Locals rally to support environmental lawsuit

By Shawn Cunningham
© 2018 Telegraph Publishing LLC

More than 20 people showed up on the Chester Green on Sunday to register their support for the plaintiffs in Juliana vs. United States, (also known as colloquially as Youth v. Government), a lawsuit brought by 21 young people demanding a science-based national climate recovery plan to cut the use of fossil fuels and “decarbonize” the environment.

The suit, which names a number executive branch agencies, is based on the idea that the government has control over natural resources in the public interest and that access to a clean environment is a fundamental right.

Similar rallies around the country also were scheduled for this past weekend.

Organized by Cheryl Joy Lipton of Chester and Laurel Green of Rockingham, this rally was timed to coincide with the beginning of the trial on Monday Oct. 29., but on Oct. 24 the Judge Ann Aiken put off the opening of the trial until a government motion to avoid trial and the plaintiffs response can be reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court, which stayed the case on Oct. 19.

Singing songs and carrying signs, the group was acknowledged by drivers honking their horns as they passed the Green.