Free speech and right to protest on the line in the United States
Mandan, North Dakota — A Morton County jury of nine reached a verdict in Energy Transfer’s meritless lawsuit against Greenpeace entities in the US (Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund), and Greenpeace International, finding the entities liable for more than US$660 million, today. Big Oil Bullies around the world will continue to try to silence free speech and peaceful protest, but the fight against Energy Transfer’s meritless SLAPP lawsuit is not over.
“This case should alarm everyone, no matter their political inclinations,” said Sushma Raman, Interim Executive Director Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund. “It’s part of a renewed push by corporations to weaponize our courts to silence dissent. We should all be concerned about the future of the First Amendment, and lawsuits like this aimed at destroying our rights to peaceful protest and free speech. These rights are critical for any work toward ensuring justice – and that’s why we will continue fighting back together, in solidarity. While Big Oil bullies can try to stop a single group, they can’t stop a movement.”
“We are witnessing a disastrous return to the reckless behaviour that fuelled the climate crisis, deepened environmental racism, and put fossil fuel profits over public health and a liveable planet. The previous Trump administration spent four years dismantling protections for clean air, water, and Indigenous sovereignty, and now along with its allies wants to finish the job by silencing protest. We will not back down. We will not be silenced,” said Mads Christensen, Greenpeace International Executive Director.
In this case, Energy Transfer has maintained their entirely false claims that Greenpeace organized the #NoDAPL resistance at Standing Rock, an allegation rooted in racism in its erasure of the Indigenous leadership in North Dakota.
“What we saw over these three weeks was Energy Transfer’s blatant disregard for the voices of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe,” said Deepa Padmanabha, Senior Legal Advisor, Greenpeace USA. “And while they also tried to distort the truth about Greenpeace’s role in the protests, we instead reaffirmed our unwavering commitment to non-violence in every action we take. To be clear, Greenpeace’s story is not the story of Standing Rock. Our story is how an organization like Greenpeace USA can support critical fights to protect communities most impacted by the climate crisis, as well as continued attacks on Indigenous sovereignty.”
This lawsuit is one of the largest Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) cases ever filed. These are meritless lawsuits meant to silence or bankrupt opponents – which is why most U.S. states and several countries have put legal protections in place to protect advocates. But in North Dakota – and 15 other states – no anti-SLAPP statutes exist.
Greenpeace entities will continue fighting back against this case, including by appealing to the North Dakota Supreme Court.
In February 2024, Greenpeace International initiated the first test of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive by filing a lawsuit in Dutch court against ET. GPI seeks to recover damages and costs it has suffered as a result of ET’s back-to-back, meritless lawsuits demanding hundreds of millions of dollars against GPI and the Greenpeace organisations in the US.“Energy Transfer hasn’t heard the last of us in this fight. We’re just getting started with our anti-SLAPP lawsuit against Energy Transfer’s attacks on free speech and peaceful protest,” said Kristin Casper, Greenpeace International General Counsel. “We will see Energy Transfer in court this July in the Netherlands.”
CONTACT: Madison Carter, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, [email protected]
