Peace & Climate Activists Take Action, Get Arrested at Drone Base

by Sharon Delgado

BEALE AFB (Marysville) – Seven peace advocates were arrested at the drone operations center north of Sacramento, CA, about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday – after blocking the road for 30 minutes. This was only 14 hours after eight other arrests took place late Monday at Beale Air Force Base/Wheatland Gate. 

The 15 arrests were a result of activists attempting to deliver a letter to the base commander calling for an end to drone warfare, and explaining how the military contributes to climate change. Full letter here. 

Hundreds of peace activists have been arrested at Beale AFB over the past three years protesting the use of killer U.S. drones, which have murdered thousands of women and children around the world.

On Monday, protesters held a 36-foot "red line" in sympathy with climate change activists around the world participating in "red line action." Watch the video. 

Demonstrators called for "Peace for the World, Healing for the Climate" and an end to drone attacks and all wars for oil that cause death, suffering, and environmental devastation, including climate change.

Those arrested Tuesday were Barry Binks, Shirley Osgood, Michael Kerr, Mauro Oliveira, Chris Nelson, Flora Rogers and Catherine Hourcade. Monday arrests included Binks, S. Osgood, Pamela Osgood, Rogers, Sharon Delgado, Susan Pelican, Jane Kesselman and Oliveira. All activists hail from Sacramento, Marysville/Yuba City or Grass Valley/Nevada City.

In the letter to the base commander, activists charge the "US military is the single largest user of petroleum in the world, emitting a massive amount of greenhouse gases, and is the main enforcer of the global oil economy. Yet the Pentagon has a blanket exemption in all international climate agreements."

In the letter, activists note:

"We oppose the Global Hawk Drones that are housed here, which provide surveillance that help identify targets for attacks by the US military, including killer drone attacks. We oppose the Pentagon plan to increase its drone fleet and double its number of drone pilots. We oppose all offensive US military action, and are especially outraged by the US attack on the Doctors without Borders hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan. We join with people around the world in calling for an impartial investigation on this matter.

"With the recent disclosures by new whistleblowers and former drone operators, we know that drone strikes are 1) not as effective as our government claims they are, 2) killing thousands of innocent civilians, 3) creating more enemies than they are killing, and 4) damaging the health & morale of our military personnel."