Visited by Charles Hurwitz, Joan Baez, Remedy's Mom and now this
Monday--Julia Butterfly
Contact: Remedy 707/845-3553; Wren 707/498-2808; Darryl Cherney
707/943-3788, Paul Bassis (for Julia Butterfly) 707/923-4619
A rally to honor the 6 and 4 month marks of two women marathon tree-sitters
will take place this Monday, Sept. 23 at 12:30 pm in Freshwater California,
just a few feet off Greenwood Heights Rd. "Remedy" and "Wren" have been
perched on small platforms in giant redwoods since March 21 and May 23,
respectively. The trees are slated to be cut by MAXXAM/Pacific Lumber and
the active logging plan surrounds their vigil with the menacing whir of
chainsaws. Renowned tree-sitter Julia Butterfly Hill will present at the
rally, along with other speakers and musicians. The sit has been visited by
notables such as folksinger Joan Baez, MAXXAM CEO Charles Hurwitz, and
Remedy's mother.
Many landowners have been protesting for years the flooding of their homes
and roadways due to overlogging resulting in sedimentation of Freshwater
Creek. Under the Headwaters Forest Act passed in 1999 by the US Congress,
MAXXAM is being allowed to clearcut five-hundred acres a year in
Freshwater. \Ongoing lawsuits by the Environmental Protection Information
Center (EPIC), the Sierra Club and the United Steelworkers of America are
attempting to halt the terms of that agreement.
"We are engaged in a struggle to preserve the last unprotected old growth
trees and wilderness areas that are currently being laid to waste by the
corporate industrial complex," said Remedy. "We do not approve of the sale
of our children's future or the quality of our lives to a pompous
corporation that has seized Humboldt County like a modern-day Al Capone,"she said.
Remedy continued, "That our tax money pays the salaries of a litany of
bureaucrats that sit on their hands while our watersheds are destroyed is
an outrage. However fun it might be to walk into the California Department
of Forestry and tell them they're fired, it would be undermined by the fact
that they already quit years ago. With every ancient tree they steal from
the forest, and every acre of land they clearcut, the planet is less able
to handle the constant burning of fossil fuels," she said.
Wren, offered her sentiments: "Until a few months ago I lived in the New
York City metropolitan area my whole life. One of my classrooms in
elementary school had a view of the Manhattan skyline. I looked out and
saw the Twin Towers every day. Fifteen years later I watched smoke billow
up from where the towers once stood. The loss of life that day so close to
home broke my heart. The impact that this had and will have on life around
the world is unquestionable.
Now I've lived between the two trunks of an ancient redwood for four
months. I have a view of this gorgeous forest around us as well as about
twenty-five ugly clearcuts. I hear these ancient towers fall every day.
The loss of life so close to my new home breaks my heart every time. The
impact this has had and will have on life in Humboldt, in California,
across the continent and yes, across the world is unquestionable. People
who do not live here can't believe that old growth is still being cut.
They know it is wrong. What they might not know is that Humboldt County has
some of the most progressive and dedicated citizens I've ever had the
pleasure of meeting. Together we will see to it that life goes on in peace
and to that end we will not let another tower fall."
Julia Butterfly applauded this current effort by new young women
tree-sitters. "Freedom of _expression and the tradition of direct action,
eloquently addressed in the Declaration of Independence, continue
powerfully in Remedy and Wren's tree-sitting action. In this time of
focused patriotism, their tree-sits and the acts of others stand out,
reminding us what true love of country is all about."
Directions: Hwy. 101 (So. of Arcata/No. of Eureka to Indianola Cut-off,
drive until stop sign at T. Right at T, drive til 3 corners market and use
public parking (don't park at market!). Shuttle will take you remainder of
1.8 miles to tree-sits. To get to tree-sit by car take Freshwater Road
quick left on Greenwood Hts Rd. Go 1.8 miles Rally will be visible.
