Today I am wearing a bright yellow sticker that reads People Before Profits . I am back from a rally on the steps of the Capitol that took place on an equally bright day in downtown Denver. The young, active, activist vibe in this city seems amplified as banners announcing the impending Democratic National Convention glow in the sunlight. It is a heady time.
But before we all relax in the Mile High sunshine sucking on our Barack Nuk Nuks, let’s keep in mind the current headline from the Onion: Al Gore Places Infant Son In Rocket To Escape Dying Planet. It is a time, as my uncle would say, “To get pissed off, liquored up and ready to fricking fight.” Ready to fight the oil and gas industry that is.
People of all ages and colors were rallying to demand that the oil and gas industry stop putting profits ahead of the people of Colorado. Representatives of low-income communities, communities of color, environmental and youth organizations all agree: the obscene profits realized by the oil and gas industry are sucking us dry. The press release issued for the event reads:
In this era of jaw-dropping profits – ExxonMobil announced last week they made $11B in the second quarter of this year – the oil and gas industry is leaving everyday Coloradans behind. Coloradans are suffering under staggering costs that hurt everyone – from sky high gas prices to budget-busting home heating costs.
“Seventy nine percent of the profits oil and gas companies make from drilling in Colorado leave the state. Companies take their profits with them and we are left to deal with the impacts on our people, communities and public health,” said State Representative Claire Levy.
It is a familiar trend whether in Colorado or in the Niger Delta. In fact, an article in today’s Business Daily Africa reports that:
Ironically, the Niger Delta region is one of the most underdeveloped and poverty-ridden places in the country today. So much wealth has been taken from the land to develop other parts of the country, while the region parades pervasive poverty. The people of the region live in the worst conditions imaginable. The region has all the rivers and creeks and yet the people cannot find clean water to drink.
Time to fricking fight? You bet your Nuk it is.
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