SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Members of the Haudenosaunee community and climate activists met outside the Marriott Hotel in downtown Syracuse on Tuesday, September 30 to protest against Governor Kathy Hochul’s nuclear energy summit and advocate for renewable energy sources.
The Governor has suggested several nuclear projects in recent months, including a proposed “small modular reactor” and billions to be given to old nuclear reactors still operating on tribal land near Lake Ontario.
This also includes the old Nine Mile Point Nuclear Power Site, a contender for New York’s first new nuclear reactor.
Related article: Oswego eyes new nuclear site as New York State works to meet expanding energy demands
Advocates present at the protest claimed that the nuclear project would cause money to be taken away from wind, solar, storage and efficiency projects.
One advocate even pointed out the relationship between the Haudenosaunee communities and the land they live should not be taken away.
“As people of the longhouse, we have lived on this land since time immemorial,” said David Arquette, Director of the Haudenosaunee Environmental Task Force. “The land and the Haudenosaunee cannot be separated. It is what our sovereignty is based on. We as human beings have to take care of all creation so it can continue for the future generations.”
Protestors also wore orange shirts to commemorate Orange Shirt Day, a day that honors the victims and survivors of the “residential school system”. This saw thousands of tribal children being forcibly taken from their families and made to acclimate to Euro-Canadian and Christian lifestyles.