Protests at Pipeline Funding Banks

Photos: Leon Kunstenaar / Pro Bono Photo

Some of the usual suspects, Citibank, Chase and Wells, were targets of environmental protests at their Market Street branches. The banks were called out for their ongoing funding of fossil fuel pipelines, particularly Pipeline 3, slated to carry a million barrels of foul tar sands oil per day.

Other corporations involved in pipeline funding include Bank of America, TD Ameritrade, Union Bank - as well as insurers like Liberty Mutual.

Protesters, from small children to seniors, assembled at Market and Sansome. With banners, large and small signs, and shouting out slogans, they marched down Market to where Citibank, Chase, and Wells Fargo have branches all within the same block. Medical personnel in their white coats were among the protesters.

All three banks had their branch entrance blocked by protesters linking arms through "pipelines." Large street murals were drawn on the sidewalks.

Portable sound equipment allowed both children and adults to hold a well amplified rally in front of the Citibank branch.

An example of imaginative street theater was a "graveyard" with "tombstones" representing species, now extinct. "Who will be next?" it asked.

There was a definite police presence but they did not cause any problems.

The event was organized by:

• Stop the Money Pipeline Coalition
• Oil & Gas Action Network (OGAN)
• Extinction Rebellion SF Bay Area
• 350 Bay Area
• Diablo Rising Tide
• East Point Peace Academy
• Silicon Valley Climate Action Now
• Fossil Free California
• 1000 Grandmothers for Future Generations
• Idle No More SF Bay
• Code Pink SF Bay Area

See all high resolution photos here.