Come to the campaign's first jury trial

Where: The Boone County Courthouse in Madison, WV.

When: October 15th at 9 am

Why: To support activists facing up to 18 months in jail for nonviolent civil disobedience on Kayford Mountain to stop mountaintop removal.

Come join with local leaders and allies from around the country in supporting Mathew Louis-Rosenberg at his trial.  Mr. Louis-Rosenberg has plead not guilty to charges of trespassing and conspiracy to defend their actions to stop mountaintop removal as lawful and just.  (Read an appeal for support from Mat below).  By making a strong showing at this trial, we can prove the Boone County Court and the coal barons that these activists are not isolated “extremists” but part of a diverse and growing movement to stop mountaintop removal.   Our presence will set the tone for the numerous trials ahead.   Anyone coming for the trial is welcome to stay at our base camp in Rock Creek, WV.

Send a Letter to the Boone County Court

For those that can’t make it to the trial, you can write a letter to Magistrate Byrneside expressing your support for the defendants to:

Magistrate Byrneside
Boone County Courthouse
200 State St.
Madison, WV 25130

Please be respectful.

For More Info Contact Mat:

mat@climategroundzero.org

304-854-1937

Call for Support:

Dear Friends,

I am writing you today to ask for your support.  At dawn on May 23rd of this year, myself and 7 others walked on to Patriot Coal’s Samples Mine on Kayford Mountain and locked ourselves to a gigantic rock truck used to haul away the rubble from blowing up a mountain.  For the next four hours, we stopped that machine from continuing to participate in the destruction of Kayford Mountain.  We were all arrested by the Boone Co. Sheriff’s Department and charged with trespassing and conspiracy to commit trespassing.  My friend Glen Collins and I have chosen to fight these charges and be tried by jury on October 15th.  The maximum jail sentence is 18 months.  I am asking you to come to Madison, WV, and stand in solidarity with me and the communities across Appalachia being devastated by mountaintop removal.

This action is part of an ongoing nonviolent direct action campaign to end mountaintop removal coal mining, adding to the voices of long time local leaders and outside allies.  Since February 3rd, there have been 14 actions in southern West Virginia of folks blocking mine roads, locking down to equipment and offices, and picketing mine entrances resulting in over 100 arrests, including former Congressman and miners’ hero Ken Hechler, actress Darryl Hannah and NASA climatologist James Hansen.  This campaign has shown a spotlight on the horrific crime of MTR, invigorated locals long disheartened by the overwhelming power of the coal companies, and continued to build the pressure to end this practice once and for all.  Many people have taken brave stands and big risks.  However, this is the first time that anyone will go to a jury trial.  Given that our six fellow activists who plead no contest received the maximum fine of $1,844, there is a real chance that this will be the first time anyone has been sentenced to a jail term for their actions in the campaign as well.

Some folks have asked me why I have chosen to risk a jail sentence instead of simply taking the fine, and I’d like to say briefly why I think this is important.  This campaign, just like the civil rights movement and many other struggles for change, is founded on a strategy of nonviolent civil disobedience.  And just like the civil rights movement, it draws its strength and its power from the willingness of ordinary people to take extraordinary risks and sacrifices because of the strength of their beliefs.  My conscience demands that I stand up in that court room and explain to the people of Boone Co. why I did what I did.  I will not contest the facts of what happened, but rather assert my belief that what I did was right, that I was stopping a far greater crime than I was committing.  And if I go to jail because of it, I know that I go as many have gone before me, in defense of my friends, this land and my convictions.

I have just been amazed at the support I have received from all the local people that I have worked with over this last year fighting for clean drinking water and healthy communities.  They understand the importance of standing strong because for them this is a life and death issue.  Everywhere I go, I meet people who’s homes have been ruined, who’s water has been poisoned, who have watched friends and family die around them, who had their land and heritage robbed from them for a lump of coal and a greasy buck.  Kayford Mountain is the first place I ever came to in West Virginia.  I spent three days working on Larry Gibson’s cabin up there and decided I wasn’t leaving.  When I took that banner that read “NEVER AGAIN” up on that mine, I carried it for Larry.  And Judy.  And Bo.  And Chuck.  And Ed.  And the people of Prenter.  And that’s the message I’ll carry into that courtroom in Madison.  I owe it to them.

