Four people were arrested at TD Bank in Asheville this past Friday. They were
protesting the building of the Keystone XL Pipeline.
Photo from this blog.
Photo from this blog.
Here is a message from Laura Sorenson, one of the arrested:
Sharing my experience:
The bank manager was very upset and met the 4 of us as we entered the door with the female officer at her side. The manager said, “May I help you and do you have any business with the bank?” We said yes and she told us to move to the teller and we said no, not that kind of business. She said then you need to leave. We then said we'd like her to get the President of the bank in Toronto on the phone line and she said NO and you need to leave. Then we ignored her and each read our statement to TD Bank and had time to sing 3 rounds of the song “They are digging us a hole.” Then the officer explained the rules and said we would be arrested if we did not leave and we said yes and we aren't leaving. As they took us out the back door in handcuffs we continued to tell the employees they needed to tell their boss in Canada it is not OK to destroy the planet. One male employee responded by saying to me “yes, and do you know you are here illegally?” (Funny because I was handcuffed at this point). I replied “Of course. We do this because nobody is listening and we need to be heard on this issue.” I was about to cry and he looked at me solemn and said OK.
Some of the points we made:
1) their millions spent on false advertising about being a bank of humanity.
2) profiting from dirty oil while the earth and people suffer: millions invested by TD
3) sick children and parents dying of cancer
4) the climate change contribution........we are upset parents and grandparents!
5) people's lands being stolen from them
6) tribal violations
7) we'll be back until you stop participating in this nightmare
Our experience with the police was positive and friendly. One cop told us she knew they were doing this all over the country. We had no bond and our court date is May 9th. I think it was 7:30 when we were released. Finger prints, mug shots and paperwork take time. While waiting for the magistrate, we had an intimate talk with a young officer about what it was like to be a cop. He wanted us to know that officers live with the challenge of knowing in the back of their minds at any moment they could be punched, attacked or shot and at the same time they have to be nice and respectful 24/7. When I shared witnessing police brutality several years ago, he admitted there were some cops with attitude. But I have to say everyone treated us with respect and a good sense of humor last night.
Laura Sorensen
Sharing my experience:
The bank manager was very upset and met the 4 of us as we entered the door with the female officer at her side. The manager said, “May I help you and do you have any business with the bank?” We said yes and she told us to move to the teller and we said no, not that kind of business. She said then you need to leave. We then said we'd like her to get the President of the bank in Toronto on the phone line and she said NO and you need to leave. Then we ignored her and each read our statement to TD Bank and had time to sing 3 rounds of the song “They are digging us a hole.” Then the officer explained the rules and said we would be arrested if we did not leave and we said yes and we aren't leaving. As they took us out the back door in handcuffs we continued to tell the employees they needed to tell their boss in Canada it is not OK to destroy the planet. One male employee responded by saying to me “yes, and do you know you are here illegally?” (Funny because I was handcuffed at this point). I replied “Of course. We do this because nobody is listening and we need to be heard on this issue.” I was about to cry and he looked at me solemn and said OK.
Some of the points we made:
1) their millions spent on false advertising about being a bank of humanity.
2) profiting from dirty oil while the earth and people suffer: millions invested by TD
3) sick children and parents dying of cancer
4) the climate change contribution........we are upset parents and grandparents!
5) people's lands being stolen from them
6) tribal violations
7) we'll be back until you stop participating in this nightmare
Our experience with the police was positive and friendly. One cop told us she knew they were doing this all over the country. We had no bond and our court date is May 9th. I think it was 7:30 when we were released. Finger prints, mug shots and paperwork take time. While waiting for the magistrate, we had an intimate talk with a young officer about what it was like to be a cop. He wanted us to know that officers live with the challenge of knowing in the back of their minds at any moment they could be punched, attacked or shot and at the same time they have to be nice and respectful 24/7. When I shared witnessing police brutality several years ago, he admitted there were some cops with attitude. But I have to say everyone treated us with respect and a good sense of humor last night.
Laura Sorensen
No comments:
Post a Comment