MATTOLE TREE-SIT BEING RAIDED

A Call came from the Mattole Forest Defenders at about 11am reporting that there are Bulldozers, Loggers, and Sherrifs at the Mattole Tree-sit. These trees are occupied by several of the forest defenders who are reportedly out on traverse lines between the trees to protect the village. Extraction of someone on a traverse line would be an extremely dangerous move by Maxxam/Palco. Given the level of violence used on tree-sitters in the past extractions in Freshwater and other places and the current lawsuit against the climbers for the violence they used, one hopes there will be restraint shown today at least on the part of the climbers. Sadly this is probably not the case. At this point a very dangerous situation is happening down there. The bulldozers are to remove slash-piles, sherrifs, loggers and extractors are there for tree evictions and arrests, the loggers are there to fell the old-growth trees being occupied and the rest of the area. Let us all pray for the safety of the brave young forest defenders in the trees and that they remain safe and unharmed.
I am a forest defender working with the Freshwater Treesits. I am in solidarity with our brothers in the mattole who are in a seperate group than us but share the same feelings about the last remaining old-growth trees.