http://thecoastnews.com/view/full_story/14268009/article-Locals-to-join-hands-to-oppose-offshore-drilling?instance=coast_more_news
Coast News: Rancho Santa Fe News: Locals to join hands to oppose offshore drilling
by Bianca Kaplanek
6 hrs ago
DEL MAR – Area residents who oppose expanded offshore drilling and support clean energy solutions for a sustainable planet can join hands in front of Powerhouse Park at noon June 25 for the second annual Hands Across the Sand event.
Dave Rauschkolb, a Florida surfer and restaurateur, created the event in response to a bill passed by the Florida House of Representatives, lifting the ban on near-shore oil drilling.
With support from sponsor organizations, more than 10,000 Floridians joined hands Feb. 13, 2010, covering the state’s coastlines to show united opposition to near-shore drilling.
Two months later the BP Deepwater Horizon oilrig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. Rauschkolb then organized a global Hands Across The Sand to urge President Barrack Obama to abandon his bid to open continental U.S. waters to offshore oil drilling.
On June 26, 2010, more than 1,000 events took place in all 50 states and in 42 countries.
Hands Across the Sand is not about politics, according to the organization’s website.
“It is about protecting coastal economies, oceans, marine wildlife and fisheries from the threats of expanded offshore drilling and the accidents associated with this,” the website states.
Participants join hands “to implore leaders and decision-makers to end the United States’ dependence on oil and coal and embrace a clean energy future for a sustainable planet.”
Participants are asked to arrive, rain or shine, at 11 a.m. and join hands for 15 minutes, forming lines in the sand to say “no” to oil drilling in coastal waters and “yes” to clean energy.
For more information, visit handsacrossthesand.org or contact local coordinator Yasmine Zein at yazmataz7@gmail.com.
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http://www.wmbfnews.com/story/14893743/the-second-annual-hands-across-the-sands
WMBF News
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
The second annual Hands Across the Sand
Posted: Jun 13, 2011 8:27 AM
Updated: Jun 13, 2011 8:31 AM
MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – People all over the world will gather to join hands in the second annual Hands Across the Sand on June 25 to take a stand against expanded offshore oil drilling and support for clean energy solutions for our planet.
Supporters from Myrtle Beach will gather at 11 a.m. at Plyler Park on the end of Mr. Joe White Avenue on the oceanfront. Everyone will join hands silently on the beach for 15 minutes. Parking will be available at Pavilion parking garage.
Local event organizer Mary Max Neely said, “We will hold hands in support of clean air, water and energy. The oil companies have reserves. Once again, we are drawing a line in the sand against drilling along America’s beaches across the nation and around the world. Our coastlines, marine life and tourism industry are too big of a risk to take.”
For more information about the Myrtle Beach event, contact Mary Max Neely at 843-283-9490, maxie@sccoast.net or www.handsacrossthesand.org.
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http://www.scpr.org/blogs/environment/2011/06/09/hold-hands-beach-625-hands-across-sand/
SCPR
Santa Monica, California
Hold hands on the beach 6/25 — for Hands Across the Sand
June 9, 2011 | Siel Ju
Plan for a day at the beach on Sunday, June 25 – and see all your fellow environmentalists collected by the ocean at noon. The second annual Hands Across the Sand event, when people peacefully hold hands across the sand to oppose offshore drilling and call for clean energy solutions, returns later this month to a beach near you.
The first event – held on June 26, 2010, just months after the BP oil spill – got people all over the world involved, with more than 1000 gatherings everywhere from Australia to Tanzania to Santa Monica, where I showed up. That local event brought out actresses Amy Smart and Rosario Dawson, Los Angeles City Councilmember Bill Rosendahl, environmental organizations like Surfrider Foundation and Green LA, and many locals that simply want an end to offshore drilling. After a few rousing speeches about moving L.A. towards cleaner energy sources, we all held hands – and stretched across the sand, chanting “Clean energy now!”
Now, Hands Across the Sand is coming back, happening all over the world at noon (local time) on Sunday, June 25. The event returns at a time when BP oil spill related stories are still making headlines – though these articles rarely front page news now. Hands Across the Sand aims to bring back to the public consciousness the many environmental and health problems related to offshore drilling, calling for both local and international solutions that bridge political and ideological affiliations.
Though the event blew up after the BP oil spill, Hands Across the Sand was actually founded by a Florida surfer and restaurateur called Dave Rauschkolb, who organized a hand-holding event in February 2010 that attracted 10,000 Floridians – after a bill to to lift the ban on nearshore drilling passed in the Florida House of Representatives. Two months later, the BP oil spill happened – and Hands Across the Sand became a big, international event endorsed by Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation, Oceana, and many other environmental organizations.
Ready to hold hands again? The Santa Monica event will return to last year’s spot just on the south side of the Santa Monica Pier. Show up at 11 ready to listen and learn from local activists – then grab your neighbor’s hand and join the human chain at noon.
But many other Hands Across the Sand events are also happening on other nearby beaches, from Venice to Dockweiler State Beach to the Main Beach in Laguna and the Pier in San Clemente. Visit the Hands Across the Sand website to find the event closest to you – or organize your own.
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http://www.citizen-times.com/article/DP/20110523/NEWS01/110523024/Second-annual-Hands-Across-Sand-set-June-25?odyssey=nav%7Chead
Asheville Citizen Times
Second-annual Hands Across the Sand set for June 25
1:04 PM, May. 23, 2011
Written by Kimberly Blair kblair@pnj.com
At noon on June 25 in time zones all across the globe people will once again join hands on beaches and in cities for the second annual Hands Across the Sand demonstration.
The peaceful protest is being organized to oppose expanded offshore drilling and promote clean energy solutions for a sustainable planet.
Hands Across the Sand is a movement made up of people from all walks of life and political affiliations, organizers say.
Florida surfer and Seaside restaurateur Dave Rauschkolb founded Hands Across the Sand in October 2009 in response to a bill passed in the Florida House of Representatives to lift the ban on nearshore drilling.
With the support of sponsor organizations, he rallied more than 10,000 Floridians to join hands on Feb. 13, 2010, covering the state’s coastlines, to show a united opposition to nearshore drilling. That event attracted 250 people to Casino Beach.
Two months later, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico. A second event was organized for June 26 to urge President Obama to abandon his bid to open the continental United States waters to offshore oil drilling. That event sparked 1,000 demonstrations worldwide. More than 800 people turned out on Casino Beach for that event, which fell three days after BP’s oil from the oil well disaster slicked Pensacola Beach.
On April 20, the one-year anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster, Hands Across The Sand launched its 2011 event website so that people worldwide could organize and participate in demonstrations in their neighborhoods, cities, parks and beaches.
Local people are encouraged to go to any nearby beach at noon and wear black and display banners.
For more details, visit www.handsacrossthesand.org. To view a Flickr photo stream from June 26, 2010 event log onto:
Special thanks to Richard Charter.