Climate activists interrupted Gov. Tony Evers at a Milwaukee dinner hosted by the state’s trial lawyers, challenging him to drink a glass of water mixed with crude oil and demanding he revoke permits for Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline.
The national group Climate Defiance posted a video of the confrontation on X on October 22. FOX6 political reporter Jason Calvi shared the video on Friday, noting that activists heckled Evers before he began speaking at the event.
The disruption occurred at the Wisconsin Association for Justice’s annual Justice Dinner, according to Climate Defiance and Unicorn Riot, a left-wing nonprofit outlet that first reported the incident on October 21.
In the video, activist Tom Hoy stands among the tables and announces “a brief toast to Governor Evers.” He references treaty rights on the Bad River Reservation and raises a glass of dark liquid.
“I have a glass of water with crude oil,” Hoy said, according to Unicorn Riot. “Will you drink the future waters of Lake Superior, sir?”
Attendees, security personnel, and police pushed Hoy toward the door, according to Unicorn Riot. The video then shows a second protester shouting that Evers has “the executive power to shut down the Line 5 permits” as someone nearby says, “Out you go!” She is led away, shouting, “Act now or forever hold your legacy in regret!”
Climate Defiance stated that Evers was receiving a “Lifetime award for Justice” and noted that Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Crowley, Milwaukee’s mayor, the lieutenant governor, and Democratic legislators were present.
“Governor Evers and the Wisconsin democratic party establishment heard our message loud and clear,” the group posted.
The protest targets Enbridge’s 41-mile reroute of Line 5 around the Bad River reservation in Ashland and Iron counties. On August 25, a subcontractor’s truck rolled into a construction trench near Saxon and ruptured the line, releasing over 1.3 million gallons of natural gas liquids into the air, according to WPR.
The activists’ prop pointed to oil in Lake Superior. Enbridge says monitoring shows no contamination in nearby waters or wells, WXPR reported, a claim tribal leaders and environmental groups dispute.
Evers’ Department of Natural Resources issued Enbridge a notice of violation on October 13. The DNR alleges violations of water quality, wetland, air quality, and endangered resources laws from March 30 through September 21, including an unpermitted bypass built around the spill site. Eco-terrorists have hit this site recently, starting fires and disrupting development.
The Bad River Band has asked Evers for a disaster declaration and for the state to revoke the reroute permits, WXPR reported. Earthjustice attorney Stefanie Tsosie, who represents the tribe, told WXPR that state officials can modify or revoke permits for good cause.
The DNR has scheduled an enforcement conference with Enbridge for October 26, one week before voters select Evers’ successor. Activists want to know whether the governor will act on the permits before he leaves office.
