World Joins “Hands Across the Sand” to Protest Offshore Oil Drilling

green | June 28th, 2010 - 8:29 AM

All across America–from St. Petersburg, Florida to Cannon Beach, Oregon, from Santa Cruz, California to Coney Island, New York–tens of thousands of people yesterday came together at ocean beaches and inland waterways to form a human barrier against offshore oil drilling in a nationwide protest called Hands Across the Sand.

But what started as a U.S. protest quickly went global. Hands Across the Sand drew people to more than 800 sites in North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia and Africa.

As oil continued to gush into the Gulf of Mexico from the undersea BP oil well that was damaged on April 20 when the Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig exploded and caught fire, people around the world joined hands for 15 minutes in a silent display of their opposition to offshore oil drilling, their support for renewable energy, and their desire to protect marine environments and coastal communities.

Hands Across the Sand was founded in Florida by Dave Rauschkolb–self-described as “a surfer and owner of three restaurants on the beach in Seaside, Florida”–who continues to serve as contact and chief spokesperson for the group. The organization went public on February 13, 2010, when more than 10,000 people joined hands on 100 beaches along Florida’s coastline to oppose the expansion of offshore drilling, but it gained national and global momentum after the Deepwater Horizon accident in late April unleashed a seemingly unstoppable fountain of oil into the fragile Gulf environment.

“The Deepwater Horizon disaster is a wake up call,” Rauschkolb says in a statement published on the Hands Across the Sand website. “Even as the Gulf disaster grows, British Petroleum and other oil companies continue to push for new offshore drilling anywhere oil might be found regardless of the risks they pose. The offshore oil industry is a dirty, dangerous business and no one industry should be able to place entire coastal economies and marine environments at risk. Where else in America is this allowed to happen?

“America could be, should be the world leader in expanding cleaner energy sources yet our political process is paralyzed by oil money,” he adds. “It is time for our leaders to take bold, courageous steps and open the door to clean energy and renewables and free our country from its addiction to oil.”

As people worldwide joined hands on hundreds of beaches yesterday, their hands were not clenched in anger but folded in supplication, almost in prayer, as they called on their leaders to stop the expansion of offshore drilling and embark on a new path toward a sustainable energy future.

If you missed out on yesterday’s Hands Across the Sand protest but still want to make your voice heard and to raise your hand against expanded offshore drilling and in favor of renewable energy, there are other things you can do:

  • On June 30, the Sierra Club plans to use American flags to spell out “Freedom from Oil” at the Washington Monument in Washington, DC. You can support that effort by planting a virtual flag at the Sierra Club website to let U.S. leaders know it is time to get serious about renewable energy.
  • Contact your elected representatives directly to share your views and tell them what you want them to do on your behalf.
  • Join national and local organizations that are protecting the environment and promoting renewable energy solutions.
  • Contact Hands Across the Sand to get involved and to see what future events the group is planning.

About.com: World Joins “Hands Across the Sand” to Protest Offshore Oil Drilling

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