The day before Valentine's Day brought out a passionate outpouring of activism from noted personalities, including lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr., civil rights leader Julian Bond, as well as, actress Daryl Hannah.
The gruop tied themselves to the White House gate to protest the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune was also arrested, marking the first time in the 120-year history that a club leader was arrested in an act of civil disobedience.
The club's board of directors approved the action as a sign of its opposition to the $7 billion pipeline, which would carry oil derived from tar sands in western Canada to refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast. Over 40 people were arrested, and charged with failure to disperse and obey lawful order, and released on $100 bond each.
The group has demanded that President Barack Obama reject the pipeline, which they say would carry "dirty oil," and contribute to global warming. They're also worry about a potential spill.
Conversely, many business and labor groups support the 1,700-mile pipeline and view it as a source of jobs and a step toward North American energy independence.
In an interview before his arrest, Brune said civil disobedience was justified because of the threat posed by tar sands oil, which is difficult to produce and emits significantly more greenhouse gases than conventional oil.
"We want to send a strong message that we expect the president's ambitions to meet the scale of the challenge and reject a pipeline that carries dirty, thick oil that contributes to global warming," Brune said.
Brune said he wants Obama to "fight with both fists" against climate change.
The president has called climate change a serious threat and in his State of the Union speech Tuesday night where he urged Congress to combat the crisis.
Obama has twice thwarted the Keystone XL pipeline because of concerns over its route through sensitive land in Nebraska, but has not indicated how he will decide on the pipeline now that Nebraska's governor has approved a new route, according to ABC News.
