If you’re looking for a sign of how environmental activists feel about the inauguration of President Donald Trump, look no further than his own home turf.
A small group of anti-Trump activists from the environmental advocacy group Greenpeace climbed a 300-foot crane near the White House on Wednesday to unfurl a 70-foot banner inscribed with the word “RESIST.”
One of the activists, Pearl Robinson, 26, spoke to The Guardian from her perch on the crane, where she was holding a rope to keep the banner up.
“I can see the White House, where we now have a president who doesn’t have the interests of the majority of the people,” she said, adding of the activists’ message: “ all-encompassing. We want Donald to know that we won’t stand for the crony capitalism, for the assault on women’s reproductive rights and the assault on the environment.”
Though the crane is parked at a construction site about three blocks from the president’s new home, the sign looks from a distance to be hanging directly above the White House, creating a striking image of opposition to the new president and his administration.
#greenpeace unfurl a banner #resist sending the message to #ResistTrump on #environment pic.twitter.com/8g8MkJ6yOY
— Dusty Wood (@dustywoodshow) January 25, 2017
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#resistOften pic.twitter.com/8vGv2epw5w
— Pearl Robinson (@PearlRanFast) January 25, 2017
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The wind is throwing me around , but it's so worth it! #ResistOften
— Pearl Robinson (@PearlRanFast) January 25, 2017
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The brave activists are coming down from the crane after dropping the banner in resistance to Trump. Are YOU ready to resist? #ResistOften https://t.co/ha3Hfa9JPt
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) January 25, 2017
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300 feet above the #WhiteHouse @greenpeaceusa activists have deployed a hand painted love letter to the people #lookup #resist #resistoften pic.twitter.com/XAP20AAMia
— nancypili (@nancypili) January 25, 2017
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On the morning the new administration threatens mass deportations and a wall to separate my people, I am honored to stand in resistance pic.twitter.com/7zRpNZo1Ru
— nancypili (@nancypili) January 25, 2017
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Greenpeace protesters climb crane and unfurl massive sign near White House that reads “resist” https://t.co/uV3vrU78bI pic.twitter.com/q2cWG6oGuH
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 25, 2017
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“It was a little chilly this morning when we arrived at the crane site but it was a lot chillier in the Oval Office when President Trump decided to sign those executive orders reinstating the Keystone pipeline, reinstating the North Dakota pipeline, taking women’s right to choose away from them and we hear today he will be signing a landmark immigration law that will limit people of the Muslim faith entering the country. We are out here with a message today that says: resist,” activist and Greenpeace board chairwoman Karen Topakian said in a live video feed.
On Tuesday, Trump signed executive actions to advance the controversial Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines, sparking a swift backlash from Democrats, celebrities and environmental activists who say the projects would lead to severe damage to the fragile ecosystem in their paths and to more reliance on fossil fuels.
That same day, Trump put a gag order on the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture, banning employees from “providing updates on social media or to reporters.”
Shortly after the president was sworn in on Friday, the climate change page disappeared from the website of the brand new Trump White House, along with the official pages on LGBT, health care and civil liberties issues.