A big weekend for Boycott Chevron campaign in Sacramento, on the West Coast

This Labor Day weekend was a big one for Sacramento Area residents supporting the campaign to boycott the Chevron corporation for its complicity in the genocide in Gaza and its role in environmental devastation across the globe, from the Amazon Rainforest in Ecuador to Richmond, California.

On Friday, August 29, 2025, 4-6 pm, on the Sutterville overpass over I-5 in Sacramento, community members in Sacramento joined in a coordinated highway banner action called for by West Coast Boycott Chevron to demand Chevron Corporation cut ties with Israel over its ongoing genocide in Gaza and apartheid in the West Bank.

The campaign calls on Chevron to immediately end its supporting role to the Israeli military. “The West Coast coordinated highway banner action amplifies calls made by local organizers across the country for individuals and institutions––such as universities and churches––to boycott and divest from Chevron because its profits come at the cost of genocide, apartheid, and the climate crisis,” according to a statement from the group.

“Coordinating this action with 23 cities in Washington, Oregon, and California shows the growth and determination of this demand,” explained Christina Pollock with Sacramento Boycott Chevron. “Chevron has been harming communities here in the U.S. and around the world for decades. Now they're complicit in fueling the genocide in Gaza. We won't stop until they do.”

The group continued:

“Chevron is Israel’s largest energy supplier, including to its military bases, prisons illegally holding Palestinians, and settlements in the West Bank. Chevron supplied the fuel to enable Israel to bomb hospitals, homes, universities, and UN schools in its genocide on Gaza.

“Chevron Corporation operates and co-owns fossil gas fields off the coast of occupied Palestinian land that Israel has illegally claimed. Chevron also manages an illegal pipeline that runs from Israel to Egypt off the coast of Gaza.

“A recent report from UN Special Rapporteur, Franchesca Albanese, on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, specifically mentioned Chevron by name. The report concluded that Chevron may be criminally liable for several crimes including genocide and apartheid under international law.

“In addition to its complicity in grave violations of Palestinian human rights and the rights of other Indigenous communities around the world, Chevron Corporation is failing to align with international commitments to phase out fossil fuels and limit global temperature rise. Among all investor-owned companies, Chevron has produced the most cumulative climate pollution in history. If the company were held partially accountable for the climate loss and damage caused by its pollution, it would owe $900 billion.”

Then on Saturday, Sacramento Boycott Chevron held a protest at the Chevron Station on Broadway in Sacramento to urge people to support the Chevron Boycott. About two dozen environmental justice and human rights advocates showed up, handing out flyers and displaying banners and signs in solidarity with the people of Gaza and against Chevron’s horrific support of genocide in Gaza and human rights abuses and environmental devastation across the world.

In a related action, the Palestine American League and Jewish Voice for Peace Sacramento created a chalk mural at the Chalk It Up Sacramento event at Fremont Park in Sacramento over the weekend. They were just finishing up the chalk mural today, Labor Day.

The art on the left of the mural, the work of Ren Allathkani, was a tribute to Anas Al- Sharif, a Palestinian journalist, one of the 250 killed by the IDF since Oct. 7. Above the art work of him were the words, “You Only Target Journalists When Your Enemy Is The Truth."

The art on the right centered on a heart in the colors of the Palestinian flag. It was a community effort that featured the chalked up outlines of hands of people who attended he event.

Key Facts from Boycott Chevron:
 Tens of thousands of consumers have taken the pledge to boycott Chevron gas stations because its profits come at the cost of genocide, apartheid, and the climate crisis.

 Dozens of organizations have endorsed the #BoycottChevron campaign.

 Dozens of groups around the world have led pickets at Chevron gas stations

 Chevron was dropped from the Denver marathon corporate sponsors list.

 The Swiss National Bank removed Chevron from its portfolio.

 The $2 trillion Norwegian sovereign wealth fund announced it would make changes to its Israeli holdings amidst ethics concerns.

 Several cities have divested from companies fueling Israeli genocide, including Hayward, Richmond, Oakland, Iowa City, and Medford (MA).

Chevron, Western States Petroleum Association dominate lobbying spending in California

The reason why Chevron is able to get away what it does in Gaza and Sacramento is its capture of California and U.S. officials by spending huge amounts of money on lobbying and campaign donations. Chevron and its partner organization, the Western States Petroleum Association, spend more than any other corporate lobbying organizations in Sacramento every year.

Last year the Western States Petroleum Association placed first in the Big Oil lobbying spending spree with $17.4 million, while Chevron came in second with $14.2 million. Spending by the Western States Petroleum Association and Chevron alone shattered the previous record, coming in at $31.6 million in 2024, according to data compiled by the Last Chance Alliance: https://lastchancealliance.org/big-oil-smashes-annual-lobbying-spend-records-to-combat-climate-justice-policy-in-2024/

More recently, in the second quarter of 2025, the oil and gas industry spent even more money lobbying state officials, a total of $9,206,886, than in the first quarter, stopping the Polluters Pay Climate Superfund Act and other climate legislation from moving forward.

That adds up to a total of over $18 billion that Big Oil has spent to gut climate laws, dodge cleanup and keep polluting in the first 6 months of the year.

As usual, the majority of this fossil fuel cash was spent by Chevron and the Western States Petroleum Association. Chevron spent even more money on lobbying in the second quarter, $3,889,907, than in the first quarter, coming in first in lobbying expenses, according to the California Secretary of State’s Cal Access website for disclosures by lobbyist employers: https://lastchancealliance.org/big-oil-smashes-annual-lobbying-spend-records-to-combat-climate-justice-policy-in-2024/

Chevron has refused to respond to growing calls to boycott the company for its operation and co-ownership of Israeli-claimed fossil gas fields in the Mediterranean. At Chevron stations across the country, including in the Sacramento area and the San Francisco Bay Area, local human rights and environmental justice groups have been holding regular protests to highlight the company’s complicity in genocide, as well in environmental destruction and human rights violations across the globe.

The Western States Petroleum Association finished second in the oil industry lobbying expenses with $3,032,226 spent in the second quarter.

With the first two quarters of the year combined, Chevron has spent $7.6 million, while WSPA has spent $6.5 million in 2025 to date..

In addition, Sable Offshore, the corporation that plans to restart the pipeline that caused the devastating Refugio Oil Spill that fouled the Southern California coastline in 2015, spent $419,000 fighting AB1448, a bill that would prevent drilling on public lands.

In the first quarter of 2025, the oil and gas industry spent a total of $9,139,655 in according to disclosures on the California Secretary of State’s website.

Chevron came in first with $3,758,914 spent, while the Western States Petroleum Association finished second with $3,471,879 spent from January 1 through March 31. That’s well over $7 million between those two organizations alone. Again, much of that money was spent on opposing the Climate Superfund Act and other climate bills in 2025's first quarter.