Climate Activist Tim DeChristopher Appears On David Letterman

Last week, climate activist Tim DeChristopher received a warm welcome on the David Letterman Show. The 12-minute interview with Dave was productive and seemed to give the host a little insight into climate activism. DeChristopher had a chance to discuss climate activism, the upcoming documentary Bidder 70, and the events leading up to DeChristopher’s imprisonment.

Tim DeChristopher
Photo credit: 350.org / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

During the interview, David appeared somewhat bewildered at the chain of events that caused Tim DeChristopher to land in prison. David even mentioned at one point it seemed what DeChristopher had done was more of a “prank” than a felony, which, if you are familiar with what happened to DeChristopher, you would likely agree.

DeChristopher was opposed to the selling of public land that was being bought by oil & gas companies. Some of this land was being bought for just $2 an acre and adjoined national parks or, as David put it, “sacred places.” Watch the whole interview here:

http://youtu.be/pnRwqS25b6o

So, in 2008, with the intent of only drawing some attention, DeChristopher went to an auction and was handed a bidding card, and he started bidding. After figuring out he was there just to disrupt the auction, authorities escorted him out.

When questioned by the law enforcement officials, he said, “I’m trying to stop this auction in any way I can because I think it’s a threat to my future and a fraud against the American people.” After confirming he was not planning on paying for the land he won, he went through a long legal battle and spent 21 months in prison.

The whole DeChristopher story is well documented in his new film Bidder 70 and is worth watching. Here is the trailer for the new documentary.

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