Together we can stop the climate crisis

An op-ed comic about individual action, oil & gas profiteers, and solidarity. Published in the LA Times.

"A few months ago, my friend had to buy a new car. She lives in a relatively dense city, but got a new job and had to commute across town. And she had a panic attack about it." Drawing of a car surrounded by spiraling smoke and anxious thoughts.
Trolley problem meme with lots of people tied to both tracks. "For all of us who are awake to the reality of the climate crisis, each day presents an impossible choice: Use air conditioning etc. Don't use air conditioning (neglecting our health)."
"Things that were morally neutral a few generations ago (like getting to work) now feel weighted with the fate of humanity. Why is it so hard to go a day without using fossil fuels?" Two images contrast 1922 commute (walking) and 2022 commute (car).
"As climate policy expert Leah Stokes wrote: 'when we start to see the choices that are not available, we can begin to see the role of political power… Who decides what options are available for us?" Drawing of trolley problem meme zoomed out to reve
"Fossil fuel profiteers (and the politicians who enable them) have worked for decades to rig the system to make us dependent on oil and gas." Three panels describing more in-depth about cars, plastics, and government subsidies for oil and gas.
"Oil and gas CEOs knew about climate change by at least 1965, but have spent decades manufacturing climate denial and sabotaging any large-scale attempt to stop the climate crisis." Image of a senior Exxonmobil lobbyist with a damning quote.
"Like big tobacco, fossil fuel companies us PR to shift the blame onto ordinary people. In reality, researchers estimate that just 90 corporations are responsible for nearly 2/3 of carbon emissions since 1880." Image of victim-blaming ad from BP.
"We have the solutions to heal the climate crisis. And individual resistance is important. We each have to do whatever we can to stop climate destruction." Image of the trolley problem meme. The operator pushes the trolley, attempting to stop it.
"But resistance must also be collective: Working together to dismantle this deadly system." Drawing of trolley problem meme. Many people are working together to stop the trolley, untie others from the tracks, and tear down nearby fences.
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