Apr 12, 2019 - Seattle Takes Action Against JPMorgan Chase
On April 10th, 2019 a coalition of Indigenous peoples, climate justice and divestment activists took action against JPMorgan Chase due to their funding of climate change projects.
Several hundred took to the streets with the goal to disrupt, and or shutdown, all 44 JPMorgan Chase bank branches in Seattle.
According to a recent report by the Rain Forest Action Network, Banking on Climate Change 2019, reveals that “the four biggest global bankers of fossil fuels are all U.S. banks — JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Citi, and Bank of America. Barclays of England, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) of Japan and RBC of Canada are also massive funders in this sector. Notably, JPMorgan Chase is by far the worst banker of fossil fuels and fossil fuel expansion — and therefore the world’s worst banker of climate change. Since the Paris Agreement, JPMorgan Chase has provided $196 billion in finance for fossil fuels, 10% of all fossil fuel finance from the 33 major global banks.
JPMorgan’s volume of finance for fossil fuels 2016-2018 is a shocking 29% higher than the second placed bank, Wells Fargo. The bank stands out even more from its peers in its volume of financing for the top companies expanding fossil fuel extraction and infrastructure: since the Paris climate agreement, JPMorgan Chase’s $67 billion in finance for the expanders is fully 68% higher than that of Citi, in distant second place.”
The Seattle action, which successfully disrupted all 44 branches and closed down several, was part of a multi-year campaign the coalition has waged against the bank.
In addition to demanding an end to the funding of fossil fuel projects such as fracking, off-shore oil drilling, mining, pipelines and more, the coalition raised awareness to the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women and to the man camps that accompany these projects.
Video of the MMIW contingent by 350 Seattle
Activists prepare the march into JPMorgan Chase downtown HQ photo by Pam Keely
MMIW contingent photo by Matt Remle
The action was organized by Mazaska Talks and 350 Seattle
by Wakíƞyaƞ Waánataƞ (Matt Remle- Lakota)
Matt Remle (Lakota) is an editor and writer for Last Real Indians and LRInspire and the co-founder of Mazaska Talks. Follow @wakiyan7