Why I am not planning to get arrested

8 Replies

Bill McKibben, the man who organized the ongoing protest against the Keystone XL pipeline, was in the group of arrestees on the first day. They were the only group that has been held overnight so far, and were actually held for an entire weekend before having the charges against them dismissed in court on Monday.

As the person who raised the call for people to come to Washington, engage in non-violent civil disobedience, and risk arrest, it was probably fitting for McKibben himself to be arrested.

Since before I arrived here, I have been thinking about whether I should get arrested myself. I think it would have been an interesting, worthwhile, and powerful experience to express my opposition in that way. At the same time, there is a strategic case for participating as a volunteer rather than an arrestee. To a large extent, the purpose of this action is to draw attention to the Keystone XL pipeline, the arguments against it, and the reasons for opposing oil sands exploitation generally. By volunteering as a photographer and documenting the cycle of each group being trained, taking action, being arrested, and being released, I think I am helping to serve that purpose. Already, images from Tar Sands Action photographers have been used by a wide variety of news organizations.

I am also concerned that getting arrested might keep me from being able to enter the United States in the future. The fight for sensible climate change policies will be a long one, and it will surely involve other important actions in this country, as well as conferences, possible study at American schools, etc.

I hope the answer I gave on the radio, when asked why I was not planning to be arrested, will not excessively put off other Canadians who are considering it. So far, arrested Canadians have been treated just like Americans and released after a few hours and payment of a $100 fine. The charges against them have been very mild, and there is a good chance they will never have any further difficulties because of them.

Perhaps it is selfish of me not to express my opposition as powerfully as possible, or unfair of me to call upon others to take an action I am not taking myself. I applaud those who are choosing to engage in this act of civil disobedience and I hope that they will drive President Obama to think deeply about the ethics of this pipeline and reject it. For my own part, I genuinely believe that I can do more to encourage the emergence of a low- and eventually zero-carbon global society by doing all I can to maintain my ability to travel to the United States in the future. I also think that by volunteering to take photos and generally help out for the 15-day span of this event, I am making a meaningful contribution to its success.

As it is being employed here, civil disobedience is a tactic intended to serve the aim of avoiding dangerous climate change. It is not an action that has moral value in and of itself. I will continue to try and serve that cause using the skills and resources at my disposal. 

As always, I am happy to discuss my position with those who disagree. People who think I should get arrested still have ten days to convince me, as well as to travel to Washington and take a stand themselves. It would be great to have more people down here to participate in the civil disobedience, as well as to act as supporters and volunteers.

8 thoughts on “Why I am not planning to get arrested”

  2. dp

    Refusing to get arrested yourself because of the inconvenience it might cause you does send a bad message. It certainly reduces your ability to recruit others to participate.

    If climate change really is so very important, you should be willing to run the risk and make the sacrifice personally.

  3. Milan Post author

    This is some information the organizers got about the legal situation of Canadians in relation to this action. I was told I could share it for the benefit of Canadians thinking of participating:

    Q:  I’m Canadian, will I be eligible for post-and-forfeit?  What about Canadians that have records?  Will this arrest affect my ability to cross the border in the future?

    The first and second question here are questions more about the post and forfeit requirements and eligibility than immigration issues.  I’m not sufficiently familiar with the eligibility requirements for post and forfeit and whether foreign nationals have this option available to them, although I believe that Ann confirmed that at least one Canadian has already been afforded the post and forfeiture opportunity.  To my knowledge, there are no distinctions between foreign nationals and U.S. permanent residents (“green card” holders) and U.S. citizens when applying the post and forfeit option.  Again, if the person has a prior record, I’m not familiar with the eligibility requirements for post and forfeit (that’s more for an attorney experienced in criminal matters) and it seems that it may depend on what is in the prior record whether that person would be eligible for the post and forfeit.  I don’t expect that there would be a distinction between a foreign national and a U.S. permanent resident or citizen when determining eligibility for post and forfeit based on a prior record.

