Shaking up the L.A. Auto Show

RAN Steals the Show in L.A. donate | tell-a-friend | subscribe
	On Wednesday, RAN and Global Exchange campaigners posing as LA Auto Show staff walked on stage following GM CEO Rick Wagoner's keynote speech and asked him to sign a giant pledge committing GM to be the industry leader in fuel economy by 2010. Check out the video: The audience of 1,000 reporters cheered and encouraged Wagoner to sign the pledge. Unfortunately, he refused, highlighting the true paradox of the auto industry—environmental P.R . rather than fuel efficiency progress. We were swarmed by press following the action, and congratulated by many of them. We've been floored at the amount of positive media coverage we've received across the nation. The LA Auto Show is one of the major international auto shows and this year is being marketed as the 'ECO' auto show. But we have a healthy bit of skepticism – which is informed by a long legacy of green washing and broken promises from the auto industry. So one of our biggest goals of being at the Auto Show this week is to keep pressure on automakers to move forward on improving fuel efficiency and offer more than just green P.R. campaigns full of empty promises. Our series of creative actions will continue throughout the duration of the auto show, calling for mass production of pollution-free, petroleum-free vehicles and calling attention to the inconsistency between the auto industry's words and actions. On Wednesday, concerned citizens convened an "Oil Addicts Anonymous" meeting outside the auto show to offer empathy, support and encouragement to help the American auto industry confront its grave addiction to oil. Other colorful events throughout the week include a "greenwash car wash," giant balloon banners, and public education efforts focused on the auto industry's contribution to global warming. Join us in sending a message to GM CEO Rick Wagoner asking him to commit to being the fuel efficiency leader! Sarah Connolly Jumpstart Ford Campaign Rainforest Action Network http://www.ran.org Checkout OAA on Myspace! http://myspace.com/oiladdictsanonymous Will You Ask GM? Matt and Mike holding the pledge they presented to GM CEO Rick Wagoner at the L.A. Auto Show. We want Rick Wagoner and GM to pledge to become the most fuel-efficient automotive company in the industry by 2010. Will You Ask GM with Us? RAN in the Press Videos: Crashing the Press Conf. Greenwash Car Wash GM CEO: "Some moron..." Blogs: The Understory Gristmill Autoblog News: CSMonitor: On the road... BusinessWeek Tell-a-friend! If you received this message from a friend, you can sign up for Rainforest Action Network.
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