[MCN] Climate calamity and an ordinary citizen's legal drama

[Jeffrey J. Smith]

You are invited to be part of the jury in
*a dramatic “mock trial” at the University of Montana on Saturday, November
18, 7 p.m., in the University Center Theater.*

On a snowy morning in October 2016, retired state employee and genial
grandfather Leonard Higgins entered a barbed-wire enclosure near Coal Banks
Landing, Montana, and, after declaring he was taking action to prevent
run-away climate catastrophe, he closed a safety valve on a crude oil
pipeline carrying Canadian tar sands into the US.

It was an act similar to throwing tea into the harbor in Boston, similar to
the parade of 10,000 workers who buried Frank Little in Butte, similar to
Jeannette Rankin’s decision to run for Congress, similar to the children
with soldier escorts who desegregated schools in Little Rock.

Now Leonard stands trial for this bold act of civic responsibility in Fort
Benton on November 21. But, denied by the judge the opportunity to justify
this act by citing the necessity of acting to avoid our impending climate
calamity,
*he will present his case directly to an audience of his peers in the “mock
trial.” *

His cast of characters includes expert witnesses prevented from testifying
in the Chouteau County courthouse: Steve Running, professor of climate
science at University of Montana, Tom Hastings, academician and civil
disobedience expert, and Andrew Holland, climate and US security expert.
Plus, Leonard's mock trial will feature prosecutor (Summer Nelson), judge
(Bob Gentry), court clerk (Jeff Smith), and other actors portraying defense
attorneys, company officials, pipeline safety experts, and others.

The mock trial is consistent with Leonard’s view of the world. It’s a world
where we’ve thrown off the shackles of denial, where every U.S. citizen is
taking his/her citizenship seriously, where we’re behaving as though we are
in a real emergency and taking the commensurate, response, shutting off the
sources of greenhouse gases.

More Info: www.*350Montana.org, P.O. Box 7006, Missoula, MT 59807*
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