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.

District Attorney Will Not Prosecute 25 Protesters -- Even More Next Time?

Rob Shetterly under arrest at General Dynamics/Bath Iron Works on April 27. Photo credit: Peter Robbins

The LBJ 25 will not be prosecuted for obstructing a public way during the celebration of a war ship at General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works on April 27. Citing the desire to avoid wasting her staff's energy on nonviolent protesters, District Attorney Natasha Irving told Maine Public reporter Susan Sharon: "That's going to take time away from their week when they need to prepare cases of child sexual abuse.”

One of the LBJ 25, Jason Rawn, commented in an email: 

By talking about not wanting to waste scarce resources on this trial, she really opens up the whole question of war dollars and the "legitimacy" of investing in well-organized destruction instead of conversion and regeneration. Great parallel to our basic message!

Another member of the group, artist/activist Rob Shetterly of Americans Who Tell The Truth, told Sharon:

"You know, the U.S. military has the biggest carbon footprint of any entity in the world and it's at this moment in our history, to keep doing this is not giving us more security, it's making us more insecure." 

Protests at the shipyard, Shetterly says, are not to shut down Bath Iron Works but to change its mission to support green energy.

General Dynamics/BIW management show a pattern of ridiculing conscientious objections to their building weapons of mass destruction. During the campaign last year to block a state tax giveaway in Maine, BIW Vice President John Fitzgerald told a sponsor of the bill, Rep. Jennifer DeChant of Bath, that protester Bruce Gagnon was "a one-man band." Subsequently, scores of Mainers signed up to put their names on this ad supporting Gagnon.

In the wake of arrests at the April 27 christening[sic] of the USS Lyndon B. Johnson, the local newspaper serving Bath Iron Works ran a snarky editorial mocking the 25 who were arrested, largely on the basis of age.

The op-ed drew swift rebuttals pointing out that climate catastrophe was anything but trivial, and that the protests had done a good job of making the connection between Pentagon contracting and carbon pollution of Earth's atmosphere.

Steve Clark of Freeport commented, "Whether you agree or disagree with their intent, the protesters were serious in their actions and deserve a more serious response than this facetious piece."

Photo credit: Peter Robbins

As a member of the LBJ 25 myself I can tell you that at least as many more folks had signed up to participate in civil resistance that day, but were unable to attend due to various conflicts with the date. 

Another war ship will roll out of GD/BIW in late June, and planning for civil resistance on behalf of conversion to address climate change are already in the works.

Will there be even more arrests next time? Stay tuned.

Conversion Toward Peace, Right Here In Maine

The Rev. Mair Honan in blue raincoat being arrested by Bath police for blocking Washington Street during a war ship "christening" at General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works shipyard.

Below are the wise words of The Reverend Mair Honan of the United Church of Christ. Mair had the microphone and was just beginning to speak in Bath on April 27 when she decided to join the civil resistance action, so I invited her to share her thoughts via a guest post to this blog.

Conversion Toward Peace

Martin Luther King wrote “when we are met by physical force we must respond with soul force.” The US is the largest arms dealer in the world. We have the biggest navy in the world, we have more nuclear weapons in our arsenal that any other nation. We are not interested in soul force.

April 27th Bath Iron Works  “christens” the $7 billion Zumwalt stealth destroyer.

One of the myths General Dynamics, owner of BIW, believes is that this production makes America safer. We already have the weaponry to blow up the world - has it made us safer, healthier, happier? Many question whether this “security through destructive strength” can bring us any closer to world peace. Our understanding needs to change. The current global issues of climate change, population growth, water shortages, poverty, failing states, reveal more clearly that security must be global if it is to exist at all.

One step, toward real security, would be the conversion of BIW from a company that builds destroyers to a company that takes its ingenuity and dedicated work force and leads us into the concrete reality of supporting this country by building wind /solar projects, hospital ships, and modern rail systems. This would be a move, right here in Maine, toward real security, toward world peace.

