Louisvillians Arrested for Civil Disobedience in D.C.

Planned acts of civil disobedience are scheduled through next week in Washington D.C. as activists protest the construction of Keystone XL: a pipeline to carry oil from Canada’s tar sands to the Gulf of Mexico. Several Louisvillians have already been arrested for protesting.The protests began on Saturday and activists plan to stage acts of civil disobedience every day for the next two weeks.Mark Steiner of Kentucky Interfaith Power and Light was one of six Louisvillians arrested yesterday. He says they went because they think the tar sands pipeline could be an environmental disaster.“And it’s something that the president is capable of stopping. He has the power to decide not to issue a permit for this pipeline. We wanted to give him the message that supporters of him in 2008 were looking to him to take that action.”There’s a vast amount of carbon trapped in the tar sands, and climatologists have warned that releasing it would exacerbate the effects of climate change.Steiner and the other protesters held banners in front of the White House, and refused to leave when asked by police. They were taken to the nearest station, where they were booked, paid a fine and were released.Three other Louisville residents were arrested during the protest’s first day. They and fifty others were held in jail for two days, and were released today.