By Brett Larson, June 10, 2015
By Liz Sawyer, Originally Posted: 06/07/2015
Thousands of protesters marched through downtown St. Paul to the State Capitol on Saturday, calling for the cancellation of the proposed Sandpiper oil pipeline that would travel near some of the state’s pristine waters.
Though an independent tally was unavailable for the Tar Sands Resistance Rally, organizers estimated that 5,000 anti-pipeline and climate change activists took part in the colorful and peaceful march, marked by dozens of national speakers and live music and dance. Police reported no arrests.
Activists such as 350.org founder Bill McKibben, Sierra Club President Aaron Mair, and Ojibwe “water walker” Sharon Day — some of whom led the long-running battle against the controversial giant Keystone pipeline — say they hope to turn Minnesota’s pipeline into the next national organizing symbol against tar sands and climate change.
“The fossil fuel industry has been winning for 200 years, but their winning streak is over,” McKibben said Saturday, calling Minnesota “ground zero” in the climate fight.