Wednesday, April 24, 5:30 PM - in person. Location shared after RSVP

State Repression and Climate Catastrophe: A Conversation with Steven Donziger

In 2011, lawyer Steven Donziger made headlines after winning a historic, $9.5 billion settlement against Chevron for its environmental damages to the indigenous people of Ecuador. In 2014, Chevron retaliated by waging a war against Donziger that left him disbarred, suspended, and locked up in prison and subsequently under house arrest for 993 days. To this day, the Ecuadorian plaintiffs have yet to receive a cent from Chevron. Against the backdrop of a horrific climate catastrophe that requires us to eliminate our reliance on fossil fuel extraction, Donziger's story vividly demonstrates the terror of multinational corporations which will stop at nothing in their quest for profits at the expense of human lives.

At 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 24, 2024, on the eve of the second anniversary of his release from house arrest, Donziger will join UMass 57 member Ayva Holden and UMass alumna Barkha Bhandari ('22) to discuss their experiences battling corporate abuse and state repression.

Together, they will answer the question: When our basic rights are under attack, how do we get them back?

RSVP required for attendance. Please fill out this form to RSVP. RSVP: State Repression and Climate Catastrophe: A Conversation with Steven Donziger (google.com)

This event is co-sponsored by the UMass Amherst Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latine Studies (CLACLS); the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences; the Departments of Anthropology, Economics, Political Science, and Sociology; the programs in Decolonial Global Studies, Legal Studies, and History and Political Economy (HAPE); the UMass Energy Transition Institute; and UMass Dissenters.