On April 24 and 25, 52 climate activists were arrested blocking the doors to Citibank’s global headquarters in New York City, where 12,000 employees work. The action, called Spring Spark, was a dry run for what organizers are calling the Summer of Heat, will target banks and other institutions in New York City that enable the operation of fossil fuel companies whose projects are exacerbating the climate crisis.

The protests are being organized by local groups involving people of color, working families and youth, as well as a national coalition comprised of hundreds of member groups called Stop the Money Pipeline.

Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus, who participated in the action, spoke with Alice Hu, senior climate campaigner with New York Communities for Change, one of the member organizations of the coalition. Hu’s group had worked on bread-and-butter issues important to working families, like housing, immigration and labor rights, but after the destruction of Hurricane Sandy, they’ve made the climate fight a priority issue. Here she talks about the protest’s focus on Citibank and what’s ahead in their planned Summer of Heat climate actions.

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