Climate activists on both sides of the U.S. and Canadian border are ratcheting up the fight against the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline this week as the U.S. Senate ponders a recently proposed bill that would expedite its approval  and "short-circuit" the State Department's pipeline environmental review .

In the past week over 30 protests have taken place in dozens of U.S. cities as part of a " March 16-23, Week of Action to Stop Tar Sands Profiteers ," which has been coordinated by over 50 grassroots organizations.

So far, thirty-seven protesters have been arrested "for disrupting business as usual  at TransCanada and their investors' offices," with more actions planned in the coming days.

"Organizers seek to expose green-washed corporations like TD Bank, a top shareholder in TransCanada, and force them to divest from the controversial Keystone XL tar sands pipeline," Tar Sands Blockade stated  Wednesday.

“It's encouraging to see people around the country taking action to stop tar sands profiteers,” said  Ron Seifert, spokesperson for Tar Sands Blockade. “No longer will we allow them to build KXL and invest in toxic projects that endanger the health of low-income and communities of color. We will not allow 'business as usual' to continue.”

From the Tar Sands Blockade, below are a few highlights from the week of action so far:

• 100 people occupied a TransCanada's office in Westborough, Mass., holding a " Funeral for Our Future " and disrupting work for several hours. Twenty-five were arrested for locking themselves inside the office:
  
  
• TD Bank branches have seen protests at multiple locations including three people who were arrested for locking themselves inside a branch office in Washington, DC.
  
  
• Twelve people arrested for blockading a fracking pipeline in upstate New York.
  
  
• Portland, Oregon held a bike tour of the city’s worst polluters including a rally at a TransCanada office.
  
  
• Dozens of activists in grim-reaper garb surround Michels Corporate office in Kirkland, Wash., demanding that Michels stop building KXL.

Meanwhile, native leaders from both Canada and the U.S. took to the Canadian Parliament on Wednesday to urge opposition  to both the Northern Gateway and Keystone XL pipelines—telling lawmakers that an alliance of native groups on both sides of the border are preparing to fight the pipelines in the courts and through unspecified direct action in the coming months.

Chief Allan Adam of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation said natives are determined to block the pipelines.

"It's going to be a long, hot summer," he said  at a news conference.

"We have a lot of issues at stake."

"We're going to stop these pipelines on way or another," said  Phil Lane Jr. of the American Yankton Sioux.

"If we have to keep going to court, we'll keep doing that," said Chief Martin Louie of the Nadleh Whut'en First Nation in northern B.C., adding that pipeline opponents will never back down.

"We're the ones that's going to save whatever we have left of this Earth," he said.

"We, as a nation, have to wake up," said Chief Reuben George of the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation north of Vancouver. "We have to wake up to the crazy decisions that this government's making to change the world in a negative way."

More actions are expected throughout the U.S. in the coming days including six more actions against TD Bank in New York City, Washington D.C., Montpellier, Vt., Newark, Del., New Haven, Conn., and Asheville, N.C., Tar Sands Blockade reports.

On Thursday, March 21 in Oklahoma, the Great Plains Tar Sands Resistance is planning what is slated to be the largest action of the week. Activists have pledged to " physically stop KXL construction. "

Click Here  for a full list of actions and live updates from around the country. 

March 18 – Over 40 rally outside Michels Corporation in Kirkland, Washington (Alex Garland)

March 19 – Banner Drop in Oklahoma Promotes Week of Action (Tar Sands Blockade)

Source: Common Dreams