350 Seattle is a child organization of 350.org, a left-of-center environmentalist organization that advocates for eliminating the use of conventional energy.
Activities
As a method of eliminating conventional fuel use, 350 Seattle has supported a Washington state ban on registering new vehicles that use conventional fuel. 1
350 Seattle has advocated for the Green New Deal at the local and federal level as a method of eliminating conventional energy use and instituting social equity standards. 2
Because of its history of civil disobedience and support of left-wing causes, 350 Seattle was recruited to assist in shutting down a local Amazon warehouse to pressure Amazon to grant employees paid time off to vote in the 2020 Presidential election. 3
Chase Bank Protests
In May 2018, 350 Seattle organized a protest of Chase bank and other banks that fund conventional energy projects and allegedly violate indigenous peoples’ interests. Fourteen activists were arrested for setting up teepees in the street and refusing to leave. 4
In September 2019, 11 activists from 350 Seattle were arrested for trespassing. They claimed they were attempting to “evict” a Chase bank location for not aligning its investments with the Paris Climate Agreement. 5
In February 2020, 28 activists were arrested for trespassing at a Chase bank and for setting up teepees in the street in a protest organized by 350 Seattle. The police reported that the activists wanted to be arrested, and the protest was in response to Chase bank refusing to divest in funding fossil fuels. 6
People
Patrick Mazza is president of 350 Seattle. He was arrested in 2014 for blocking a train transporting conventional fuels and in 2019 at 350 Seattle’s Chase bank protest. He encourages all environmentalists to engage in unlawful civil disobedience. 78
Financials
350 Seattle is a registered nonprofit organization. In 2018, it reported $315,640 in total revenue and $252,191 in expenses, including $89,572 in salaries. 9
References
- Bernton, Hal. “Washington State’s Proposed Ban on Registration of New Gas Passenger Cars Prompts Pushback from Attorney General.” The Seattle Times. The Seattle Times Company, February 9, 2021. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/washington-lawmakers-proposed-2030-ban-on-registration-of-new-gas-passenger-cars-faces-pushback-from-attorney-general/.
- Godwin, Mandy. “City Council Takes Steps to Fund Seattle’s Green New Deal.” Crosscut. Crosscut, July 15, 2020. https://crosscut.com/2020/07/city-council-fuels-seattles-green-new-deal-jumpstart-tax.
- Weise, Karen. “Amazon Workers Threaten to Shut down Warehouses If Employees Don’t Get a Day off to Vote.” The New York Times. The New York Times, October 22, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/22/business/amazon-shutdown-threat-election-day.html.
- Black, Tony. “14 Arrested after Chase Bank Protesters Block Seattle Streets.” king5.com, May 7, 2018. https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/14-arrested-after-chase-bank-protesters-block-seattle-streets/281-549612644.
- Staff, KIRO 7 News. “11 Climate Activists Arrested for Trespassing after Protests at Chase Banks.” KIRO, October 1, 2019. https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/climate-activists-protesting-downtown-branches-of-jpmorgan-chase-over-fossil-fuel-funding/991865129/.
- Takahama, Elise. “Seattle Police Arrest More than Two Dozen Protesters at Downtown Bank.” The Seattle Times. The Seattle Times Company, August 12, 2020. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/seattle-police-arrest-more-than-two-dozen-protesters-at-downtown-bank/.
- Fairley, Peter. “Washington State Has a Blueprint for Climate Success, but Its Region’s Future Is Unclear.” Grist, February 14, 2021. https://grist.org/energy/washington-state-climate-plan-british-columbia-fossil-fuel-development/.
- Mazza, Patrick. “Why I Blocked an Oil Train — and Why You Should Engage in Climate Disobedience Too.” Grist, February 16, 2016. https://grist.org/article/why-i-blocked-an-oil-train-and-why-you-should-engage-in-climate-disobedience-too/.
- Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). 350 Seattle. 2018. Part 1, lines 12-18.