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Troy Horton chains himself to the front doors of a building in Tempe that houses a Wells Fargo department to protest the fossil fuel emissions bank's funding.
Troy Horton scheduled an appointment at 3 p.m. at a Wells Fargo branch in Tempe to focus on "the future of his little ones.".
With four young children, seven grandchildren, 14 high-quality grandchildren, and one exceptional grandchild, Horton, who is 68 years old, felt he had a lot to discuss.
Except that his intention wasn't to meet with a tax consultant to discuss a college tuition reduction fund or estate planning. Horton wanted to discuss matters that might affect his children, but also, in his opinion, everyone else's babies as well: alternating weather.
And most importantly, the role of Wells Fargo in financing fossil fuel emissions.
For about an hour, Horton spoke with a supervisor from the financial institution, tied himself to the building's entrance door, and was eventually arrested and taken away by the police. He spent the night in the prison complex and was scheduled for a hearing on Friday morning. He is expected to be released later.
Horton's group plans additional protests as a way to reconsider investments in fossil fuels, especially investments with banks.
Participants in the Phoenix Extinction rebellion protest against Wells Fargo's funding of outdoor fossil fuel emissions from a department in downtown Tempe.
How much money does Wells Fargo invest in fossil fuels?
Wells Fargo is the third-largest investor in fossil fuels and the second-largest investor in fracking, according to a fossil fuel financial report authored by several environmental organizations.
Four giant US banks dominate international fossil fuel financing, accounting for a quarter of global fossil fuel financing.
Wells Fargo invested US$272 billion in fossil fuels from 2016 to 2021, behind JPMorgan Chase, which invested US$382 billion, and Citibank, which invested US$285 billion. Bank of the US came in fourth place, investing US$232 billion.
Wells Fargo also invested heavily in oil and fractured fuel in the remainder of the year, the filing confirmed, spending approximately US$8.5 billion and funding producers such as Diamondback Power and pipeline companies like Kinder Morgan.
Richard Sigler protests against Wells Fargo's funding of fossil fuel emissions in the backyard of a department store in downtown Tempe.
The report determined these figures using data on bank loans and corporate underwriting transactions, and some data on project finance, where available.
The story continues
Over the past 12 months, some banks have dedicated themselves to transitioning their portfolios to web zero by 2050 or earlier, along with Wells Fargo. However, the report noted that Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase increased their fossil fuel financing in 2021.
Horton noted the Phoenix chapter of the Extinction insurrection, a global local climate action group selected to protest Wells Fargo as a replacement for JPMorgan Chase or Citibank because of what they saw as other transgressions by the bank, including raising money from fake clients and suppressing whistleblowers just a few years ago.
Horton said he also believes Wells Fargo is probably the most prone of the four major US banks. He noted that Wells Fargo is more concerned about losing valuable customers than JPMorgan Chase, which relies less on the average consumer for revenue.
In an email to the Republic of Arizona, LiAna Enriquez, a spokesperson for Wells Fargo, noted that Wells Fargo is committed to helping achieve the goals of the local Paris climate agreement.
“Towards this conclusion, last year we set a goal of zero greenhouse gas emissions on the web by 2050 – including customer emissions attributable to our funding,” Enriquez wrote. “We aim to help buyers transition to low carbon through funding to assist their respective transitions and, with the help of supporting the innovation ecosystem, is bringing new applied science and low-carbon business models to market.”
extra protests to return
What happened on Thursday turned into the primary of a deliberate collection of protests through the Extinction insurrection chapter in native banking agencies, now not restricted to Wells Fargo, contributors said. The neighborhood recommended that Americans should still replace their funds in credit unions or smaller banks.
Nine protesters confirmed their attendance at the Wells Fargo branch in downtown Tempe. Most cited their children and grandchildren as their reason for participating; the typical age of the protesters was around forty-four years old.
Kathy Mohr-Almeida protests Wells Fargo's funding of outdoor fossil fuel emissions from a department in downtown Tempe.
Kathy Mohr-Almeida, a psychotherapist from Mesa, said she was worried about her daughter's future with the rising local climate and the devastating effects that come with it.
“"I've managed to get myself into several troubles that I might be causing, but that's why I'm here," he said.
Most of the protesters rely on credit unions, except for one, which has debts from Wells Fargo but plans to close them down.
While the rest of the protesters waited in the building's courtyard, Horton entered the department with another woman, known as Rachel.
In a highly polite alternative, Horton and Rachel spoke with two employees of the financial institution.
“Well, I should be locking myself in your door. I just wanted to help you recognize that,” Horton instructed them.
One of the key employees asked Horton if he had become typical of different Wells Fargo branches. The employee also mentioned that other banks invest in fossil fuels.
After a brief conversation, Horton left and used a metal wire to tie himself to the front doors of the building that housed the bank; the young men had a lower back entrance that allowed anyone to leave.
The bank employees were known as police officers. Four officers arrived quickly.
Police arrest Troy Horton for trespassing. Horton chained himself to the front doors of a building in Tempe that houses a Wells Fargo branch to protest the financial institution's funding of fossil fuel emissions.
When a police officer initiated a dialogue with Horton, he bent over, taking the wire from his hand and tying it again around his abdomen, just below his navel.
“"You really can't tie yourself to the door... Does this constitute an experiment?" the officer asked Horton.
The police officer untied the steel wire and led Horton to a police vehicle. Another officer reported that The Republic Horton was arrested for trespassing. He spent the night in juvenile detention and is due to be released later.
Horton stated that he had been arrested four times before, once for protesting against an oil and gasoline terminal in Washington and the others for protesting against the fighting in Iraq. He knew that this had become an excellent opportunity to be arrested that day.
He noted that he wasn't afraid of being arrested again. But he's turning 69 next week and hopes he won't have to spend his birthday in prison.
Zayna Syed is an environmental reporter for The Arizona Republic/azcentral. Follow her reporting on Twitter at @zaynasyed_ and send different information or advice regarding assessments to [email protected].
Environmental insurance at azcentral.com and the Republic of Arizona is supported with the help of a grant from the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable. Follow the Republic's environmental reporting team at Atmosphere.azcentral.com and @azcenvironment on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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This text originally appeared in the Arizona Republic: Protester chains himself to a Wells Fargo door to protest investments.