Rev. Mair Honan

Most of the LBJ 25, so named because the war ship was named after the Vietnam War criminal, after our release by the Bath PD. We were charged with obstructing a public way. Photo credit: Jim Anderberg

Another of the LBJ 25 arrested on April 27, Judy Robbins, shared a useful news service with me, Pressenza IPA (in English). In my daily news email from them, I noticed an article from March 5: "These 28 companies are building nuclear weapons" based on a report from the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons. 

Guess which company doing business in Maine is on the nuclear weapons list?

General Dynamics (United States)General Dynamics has a number of contracts related key components for the UK & US Trident II (D5) systems. An initial US$ 30.6 million (€ 28.2 million) contract awarded in 2015 has been modified repeatedly (including five times between November 2017 and December 2018) bringing the total contract value to over US$ 174.4 million (€ 155.6 million). Another General Dynamics subsidiary, General Dynamics Electric Boat received a maximum dollar value of US$ 46.5 (€ 43.4 million) contract in September 2017 for integration work for United Kingdom Strategic Weapon Support System kit manufacturing for the Columbia class ballistic missile submarines. In 2018 this contract was modified significantly, first in April for US$ 126.2 million (€ 102.4 million), and again for US$ 480.6 million (€ 414 million) in September 2018.

Here's a political cartoon I created during our campaign last year to stop General Dynamics from getting a big tax giveaway from our low income state (we succeeded in getting the amount reduced, but the tax bonanza from feds, state and local continues as the climate catastrophe rolls on).

I guess I could have put a mushroom shaped cloud in the background instead of a yacht.

Climate Crisis Is Here, So We Must Be Out In The Streets

My guest post today is from the adorable Connie Jenkins. We were arrested together last Saturday at General Dynamics' Bath Iron Works shipyard to call attention to climate catastrophe fueled by building weapons instead of sustainable energy solutions. Connie made these remarks in Bath prior to her arrest, and they were subsequently printed in Common Dreams. Thanks, Connie and all of the LBJ 25.

Published on

Sunday, April 28, 2019

by

Common Dreams

Another Shameful "Christening" at Bath Iron Works

We Must Be Out in the Streets

by

Connie Jenkins

 5 Comments

Police arrested 25 protesters who they say were blocking roads outside Bath Iron Works on Saturday morning, April 27, 2019 during the christening ceremony for the Zumwalt-class guided-missile destroyer USS Lyndon B. Johnson. They face charges of obstructing a public way, a Class E misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. The protesters were primarily members of Maine Veterans for Peace, CODEPINK and the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space. Protesters issued a statement last week that said the Navy and BIW should focus their efforts on the national and global threats posed by climate change and not on building vessels that exacerbate climate change. They said the Pentagon has the largest carbon footprint on the planet. The following were arrested:  Natasha Mayers, 72, of Whitefield,  Virginia Schneider, 60, of South Portland, Lisa Savage, 62, of Solon, James Freeman, 70, of Verona Island, Mark Roman 77, of Solon, Constance Jenkins, 71, of East Blue Hill, Meredith Bruskin, 71, of Swanville, Suzanne Hedrick, 88, of Nobleboro, Roy Pingel, 71, of Queens, N.Y., Dixie Searway, 81, of Parsonsfield, Sophia Ridgely Fuller, 72, of Belfast, Donald Cunning, 72, of Old Brudge, N.J., Dudley Hendrick, 77, of Deer Isle, Daniel Ellis, 71 of Brunswick, Julius Orkin, 80, of Bergenfield, N.J., Carolyn Coe, 52, of Orland, Mary Honan, 71, of Freeport, Ethan Hughes, 48, of Belfast, Russell Wray, 64, of Hancock, Judith Robbins, 70, of Sedgwick, Ellen Barfield, 62, of Baltimore, Md., Robert Shetterly, 72, of Brooksville, Jason Rawn, 45, of Lincolnville, Michael Donnelly, 82, of Brunswick, and Mary Garvey-Donnelly, 80, of Brunswick. (AP)

Three years ago, I was arrested along with 11 others for blocking Washington Street in an act of civil resistance against the “christening” of the USS Michael Mansour, the second Zumwalt destroyer built at Bath Iron Works.  Today the same shameful ceremony will be repeated.

