Climate protest at the White House

On October 11, a group of protesters stationed themselves in front of the White House. They chanted “respect us or expect us,” and demanded that their voices be heard. Not only did the protestors chant, they also vandalized the statue of Andrew Jackson that is located in front of the White House, painting “expect us” across the base of the statue in red paint. 

According to The Washington Times, the group protesters consisted of a group called Build Back Fossil Free, a far-left leaning group that actively protested to end the Line 3 oil pipeline, which runs through Native American reserves, particularly the Ojibwe lands. The protest on Monday, October 11 was specifically planned to be on Indigenous Peoples’ Day in order to celebrate Native Americans. 

Build Back Fossil Free’s website also calls upon the president to fix the damage caused by “environmental racism,” make clean energy available to all and deliver justice for everyone. 

“Our country is in crisis. In the midst of a pandemic and climate catastrophe, our communities turned out in record numbers to elect you,” says Build Back Fossil Free’s website. “Now it’s time to fulfill your promises to end the era of fossil fuel production, protect communities reeling from the climate and COVID-19 crises and #BuildBackFossilFree.” 

The protestors also called for President Biden to declare climate change a national emergency, and to end all government projects that use fossil fuels. The community’s website says that they plan to hold the president to his campaign promises: to combat climate change. 

Although it is unknown if President Biden will take action toward putting an end to fossil fuel use and therefore climate change, it is certain that the protestors’ voices were heard across the nation.