    Nonetheless, the immigration-related question here is what is the consequence for the Canadian if s/he undergoes the post and forfeit or has a prior record.

    It’s my understanding that post and forfeit is not considered an admission or an adjudication of guilt as far as the Court is concerned.  For immigration purposes, it will certainly be considered a conviction, regardless of how the Court treats it, as long as there is a guilty plea and some punishment imposed (likely including the payment of the fine).  Thus, for immigration purposes, the individual will likely have a conviction for the offense.  Whether that offense presents a ground of removal or inadmissibility for future visits to the United States will depend on the precise charge for which the individual receives the post and forfeit.  Some offenses present grounds of removal and/or inadmissibility and others do not.  For example, a trespassing charge would likely have no effect; however, an assault, even a simple assault, might present an immigration concern.  Typically, if the charge is one for which the possible sentence does not exceed a year, then it does not pose a ground of removal or inadmissibility.  Caveat: It does not matter whether the sentence is imposed or suspended, the defining fact is whether a sentence of a year or longer may be imposed.

    Naturally, with respect to whether the Canadian could be deported, that will also depend on whether s/he is maintaining a lawful status in the United States, and within the period of authorized stay, not employed without authorization,etc.  Also, if that Canadian has a prior criminal record which is discovered upon the arrest, and is one for which removal and future ineligibility for admission is possible, then that person might be removed from the United States and the Customs and Border Protection databases at the border may be updated to reflect that the person should not be admitted to the United States the next time that the individual applies for admission.  Whether a prior criminal record presents a ground of inadmissibility depends on the particular offense and, in many cases, the language of the specific statute under which the individual was convicted.

    I am feeling torn about whether to get arrested. The legal consequences seem likely to be minor, but there is some risk. It also alters the optics of my participation in this event a bit, which could have consequences in other spheres.

  4. .

    As a result of Hurricane Irene, we’re making a few changes to our plans for this weekend.

    Saturday’s demonstration is planned to continue as usual. If you are planning to sit-in Saturday, but are concerned about travel problems or other issues related to the hurricane, we encourage you to reschedule for later next week, which we expect to be even bigger than this week. We’ll be making a final decision tonight during our training about whether to move forward, based on the latest weather reports.

    “Artists for the Climate: How to Defuse a Carbon Bomb” – an art event planned by local DC artists and DJs against Keystone XL – will still take place as planned in St. Stephen’s Church, 7pm on Saturday night.

    Sunday’s demonstration is cancelled in expectation of extreme weather in DC, and out of respect for those who are facing the immediate impacts of the storm. We don’t feel we can expect to safely continue the action. Sunday night’s training will still continue as planned to prepare for the action on Monday.

    It does not escape us that on a warmer planet, storms of this size and character will become more likely and dangerous. The storm only strengthens our resolve to stop this pipeline and the tar sands.

    We’re taking Sunday off, but we plan to come back even stronger, starting on Monday when we’ll be joined by a big contingent of religious leaders and top climate scientist James Hansen. Wednesday will be a re-scheduled youth day of action, and we have many more people scheduled to join us later in the week. On the 3rd we’ll cap off our action with a big showing as the Sierra Club leads a rally in Lafayette Park.

  6. Michael Kushnir

    Getting arrested will only help if the cameras are rolling. Your greatest contribution to the cause is through your documentation!

  7. Milan Post author

    This event is actually pretty comprehensively covered by photographers, even without me.

    I need to beg laptop time, since my old G4 iBook wasn’t worth lugging down.

    By the time I get a few unedited shots uploaded to Flickr, two or three other photographers have put up dozens of shots nicely tweaked in Lightroom or Photoshop.

  8. dp

    The people outside the White House have the moral courage to stand up for the rights of all those around the world and far into the future who will suffer because of climate change.

    You need to decide if the value of your contribution outweighs the costs it may have, both in terms of future climate advocacy and all other business that involves entering the United States.

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