Activism
Protesters Block Traffic, Demand: ‘Unplug PG&E. Not Us!’
Dozens of activists, including many disabled protesters, blocked roads and shut down the PG&E headquarters in San Francisco for hours Monday, demanding the utility company stop its ongoing power outages and invest money to ensure that communities of color and disabled people are guaranteed stable electricity.
Protesters shut down Beale Street between Mission and Market streets early Monday, and by 12:30 p.m. over 100 people had joined the rally. San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials said the protest near Market and Beale streets forced bus lines to be rerouted.
Four protesters locked themselves together, arms inside plastic pipes, sitting in the middle of the street behind a banner that read “Unplug PG&E. Not us.”
The purpose of the action was to “lift up the voices of people, especially the disabled and people of color, who have been incredibly impacted by the malfeasance of PG&E, not just the last couple of years but for decades,” said Pete Woiwode of #PowertoLive, the grassroots coalition that helped organize the protest.
The group is demanding that:
• PG&E give back all shareholder profits until it safely provides power,
• PG&E invest in minority and disabled communities
• The state government turn PG&E over to the people.
