding up a copy of the PPH.

Natasha did art with many of the women, and managed to slip a copy of our Conversion Campaign literature into the reading room (see it here: front side & back side). She signed up to volunteer to teach art at the jail in the future. Many of the Nine emerged questioning why the state pays $150 a day to a for-profit facility with horrible mattresses and bad food -- which the other prisoners said had improved "since you all got here."

As we drove back over the bridge above BIW to return home, Sadie showed her feelings toward Maine's largest weapons manufacturer and major contributor to climate catastrophe bearing down on everyone.

Some compare organizing peace and justice types to herding cats. Certainly we are a strong-willed group who tend to think independently and come to our own conclusions. But, we are also an amazing team centered here in Maine with much appreciated folks "from away" joining in when they feel the spirit. Throughout yesterday I was on the phone and email with many supporters who were helping us connect the No Bail Nine with their vehicles or rides home. A lot of love was in the air!

We came home to find the good news that Bath's local newspaper, the Times Record, had updated their weekend story on the arrests and included lots of information from our Conversion Campaign news conference the day prior to the BIW civil resistance. They quoted BIW worker Patsy Messier who had sent a statement for me to read at the news conference: 

"BIW has the capacity with all the equipment and people who are already there for the conversion to happen pretty easily. All it would take is the will by the people."


Amen to that, sister.

47 Arrested In 8 Weeks Demanding: #ConvertBIW To Address #ClimateEmergency !

Members of the #Inouye22 being taken to jail  Photo credit: Sophia Bahlkow

Media coverage of our powerful Conversion Campaign news conference on June 21 was thin, but coverage is rolling in from both mainstream and alternative sources for our arrests on June 22.

And people ask what purpose it serves to be arrested.

They might well ask that of the 70 people reportedly arrested outside the New York Times the same day, demanding the mouthpiece of the wealthy cover climate as the emergency it is.

Supporter of Juliana v. U.S. youth climate lawsuit in Portland, Oregon June 4, 2019 Photo credit: Janet Weil

As of this morning, news of our arrest is trending in the Bangor Daily News' Most Popular list.

Here's a current list of coverage of our civil resistance.

The Common Dreams article is particularly rich as it offers context for the arrests -- remember when journalists did that? It also includes videos of some of our arrests as well as our press conference the previous day.


'Fund Climate Solutions Not Endless War' 22 Arrested Demanding US Build Windmills, Not War Ships  by Jon Queally, Managing Editor Common Dreams 6/23/19

22 BIW protesters arrested, charged; 8-week total of 47 by Liam Nee, News Center Maine 6/22/19

22 protesters arrested outside christening[sic] of destroyer at Bath Iron Works by Charles Eichacker, Bangor Daily News 6/23/19

Bath Police arrest 22 protesters outside BIW before war ship christening[sic] ceremony by Darcie Moore & Kathleen O'Brien, Times Record 6/22/19

Police arrest 22 protesters outside christening[sic] of warship at BIW by Darcie Moore Kennebec Journal & Waterville Morning Sentinel 6/22/19




(Note: The Portland Press Herald did run the Times Record article by Darcie Moore, but the PPH website has been down all morning so I can't share a link, only this photo my friend Maryellen Dunn sent me of the hard copy of the Saturday 6/22/19 edition.)

Bruce Gagnon of Global Network Against Nuclear Power & Weapons in Space being taken to jail. To order your Maine Natural Guard t-shirt and take the pledge to connect global heating to Pentagon carbon emissions, go here.
Photo credit: Sophia Bahlkow

Post-arrest press release, archived on Peace Action Maine's website (big thanks for media assists from Martha Spiess).

Video of our Conversion Campaign news conference the previous day, Friday, June 21, 2019 in Portland.

Jill Stein, Luke Sekera and Barry Dana after speaking at the Conversion Campaign news conference in Portland 6/21/19 Photo credit: Nickie Sekera

Jill Stein's archived video of the Conversion Campaign news conference where she and other Green Party US members spoke. Thanks to Jill for livestreaming our event on Facebook.