This Humanities Washington – Think & Drinkpanel discussion of the Necessity Defense is presented in collaboration with Cascadia Climate Action.
Come to the first of a series of Think & Drink focused on climate change featuring Abby Brockway, a member of the Delta 5; Richard Gammon, professor of oceanography and chemistry at the University of Washington; and Megan Ming Francis, political science professor at the University of Washington and author of Civil Rights and the Making of the Modern American State. The event will be moderated by KUOW’s environmental reporter Ashley Ahearn.
In September 2014, five protesters tried to stop climate change in its tracks: They blocked an oil train in Everett for over eight hours.
They were arrested and later tried, and at the heart of their argument was “The Necessity Defense”—the assertion that their actions, though illegal, were necessary to prevent a greater harm.
As climate change worsens, what role will civil disobedience play? How far is too far? Can lack of access to things like clean air be considered a civil right in the traditional sense? And what parallels can be drawn between the 60s Civil Rights movement and the actions of environmental protestors like the Delta 5 and “kayaktivists?”
This Think & Drink event is presented in collaboration with Cascadia Climate Action. Media sponsor: KUOW.
No registration required, and the event is free and open to the public. We recommend arriving early as this event may be full.
