On August 12, agents with the Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raided a local defense contractor, Mills Manufacturing, and arrested 57 workers for being illegal immigrants. In response, the outraged community held a march and rally. Please post your photos here!

For more info on the raid, see http://www.mountainx.com/news/2008/immigration_raid_at_...ts_57

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: August 11 Richmond, VA - Despite a massive police presence throughout the city and our major action plan derailed by law enforcement harassment, 50 activists snaked their way through Richmond today in an un-permitted march, paying visits to several climate criminals. Carrying banners reading, “No Nukes, No Coal, No Kidding” and “Social Change not Climate Change,” people marched to the headquarters of Massey Energy, Dominion, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and Bank of America.

At Massey Energy, a notorious coal company involved in mountaintop removal coal mining, activists surrounded the entrance and yelled, “Hands off our mountains!.” The group then moved on to the Department of Environmental Quality which recently rubber stamped Dominion’s dirty coal plant in Wise County, VA. Next the group brought the party to Dominion, who is building the aforementioned coal plant as well as proposing a new nuke plant in Louisa County, VA. Chanting “No coal, no nukes, we won’t stop until you do!” the activists attempted to take over Dominion’s plaza but were repelled by police on horses. In a show of interspecies solidarity one horse bucked a cop off its back.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: Activists from the Southeast Convergence for Climate Action occupied the welcome center for Dominion’s North Anna nuclear power plant today. The action was taken to protest Dominion’s plans to build two new nuclear reactors and to call out nuclear power for the false solution that it is to the climate crisis. “We are here to serve notice on the so-called ‘nuclear renaissance’ that the anti-nuclear movement is alive and well,” said Glenn Carroll, coordinator of Nuclear Watch South.

In all 25 people occupied the visitors center for 2 hours until police came in to remove them. The protestors wore shirts that read “Nukes not Welcome” and chanted and sang. “We chose to take non-violent direct action because Dominion and the federal government have completely failed to address the climate crisis,” said Paxus Calta who lives twenty miles from the plant. The protesters also gave their own version of a tour for visitors revealing the true nature of the nuclear industry. In all 6 people were arrested for refusing to leave the building and were escorted out in handcuffs to the cheers of their friends.

The nuclear power industry is attempting to pose itself as our savior for the climate crisis. This is simply not possible. The only thing that the nuclear industry can promise us is a life of radioactive waste, poisoned water, and cancer. Nuclear energy has no place in our transition away from fossil fuels. Since the action, police have set up check points around the convergence, following cars leaving the area, and pulling people over and running ID’s.

We will continue to fight for climate justice in the southeast. More action to come! The convergence runs through August 11th so come on out! Todays action was planned by Nuclear Watch South, Blue Ridge Earth First!, and Rising Tide North America.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: Eagle Assets is now Huntingdon Life Sciences largest investor with over 14 million dollars in shares in the company also known as Life Sciences Research, ticker symbol LSR. Activists are beginning to launch a full-scale protest campaign against Eagle Assets and their parent company Raymond James, which has offices all over the United States.

Activists in North Carolina went to speak with Raymond James at 100 Europa Dr. Suite 500 in Chapel Hill, NC, the parent company of Eagle Assets, who now invests over 14 million dollars in LSR, making them Huntingdon's largest institutional investor. We spoke with the manager in her fifth floor office about HLS and she said she would contact her supervisors in Florida. Afterwards, we had a very loud protest outside the business office complex getting the attention of employees who came out for fliers, constructions workers, security guards, and, of course, eventually the police who showed up with six cars right when we were ready to go. We followed up with another protest outside of the Chapel Hill Staples store, so they know we haven't forgotten about them.

Until Raymond James tells their subsidiary Eagle Assets to divest from LSR, we'll be protesting their offices all over North Carolina and urging activists in other states and other countries to do the same. Raymond James has offices in almost every city across the country. They and their subsidiary, Eagle Asset Management, are based out of Florida.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: Its been over two weeks since tree sits were set up along the I-69 route in Southern Indiana, and they've been going strong ever since. The reactions of farmers in the area has been overwhelmingly positive, and momentum is continuing to grow. This is an open call out for folks to come to Indiana to occupy sits, help with ground support, or put up more sits of your own.

please email roadblockef@yahoo.com to let us know you are coming and visit stopi69.wordpress.com for more info.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: Today Asheville Rising Tide’s billionaire bloc descended on Bank of America’s regional headquarters to demand that BoA continue to invest their money in coal. The Billionaires for Coal carried signs reading “More Profit, Less Mountains” and sipped on dirty (coal) martinis to applaud BoA for its funding of mountaintop removal coal mining as well as the new generation of dirty coal plants. The Asheville Police Department did an excellent job of blocking access to the bank entrance and the ATM surely scaring off a number of bank customers.

Two days before, activists with Croatan Earth First! visited three Bank of America branches in Raleigh and Chapel Hill. The activist entered the banks raising a ruckus and handing out fliers to customers until being forced to leave. The motley crew of billionaires then proceeded to demonstrate outside and informing the public of BoA’s dirty deeds. A few weeks before several activists were detained by police in Charlotte, NC (BoA’s hometown) for hanging anti-coal poster’s in the neighborhoods of several BoA executives homes. After intensive interrogation, they were let go without charge (remember kids, never talk to cops).

Bank of America is guilty of funding such notorious human rights abusers and ecological destroyers as Massey Energy, Arch Coal, and Peabody Energy. They have recently handed over heaps of cash to companies such as Duke Energy that is currently building the 800 MW Cliffside coal plant in Cliffside, NC.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: May 25, 2008 - Charlotte, NC Today, activists with Asheville Rising Tide broke ground on a new 800 Mw clean energy power plant in Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers front yard. The power plant will tap into a previously unexplored energy source known as hot air which has been found in large concentrations at Roger's residence, 330 Eastover Rd, Charlotte, NC. "The hot air emitting from Jim Rogers mouth has been around for quite some time, but the last couple of years has seen an exponential growth of this untapped energy source as Rogers parades around the country calling for greenhouse gas reductions while building the dirty Cliffside coal plant. This was simply an opportunity we couldn't pass up," said Jill Rockingham, chief engineer for the project.

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: A video of the APD doing a walk-through of Pisgah View Apts., a local housing project, one officer is carrying an AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle. He refered to it as his piece maker.

This apparently happens somewhat regularly in PVA. The locals of the neighborhood have a lot to deal with. The police presence is intense and the when the police use such tactics as a means to intimidate people, its no wonder the community is afraid of the police.

http://www.myspace.com/ashevillecopwatch

FROM THE NEWSWIRE: Protesters confront HLS customer Quintiles and supplier, Staples. Huntingdon Life Sciences, known as Life Sciences Research in the U.S., is the world's most notorious contract testing laboratory which kills 500 animals daily to test agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and common household items like food colorings and artificial sweeteners. Employees have been caught on videotape punching 5 month old beagle puppies in the face, documented breaking animal welfare laws, admitting to falsifying scientific data...They have locations in Britain and in New Jersey.

Saturday May 10, 2008

Today a group of protesters held another noisy demonstration outside of Staples with a bullhorn, letting them know that this campaign will not end until they end their association with HLS. A number of people stopped to speak with protesters about HLS and Staples, voiced their appreciation and wished us good luck. One man said he would complain to the store and might return his order because of it.