This Saturday some amazing grassroots activists staged an all night vigil on Seattle’s waterfront. Why? Organizers Emily Johnston and Carlo Voli explained that Shell’s plans for exploratory drilling in the Alaskan Arctic this summer are enough to keep them up at night. They just had to do something about it.

The vigil was also mourning the departure of Shell’s exploratory rigs, the Kulluk and Noble Discoverer, which are leaving Seattle any day now to head to the Arctic. They’re risking an oil spill and irreparable environmental destruction in an attempt to find what amounts to about 3 year’s worth of oil supply for our country.

View of the Kulluk and Noble Discoverer from the vigil.

Not only that, but Shell is only able to drill in the Arctic because global warming and melting sea ice have made it possible. Burning the oil they drill will cause more global warming, especially in the Arctic where the climate is changing more rapidly than anywhere else on Earth.

Shell is using their legal muscle with an injunction against Greenpeace so we decided to stay away from join the vigil at Seattle’s Pier 63. The vigil was just across from the rigs in Seattle’s Elliott Bay. But rest assured we stand with these and all activists opposing drilling in the Arctic.

Thank you to all the activists that sat in vigil.

Morning after the all night vigil. If you look closely you can see one of the oil rigs across Elliott Bay.