My reasons for taking part in the demonstration in 2016 and risking arrest are the same now as they were then:

• I’m a Christian peace activist, a member of Pax Christi Maine, and have taken a vow of nonviolence.
• I’m a mother, grandmother and great grandmother who would take every nonviolent measure to keep those I love from being sacrificed to the horrors of War.
• I’m a retired nurse practitioner who took an oath to protect life and do no harm.
• And I’m an American citizen who grieves for her country, for I believe we have truly lost our way.  

I was as sickened in 2016 as I am now by the deception and evil carried out in the name of “democracy” and “freedom” and “security”.  

What’s different for me this time around is a deepened focus on “connecting the dots” of permanent warfare, systemic violence and catastrophic climate change as symptoms of a disease, natural consequences of the unrestrained greed that’s part and parcel of our economic system.  

You may have seen an “Earth Day” message from Public Citizen that says it all about where things stand in Washington these days.  But in case you didn’t, here’s the scorecard:

• A coal lobbyist runs the Environmental Protection Agency
• An oil lobbyist runs the Department of the Interior
• A Monsanto executive runs US Fish & Wildlife
• A BP oil attorney is the nation’s top environmental lawyer
• A fossil fuel lobbyist is the EPA’s air pollution chief
• A big energy insider regulates our power grid

If that isn’t awful enough, the climate crisis is also being directly fueled by U.S. foreign policy.  Even the Pentagon says that climate change poses “immediate risks” to national security, that it’s a “threat multiplier.”  But the Pentagon serves the War Profiteers. And General Dynamics, owner of Bath Iron Works, is right at the top of the heap in raking in profits from our War Economy.

It helps that they have “friends” in Congress.  If you take a look at the website of the Center for Responsive Politics, you’ll see that PACs and individuals associated with General Dynamics contributed close to $2 million to federal candidates last year.  It was pretty disappointing to see Angus King’s name at the top of the list, receiving $62,000. But Angus wasn’t the only one to benefit:  Chellie Pingree got $11,000, Susan Collins, $9000, and Jared Golden $615. This might help explain why I haven’t received a response to the letter I sent each of them on April 8th.  I’d like to share the last 2 paragraphs of that letter with you:

I’m writing to ask you not to honor the naming of another weapon of mass destruction with your presence.  How ironic and yet appropriate that the USS LBJ bears the name of the president responsible for so much death and devastation in Viet Nam.  Unfortunately, we seem to have learned nothing since that time. For we are now living with the consequences of George W. Bush’s global “War on Terror,” another debacle based on lies, poor judgment, and hubris.

I find it impossible to believe you truly think the wreckage caused by the notion of “American Exceptionalism” can ever be justified.  Please reconsider your attendance at this shameful event. I appreciate your attention to my concerns.

It seems we are long past the point where it’s enough just to write letters to our representatives, send emails, and visit congressional offices for scheduled appointments.  Those things are important to do, but we don’t have time for business as usual because climate change is the existential threat to most life on the planet, including humanity.  

I believe we need to follow the lead of the climate youth activists and movements who’ve put world leaders to shame:

• If we are mothers or fathers who want to save our children, we must be out in the streets.
• If we are grandparents who want our grandchildren to have a future, we must be out in the streets.
• If we are people of faith who believe we are called to be peacemakers and stewards of the gift of Creation, we must be out in the streets
• If we are environmentalists who cherish and have vowed to protect Mother Earth, we must be out in the streets
• And if we are activists working to end systemic violence in any of its forms, we must be out in the streets.

I’d like to end with part of a prayer from one of my guides on the path to peace and nonviolence, Fr. John Dear.  This is from his book Radical Prayers on Peace, Love, & Nonviolence:

Dear God,

Give us a new will,
a new spirit,
a new heart,
a new grassroots movement to protect creation,
that we might respect and protect creation
and create a new culture of nonviolence for Mother Earth.

