Protesting the Military’s
Contribution to Climate Change
Indivisibles
(July 30, 2023) — If it’s mid-summer it must be time for Seafair in Seattle. As we know, a large part of the festivities center around the display by the Blue Angels over Seattle and Lake Washington. Several local organizations (the Mt Baker Meaningful Movies group, South Seattle Climate Action, and Veterans for Peace) are questioning the legitimacy of the show in the context of the large contribution the military makes to climate change.
The US military is one of the world’s single largest institutional users of fossil fuels and contributes significantly to emission levels of greenhouse gases (GHG). Because of negotiations in past climate agreements such as the 1997 Kyoto Protocol and the 2015 Paris Accords, there is no requirement for countries to report military GHG emissions as part of their total emission levels.
Air shows are not necessary for national security so there is a strong argument for doing away with them if we are serious about fighting climate change.
“Each Navy Blue Angel or Air Force Thunderbird burns approximately 1,500 gallons of expensive jet fuel per hour — 68,000 total gallons is consumed for a weekend show.
This means that each airshow adds 650 metric tons of CO2 into the air, contributing to climate change more than 10 cars would by driving 150,000 miles each — for just one weekend’s entertainment.”
Community members and members of Veterans For Peace Chapter 92, 350 Seattle, and Extinction Rebellion Seattle will be protesting military jets at Seafair. Please join them if you wish to add your voice to the movement to bring greater awareness of the military’s contribution to the worsening climate crisis.
When: Saturday and Sunday, August 5-6, 10 am-12 noon and other times and locations TBD.
Where: Lake Washington Blvd S & 43rd Ave S, across from Stan Sayres Memorial Park, Seattle 98118.
Event Brings Awareness to the
Climate Impacts of the US Military
Meaningful Movies.org
(July 25, 2023) — On Thursday, July 20th, The Mt Baker Meaningful Movies group, South Seattle Climate Action, and Veterans for Peace held a thought provoking, call to action online Meaningful Movies event which focused on the importance of stopping Military Air Shows.
The US military is the world’s single largest institutional user of fossil fuels and the single largest institutional emitter of greenhouse gases (GHG). Its gross contribution to the climate crisis is not being factored into the national or local climate plans.
Nobody is holding the US military accountable for the damage it is doing to our climate. No one. US politicians and negotiators have made sure that military emissions are not counted toward a country’s total emission levels (see the Kyoto Agreement) so military emissions continue to escalate.
National and local Veterans for Peace members are taking the lead to change this! They have launched the “Climate Crisis and Militarism Project” (CCMP) to demand the US military report and reduce military emissions, reduce and redirect the military budget, and promote climate justice and peace. They are asking local community groups to join their campaign to stop military air shows to reduce unnecessary GHGs.
As part of the Mt. Baker Meaningful Movies and Veterans For Peace event, there was a short film, news clips, a visual presentation and a panel of local and national Veterans for Peace leaders. They informed, inspired, and invited audience members to support their Climate Crisis and US Militarism campaign. Their plans to protect us all from environmental disaster starts with decarbonizing our community events and beyond.
At the end of the event the organizers asked audience members to spread the word about this campaign. If you know of other groups that would like a presentation about the Climate Crisis and Militarism Project, they can use the information below to ask for a speaker (via Zoom) to groups big or small that want to learn more.
Please visit the Veterans for Peace Climate Crisis and Militarism Project: https://www.veteransforpeace.org/take-action/climatecrisis
You can schedule a presentation here: https://www.veteransforpeace.org/take-action/climatecrisis/ccmp-presentation
There was also an invitation to join a local campaign to stop the Military Air Show that is a part of SeaFair. See below for a recent press release about an upcoming action to bring awareness to this campaign
No More Military Air Shows in Seattle
The Time for the Blue Angels is Over
Military jets may seem fun for some, but they are not good clean fun. Each Navy Blue Angel or Air Force Thunderbird burns approximately 1500 gallons of expensive jet fuel per hour – 68,000 total gallons is consumed for a weekend show. This means that each airshow adds 650 metric tons of CO2 into the air, contributing to climate change more than 10 cars would by driving 150,000 miles each – for just one weekend’s entertainment!
Climate activists and military veterans are coming together to say this flagrant use of fossil fuels, when we are experiencing global heating at a rate much faster than scientists predicted, must stop.
What: Community members and members of Veterans For Peace Chapter 92, 350 Seattle and Extinction Rebellion Seattle will be protesting military jets at Seafair with flyers, posters, banners and our bodies.
When: Saturday and Sunday, August 5-6. 10 am-12 noon and other times and locations TBD.
Where: Lake Washington Blvd S & 43rd Ave S, across from Stan Sayres Memorial Park, Seattle 98118.
Why: Climate chaos is here, triggering extreme weather events. Last summer, six 1000-year floods happened in the US, including in Death Valley one of the driest places on Earth — getting a year’s worth of rain in just three hours.
Military Aircraft and Global Warming
This summer India, China, and the Southwestern US are experiencing searing, record-breaking heat waves. The UK recorded the hottest June since records began in 1884.
“Burning fossil fuels is causing global warming and related extreme weather events,” says Andrea O’Ferrall of Extinction Rebellion Seattle. “While we should be entering emergency mode and curtailing non-essential use of fossil fuels, we are not there yet. Concerned climate activists are therefore calling out the Blue Angels and other military air shows as a form of climate folly that must end.”
“The Blue Angels come to entertain, but at a high cost,” says Dan Gilman of Veterans For Peace – 92. “Besides the climate destruction and noise pollution, they create a false positive image of the military and recruit young people for wars we don’t need and shouldn’t start. Military veterans say it is time to demilitarize Seattle Seafair.”
Beth Brunton from South Seattle Climate Action Network says “We are in a climate emergency and we don’t believe that the military air show that is a part of SeaFair supports a healthy environment. Obviously, we are concerned about the fossil fuels that are burned and the greenhouse gases that are emitted as part of the airshow, but we are also concerned about the pollutants that are dropped on our south end community.”
Contact: Andrea O’Ferrall, Extinction Rebellion Seattle, (206) 240-3996, andreaoferrall@comcast.net;
Dan Gilman, Veterans For Peace-92, (206) 499-0226, dhgilman@outlook.com;
Mary Paterson, 350 Seattle, (206) 271-0251, marycpaterson@gmail.com
Beth Brunton, South Seattle Climate Action Network, admin@southseattleclimate.org
