The spring of 2018 was Emily’s first time on a front line as she joined the movement to stop the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

Between November 2017 and August 2018, hundreds of people gathered at Burnaby Mountain within Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), səlil̓wətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) territories. They volunteered, cooked, cleaned, built structures, and put their bodies in the way of trucks entering Kinder Morgan’s facilities to try to stall construction on the Trans Mountain pipeline. Being there was unlike being anywhere else.

Moments of connection with people Emily met at the Watch House in Burnaby have stuck with her, even with people she only knew for a few minutes. This is a comic about some of those moments, as we might be entering another construction season.

Trans Mountain still faces many hurdles before significant construction can begin. If that time comes, we can expect renewed mobilization on the ground by people determined to stop this climate catastrophe in its tracks.

To get involved in the movement to #StopTMX in solidarity with Indigenous Nations, join our Pull Together campaign in partnership with RAVEN. Visit our Pull Together website to learn more and sign up!

Emily Thiessen is an artist and a climate justice organizer with a fire for creative troublemaking. She comes from Mennonite and Malaysian-Chinese roots, and lives on beautiful Lekwungen and W̱SÁNEĆ Territories.

You can find her at emilythiessen.ca or on Instagram @archipelagic