Leftist Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) encouraged climate activists to become “more aggressive” in fighting the fossil fuel industry as activist groups plan protests in multiple U.S. cities, according to The Daily Mail.
The “Squad” member joined more than 100 people from radical environmental groups such as Climate Defiance and Declare Emergency for a video call where she discussed the current state of climate activism and legislation. Tlaib praised the activists for their past acts of “civil disobedience” but believes that more “direct action” needs to be done.
“We have to be much more aggressive in regard to fossil fuel expansions,” Tlaib said, adding, “If we don’t get the policies we need, if our legislative process is failing us, then direct action gets the goods.”
In the video call, Tlaib was joined by activist Tim Martin who faces jail time for smearing paint on Edgar Degas’ “Little Dancer Aged Fourteen” at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
Martin is a part of Declare Emergency, a group seeking to convince President Joe Biden to declare a “formal state of climate emergency.” Declare Emergency was founded last year by Roger Hallam, who also co-founded a climate group that staged a week-long protest in London in 2019, costing the city millions of dollars, according to the Mail.
Climate Defiance, another group Tlaib addressed on the call, brags about blockading the White House Correspondents Dinner, claiming that the stunt “was merely our warmup.” During the call, the group’s Seattle-based mobilizer Donald Zepeda announced plans to protest on federal properties in New York and D.C. in August.
“We aim for whatever causes the most kerfuffle, everyone has to see it. Everyone is impacted,” Zepeda said. “Doing massively disruptive, nonviolent civil disobedience, it’s a necessary and important part of getting us to where we need to be.”
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Tlaib, a Palestinian-American, has made a name for herself in Congress and on the “Squad” by making radical, and sometimes anti-Semitic comments. Last year, the Democrat suggested that people who bank with JPMorgan Chase should “close their account” because CEO Jamie Dimon said his bank does not have “a policy against funding new oil and gas products.”
Democrat Rep. @RashidaTlaib to bank CEOs: Will you promise me right now not to fund anymore future oil and gas projects?
JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon: "Absolutely not and that would be the road to Hell for America." pic.twitter.com/zmq610M8R4
— Young Americans for Liberty (@YALiberty) September 21, 2022