We love you for the gift of your creation
For the beauty of Mother Earth.
Thank you for such a gift.
Do not let us destroy it.

Do not let the nations of the world burn it down.,
wage permanent war,
and kill millions of sisters and brothers
along the way.

Give us the wisdom and way forward,
that we might become who you created us to be—
your loving stewards of your beautiful paradise.

Amen

-----

Protesters Arrested Demanding BIW Convert To Building For Climate Solutions, Not Carbon Belching War Ships #LBJ25

Most of us who were arrested at Bath Iron Works war ship "christening" 4/28/19, after our release from the Bath Police Department. 

Jim Anderberg, who supported the protest as a photographer, posted this comment: 

The last Zumwalt class destroyer was launched at Bath Iron Works today. 25 people were arrested in a protest. A $7.5 billion boondoggle. 

Think what that money could be used for to alleviate our use of fossil fuels and address the global warming crisis.

The #LBJ25 are mostly Mainers: Natasha Mayers, Whitefield; Ginny Schneider, South Portland; Jim Freeman, Verona Island; Connie Jenkins, East Blue Hill; Meredith Bruskin, Swanville; Suzanne Hedrick, Nobleboro;  Dixie Searway, Parsonsfield; Ridgely Fuller, Belfast; Dud Hendrick, Deer Isle; Dan Ellis, Brunswick;  Carolyn Coe, Orland; The Reverend Mair Honan, Freeport; Ethan Hughes, Belfast (who returned home from Bath by bicycle!); Russell Wray, Hancock; Judy Robbins, Sedgwick;  Robert Shetterly, Brooksville; Jason Rawn, Lincolnville; Mike Donnelly, Brunswick; Mary Garvey-Donnelly, Brunswick; Mark Roman, Solon; and Lisa Savage, Solon.

We were grateful to be joined by several Veterans for Peace who traveled to Maine for the protest: Ellen Barfield, Baltimore, Maryland; Don Cunning, Old Bridge, NJ; Julius Orkin, Bergenfield, NJ; and Roy Pingel, Queens, NY.

Other supporters of the protest: Peter Baldwin of Waldo County Peace & Justice who brought his drum; VFP members Ellen Davidson and Tarak Kauff, who designed and produced the banners pictured above; VFP's John Morris and Ian Collins, logistical and jail support; song leader Rosie Paul of Peaceworks; BIW stalwarts Maureen and George Oestensen of Smilin' Trees Disarmament Farm and Akemi Wray of Citizens Opposing Active Sonar Threats (COAST); photographers Peter Robbins, Roger Leisner, Regis Tremblay, and Richard Kane (who was on hand filming for a documentary on portraitist Rob Shetterly of Americans Who Tell The Truth) and a sound technician with Kane whose name I didn't catch before I was arrested.

It would be impossible for me to name all of the 75 or so folks who turned out yesterday, but I love you all!

Suzanne Hedrick, the eldest of those arrested, was featured in this great video by Peaceworks.


(If you're unable to view the embedded video, you can see it here on YouTube.)

I departed suddenly from my role as MC at the rally where speakers noted the urgency of the need for conversion as the Pentagon and General Dynamics/Bath Iron Works barrel full speed ahead toward the cliff of climate catastrophe. I look forward to videos sharing both the first half of the rally and the second half, which I missed after moving into Washington Street to help halt traffic.



A partial list of the news coverage:

"Twenty-five protesters arrested near Bath Iron Works" Darcie Moore, Times Record & Portland Press Herald

"BIW Christening" Kennebec Journal & Waterville Morning Sentinel

Dud Hendrick, VFP, engaged in civil resistance (Photo credit: David Sharp, Associated Press)

"LBJ's Daughters Christen BIW Destroyer Ship Bearing Their Father's Name" Caitlin Troutman, carrying water for the military industrial complex at Democrat leaning news service Maine Public.

The LBJ 25 were charged with obstructing a public way and ordered to appear in court on June 18 at 1pm in West Bath. 

If you're in the area, we hope to see you there!