Friends of the Earth Action, migrant justice, and faith groups protest BlackRock’s investments in fossil fuels and private prisons
As world’s largest asset manager, BlackRock invests billions in fossil fuels, palm oil and other destructive industriesWASHINGTON – Activist groups held demonstrations against investment firm BlackRock in Washington D.C. and San Francisco today, as part of a growing movement against financial institutions that profit from fossil fuels and migrant detention. BlackRock, one of the world’s largest asset managers, is deeply invested in fossil fuels and agro-commodities like palm oil that are fueling the climate crisis, as well as private prisons and detention centers. Friends of the Earth Action has campaigned against BlackRock’s destructive financial practices for years, and participated in both actions today.
“Our planet is burning and BlackRock is fueling the fire,” said Erich Pica, President of Friends of the Earth Action. “We cannot solve the climate crisis as long as financial institutions keep pouring billions into the industries that are destroying our planet and our communities. It’s time for BlackRock to drop the greenwashing and the empty rhetoric and make real, substantive shifts away from their destructive investments.”
In D.C., a large group of migrant justice, faith and environmental activists shut down BlackRock’s D.C. headquarters by blocking the entrance and demanding that BlackRock agree to stop profit from fossil fuels and migrant detention. The action in D.C. was led by Fire Drill Fridays and Shutdown DC as part of the global climate strikes, and targeted multiple financial institutions, including BlackRock, Wells Fargo and Chase Bank.
In San Francisco, hundreds of youth and their adult allies erected burnt trees in front of BlackRock’s headquarters to call attention to the firm’s investments in palm oil (a leading driver of global deforestation) and blocked streets with banners protesting BlackRock. Activists also built a “resiliency village” where youth shared their visions of a just and healthy future free of fossil fuels.
From oil drilling in the Arctic to coal power plants in India to palm oil plantations in Liberia, BlackRock is fueling climate chaos around the world. BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has tried to portray himself as a model corporate citizen and has called on companies to “serve a social purpose.” But the facts speak for themselves: BlackRock is the largest global investor in new coal plant development, oil and gas companies, and rainforest destruction.
Contact: Erin Jensen, Friends of the Earth Action, (202) 222-0722, ejensen@foe.org