IOWA, USA — Iowa and Idaho, states that are often mistaken for each other usually only because of their similar sounding names, can now share the spotlight. Local activist and Boise School Board Trustee Shiva Rajbhandari was tackled by security while protesting a Ron DeSantis political rally in Iowa on Thursday, Jan. 11. Rajbhandari told KTVB they were there to call out the governor for lying to the public.
"We were there to call out Governor DeSantis for his lies to the American people," Rajbhandari said. "DeSantis has taken millions from the fossil fuel industry as hurricane and sunny day floods destroy Florida, now he's trying to sell out our country too. We're not going to let him."
Rajbhandari hopped onto the stage while DeSantis was talking holding a "DeSantis is a climate criminal" banner and was immediately tackled by security. He told KTVB that prior to being tackled, he had been talking to DeSantis supporters in the room and was struck by how much they had in common.
"We all want good jobs and a livable future and for our kids and grandkids to be safe and have the opportunity to succeed. Governor DeSantis takes Americans' fears, hopes, and dreams, and sells us a lie fed to him by oil and gas executives, so that they can continue profiting off of the killing our families and destruction of our planet. DeSantis is a climate criminal, and no matter what his security does to us, we won't be intimidated from calling him out," he said.
Rajbhandari was protesting the event with the Sunrise Movement, a nonprofit focused on the climate crisis.
"Together, we will force the government to end the era of fossil fuel elites, invest in Black, brown and working-class communities, and create millions of good union jobs. We’re on a mission to put everyday people back in charge and build a world that works for all of us, now and for generations to come," the nonprofits website states.
The nonprofit is supportive of the Green New Deal, which wants to work on solving climate crisis issues and help the economy by moving to clean energy by 2023. Rajbhandari said the American people deserve leaders that will tell them the truth and stand up for the future.
"Sunrise Movement has made something clear this week: no politician gets a free pass—not Biden, not Trump, not DeSantis, no one. Ron DeSantis has funded his campaign with over $1 million from big oil and gas companies. As Americans lose their homes, livelihoods, and loved ones to endless climate disasters, DeSantis lies right to our faces and he thinks we're too stupid to know any better," Rajbhandari said.
He told KTVB he will never stop fighting until the use of fossil fuels has ended and the Green New Deal is passed.
"We are in the fight of our lives, and we need all hands on deck. I urge all young Idahoans to stand up in this fight. Go to SunriseMovement.org and join our movement to hold our politicians accountable, stop the climate crisis, and create millions of good union jobs in this process," Rajbhandari said.
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