The Grinch Has a Gun! Stopping Seismic Guns in the Gullah/Geechee Nation!

Gullah/Geechee Nation ♦ December 14, 2018 ♦ 5 Comments

by Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation (www.QueenQuet.com)

Every year for several decades, we’ve witness how environmental and zoning issues ramp up during the Holy Days season.  This year, the Grinch in Washington, DC decided to slide down the chimney with a seismic gun and a handful of permits to encourage the exploration for oil in the Atlantic Ocean. 

I and many others in the Gullah/Geechee Nation including the Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association and the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition have stood up and spoken out against the use of seismic guns and against any forms of oil exploration and drilling off our coast.  We’ve stood up at numerous rallies and signed petitions and issued resolutions against this along with thousands of business owners and hundreds of mayors, governors, and even US Congress members.  The Obama administration agreed with the voices of the people and we celebrated the plan to remove the Atlantic coast from oil leasing and exploration.  However, the current administration in Washington, DC, greedy speculators that have moved to our coast, and a few people that have been paid to say that oil drilling will bring jobs to our people are ignoring the resounding voice in the same way that the Grinch does with Christmas songs.  So, what the Grinch has sent down the coast is being returned along with a gift from us-a lawsuit!

Gullah/Geechee Sustainability Think Tank members, the South Carolina Environmental Law Project (SCELP) will be suing the US government to stop any companies from drilling along our shore.   Numerous environmental groups including the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League, Oceana, SODA, and 100 Miles are all standing together with us so that we keep a united front on our shoreline to #BlocktheBlast and #StoptheDrill by disarming the Grinch that has come to try to disrupt the peaceful celebrations that people in the Gullah/Geechee Nation are having with their families and friends.  However, we know that this fight will continue into 2019 and we are ready for it!

We are calling on all supporters of the Gullah/Geechee Nation to become active dues paying members of the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition which has been fighting against this issue for several years.  We will need your support funding the continued fight against this and protecting our waterways, sea creatures, and our cultural heritage.  Gullah/Geechee fishing families still rely on the ocean and our rivers and creeks to sustain our communities.  We cannot afford to have the disruptions to the waterways that will cause irreparable harm to our fisheries.  So, please gwine ta www.GullahGeechee.biz and www.GullahGeechee.net fa jayn we! 

We can’t let the Grinch come to our coast and kill!  Stand up with the Gullah/Geechee Nation and #BlocktheBlast and $StoptheDrill!

Here are some of the numerous articles on this on-going battle against seismic gun use and oil drilling in the Atlantic and how the Gullah/Geechee Nation is fighting back:

https://cleanenergy.org/blog/coastal-environment-and-culture/

https://usa.oceana.org/blog/coastal-voices-part-5-queen-coast

https://www.greenvilleonline.com/picture-gallery/news/2017/04/20/gullah-community-worries-about-potential-offshore-drilling/100696684/

https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/queen-quet-and-gullah-geechee-nation-say-no-offshore-drilling

http://www.wltx.com/news/local/hundreds-gather-in-opposition-of-offshore-drilling-1/518443070

https://www.postandcourier.com/news/anti-drilling-rally-draws-a-few-hundred-to-south-carolina/article_3b1c23e0-10e1-11e8-9a7d-f3eec31f51e5.html