Dancing Toward Freedom

Pleasure Activism for the Amazon and the Release of Environmental Lawyer Steven Donziger

Steven Donziger before the court hearing where he was given the maximum sentence of six months in prison. NYC, May 2021

In honor of Earth Day, and in keeping with the theme of liberation, I’m going to turn this week’s pleasure report over to environmental lawyer Steven Donziger, who, after 993 days of house arrest, 45 of them locked up at Danbury Federal Prison, will be released Monday morning.

The story is long and so egregious that it’s hard to believe. In short, after drilling for oil in the Amazon, Chevron left behind unlined and open pits. The company admitted to the dumping of 16 billion gallons of cancer-causing water of production into streams and rivers used for drinking water, bathing, and fishing. 

Steven was the lead lawyer representing indigenous and farming communities that demanded a clean up they won a 9.5 billion dollar settlement. 

Chevron appealed in several countries and in the wake of this victory, the company attacked an all-hands-on-deck legal battle against Steven Donziger. 

In his words: 

“The targeting of me is at core about Chevron’s efforts to to silence my advocacy and use me as a weapon to try to intimidate other lawyers who might challenge the company.”

The United Nations called it a “staggering” and “appalling” level of judicial bias.

Steven is a good friend of mine going back more than 20 years.  We first met when I was working on an interactive documentary about the US Criminal Justice System and he was generous with his time and expertise.  Over the past few years I have sat with him in courtrooms as countless witnesses came forward to testify on his behalf. I was particularly struck when Domingo Peas, a leader from Ecuador’s Achuar nation, took the stand. He wore a band of red, blue and yellow feathers around his head and his face was painted with red lines. His voice was soft and the translator was visibly moved. “I am wearing this ceremonial dress as a sign of respect to the courts,” he said.  And then he went on to describe how the fish died, and then the cows, and then children and that he had traveled two thousand miles on behalf of his people to let the courts know that Steven was a well-respected ally who had been with them for more than two decades.

The room was silent as he walked back to his seat except for the jingling of his beaded bracelet and belt. 

It felt like a turning point. But, Steven was given the maximum sentence of 6 months in prison, in addition to more than two years of house arrest while waiting for trial. 

Amnesty International, 60 Nobel laureates, 11 Congresspersons and hundreds of NGOs have all protested the court’s rulings.

Steven’s case has ignited a new movement of pleaure activists. Pleasure Activism, writes adrienne marie brown, “is when we make justice and liberation the most pleasurable experience we can have.” On Friday, scores of women led by the indominatble Mama Gena, gathered on Zoom to resurrect a centuries old tradition of women raising their skirts to flash the sky. The ritual is called Anasyrma and it has been used to stop wars, end famines and to bring on the rain, stop the rain and ward off evil. Last week, anasyrma was a catalyst for emotional healing, connection and power. It was inspired by Earth Day and Steven’s pending freedom but it had the effect of liberating all of us. There were women from Germany and Australia, Nashville and Detroit. After swamping and sharing rage and intentions and visions for the future, we flashed the sky and prayed for justice. And then we danced, invigorated by the reclamation of our own power to change the world.

Here’s to freedom and pleasure for all and a revolution that is so irrisistable that we can’t help but bring all of our energy to making our world a more equitable, just and healthy place.

FROM THE INSTITUTE OF PLEASURE STUDIES

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Steven just started a substack newsletter called Donziger on Justice and I encourage you to sign up.  He will be in conversation with earth defenders around the world.  

On Monday, April 25 there is a block party in NYC to celebrate the end of Steven’s sentence. 104th Street and Broadway at 6 PM. Come dance with me there. 

The Pachamama Alliance works closely with indigenous communities in the Amazon rainforest to bring forth an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling, socially just human presence on this planet. They are one of my favorite organizations. I encourage you to check them out.