But I need your help.  Whatever happens on October 15th will only have meaning if the world can see it.  The trial will have the most meaning for the campaign (and I have the best chance of staying out of jail) if we appear with great strength, letting the Boone Co. Court know that we are not isolated extremists, but rather just two people that are a small part of a diverse and growing movement of citizens demanding that mountaintop removal be banned forever.  What happens on October 15th will set the tone for future legal actions of this campaign.  I thank you all for your support and the important work that you do.  I hope to see you in Madison.

In solidarity,

Mat Louis-Rosenberg

Dear Friends,
I am writing you today to ask for your support.  At dawn on May 23rd of this year, myself and 7 others walked on to Patriot Coal’s Samples Mine on Kayford Mountain and locked ourselves to a gigantic rock truck used to haul away the rubble from blowing up a mountain.  For the next four hours, we stopped that machine from continuing to participate in the destruction of Kayford Mountain.  We were all arrested by the Boone Co. Sheriff’s Department and charged with trespassing and conspiracy to commit trespassing.  My friend Glen Collins and I have chosen to fight these charges and be tried by jury on October 15th.  The maximum jail sentence is 18 months.  I am asking you to come to Madison, WV, and stand in solidarity with me and the communities across Appalachia being devastated by mountaintop removal.
This action is part of an ongoing nonviolent direct action campaign to end mountaintop removal coal mining, adding to the voices of long time local leaders and outside allies.  Since February 3rd, there have been 14 actions in southern West Virginia of folks blocking mine roads, locking down to equipment and offices, and picketing mine entrances resulting in over 100 arrests, including former Congressman and miners’ hero Ken Hechler, actress Darryl Hannah and NASA climatologist James Hansen.  This campaign has shown a spotlight on the horrific crime of MTR, invigorated locals long disheartened by the overwhelming power of the coal companies, and continued to build the pressure to end this practice once and for all.  Many people have taken brave stands and big risks.  However, this is the first time that anyone will go to a jury trial.  Given that our six fellow activists who plead no contest received the maximum fine of $1,844, there is a real chance that this will be the first time anyone has been sentenced to a jail term for their actions in the campaign as well.
Some folks have asked me why I have chosen to risk a jail sentence instead of simply taking the fine, and I’d like to say briefly why I think this is important.  This campaign, just like the civil rights movement and many other struggles for change, is founded on a strategy of nonviolent civil disobedience.  And just like the civil rights movement, it draws its strength and its power from the willingness of ordinary people to take extraordinary risks and sacrifices because of the strength of their beliefs.  My conscience demands that I stand up in that court room and explain to the people of Boone Co. why I did what I did.  I will not contest the facts of what happened, but rather assert my belief that what I did was right, that I was stopping a far greater crime than I was committing.  And if I go to jail because of it, I know that I go as many have gone before me, in defense of my friends, this land and my convictions.
I have just been amazed at the support I have received from all the local people that I have worked with over this last year fighting for clean drinking water and healthy communities.  They understand the importance of standing strong because for them this is a life and death issue.  Everywhere I go, I meet people who’s homes have been ruined, who’s water has been poisoned, who have watched friends and family die around them, who had their land and heritage robbed from them for a lump of coal and a greasy buck.  Kayford Mountain is the first place I ever came to in West Virginia.  I spent three days working on Larry Gibson’s cabin up there and decided I wasn’t leaving.  When I took that banner that read “NEVER AGAIN” up on that mine, I carried it for Larry.  And Judy.  And Bo.  And Chuck.  And Ed.  And the people of Prenter.  And that’s the message I’ll carry into that courtroom in Madison.  I owe it to them.
But I need your help.  Whatever happens on October 15th will only have meaning if the world can see it.  The trial will have the most meaning for the campaign (and I have the best chance of staying out of jail) if we appear with great strength, letting the Boone Co. Court know that we are not isolated extremists, but rather just two people that are a small part of a diverse and growing movement of citizens demanding that mountaintop removal be banned forever.  What happens on October 15th will set the tone for future legal actions of this campaign.  I thank you all for your support and the important work that you do.  I hope to see you in Madison.
In solidarity,
Mat Louis-Rosenberg