Climate Activists Protest Wells Fargo Offices San Francisco, New York, Seven Arrested

On July 23, climate and Indigenous rights activists staged coordinated protests at Wells Fargo's global headquarters in San Francisco and its offices in New York City, blocking entrances and painting murals to denounce the bank's investments in fossil fuels, the Dakota Access Pipeline, and its alleged complicity in climate destruction and human rights abuses. Indigenous leaders from Standing Rock and Cheyenne River tribal nations highlighted the threat posed by the pipeline to their water and land, linking their struggle to global issues including Israel's actions in Gaza. Protesters accused Wells Fargo of abandoning its climate commitments and criticized its significant fossil fuel investments, which increased by 30% in 2024 despite ongoing climate crises. The demonstrations involved physical blockades with linked arms and props like a giant puppet called the “Fierce Protector,” and resulted in at least seven arrests in San Francisco as police dispersed the crowd. Activist groups such as the Oil and Gas Action Network and Planet Over Profit emphasized the protests as the beginning of broader civil disobedience aimed at pressuring Wells Fargo to change its business practices and prioritize people and the planet over profit. Wells Fargo declined to comment on the protests and continues to face criticism for its financial support of projects and policies seen as detrimental to climate and social justice.