Banner Drop on the South Fork of the “American” River

The South Fork of the “American” River in Coloma is the busiest section of whitewater in the Western “US”, and July 4th weekend is the busiest weekend for it. Understanding this, a group of pissed off kayakers took to the river to ensure that the hundreds of commercial rafters aren’t able to live in ignorance when the planet and its people are under attack.

Under the leadership of fascist Donald Trump and supported by inaction from the Democratic Party large swaths of wild land are under attack of privatization. This will further destroy what little remains of ecosystems across this settler-colony and will prove disastrous for indigenous people’s, many of whom still rely upon the land that the fascist federal government is seeking to kill. Along with the governments ecocidal crusade it has continued and expanded ICE’s genocidal campaign of establishing racial purity along with funded and facilitated genocidal wars against Palestine, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran, and many other places exploited by the march of globalization and neo-colonialism.

Armed with the understanding that inaction is death and there is no escape from the fascism that has engulfed this land a group of pissed off kayakers put in early in the day and set up shop at the largest rapid on the “gorge” section of the SFA. This rapid called Satan’s Cesspool is a chocked off drop between two rocks and has a permanent photographer present who takes and then sells pictures to rafters. Quickly a banner was hung on the rocks proclaiming “respect existence or expect resistance” and another banner proclaiming “defend the wild, fuck trump” was tied to paddles and held directly above the drop.

As the rafters began to arrive some (all old white men) decried us for “bringing politics to the river” while others screamed fascist slogans. Far outnumbering these, however, were hundreds of rafters who cheered us and stood in solidarity.

Although the vast majority supported us, simply cheering isn’t enough to stop the fascist onslaught. If we want to enjoy the rivers we must fight to defend them. Although we’re just a group off pissed kayakers with no collective name or group this should be a call to action for people’s everywhere that there is no such thing as a place that should be ignorant of fascism. Our people and our planet is under attack and there is no cost too great to defend them.

They’re coming for all of us so we must resist by any means necessary. Escalate the fight and bring to every place that you’ve been told to keep it away from. The revolution must take place not just on the streets, but on the rivers, on the cliffs, and in every place on this planet.