Divestment Supporters Rally at the Basketball Game

“Divest Now,” as written across a banner paraded around the University, has been a rallying cry for hundreds of George Washington University students due to criticism of the University’s endowment having a $60 million investment in fossil fuel companies. These students believe that with this lofty investment, the school is directly complicit in the climate crisis. This reality is horrifying to students as the continued investment in fossil fuel companies exponentially increases the consumption and burning of fossil fuels. It is basic science that burning these toxins into the atmosphere perpetuates climate change, which is a distressing implication for young students who have an insecure future due to the havoc wreaked by climate change. Sunrise GW fights for their university to invest in their futures, not the destruction of them.

Due to the school’s inactivity, students have begun to protest where it will affect the University the most. An initial target, as demonstrated on February 26, is the school’s basketball games. These games are a gathering place for the students, alumni, visitors, the school’s administration, as well as VIP guests. This specific game was an economic pressure point for Sunrise GW, as it was also an alumni event.

The attendance at this basketball game was heightened due to the rumors that popular musicians Swae Lee and Post Malone were going to be in attendance court-side. In the end, Swae Lee was the only one that ended up showing up. Yet, his arrival to much fanfare heightened the publicity of the event and message just as Jane Fonda brought needed media attention to the climate crisis through her “Fire Drill Friday” protests that happened every Friday on Capitol Hill for many consecutive weeks during this fall and early winter. Before the action began, the “Black Beatles” singer was seen posing with the yellow and black “Divest Now” sign.

During the first half of the game, Sunrise members slowly disseminated their signs throughout the crowd. At half time, College Democrats were seen sporting yellow “Divest Now” t-shirts with “60 million” written on the back of them. The members showed off their support for divestment as LeBlanc sat court-side with Cissy Petty. Right when the whistle blew at the beginning of the second half, the Sunrise crew immediately rose to thunderous chants and an outstretched banner. The protest’s target audience, specifically President LeBlanc, had a visible view of the display. There were a few minutes of loud chants such as “While Leblanc earns, the world burns” which references the revenue the University earns from its fossil fuel investments and “What do we want? Divestment! When do we want it? Now!” which reflects the existential urgency of the issue. Sunrise undoubtedly made their stance clear. During the action, the basketball teams went into timeout. Whether the timeout was related to the protest is unknown. While the impacts of this protest are not measurable, it was another opportunity to publicly heighten Sunrise’s message, further enforcing their demands to an observing President LeBlanc and a cohort of GWU alumni.

More can be learned about Sunrise GW on divestgw.org.