FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Zan Dubin (310) 383-0956
zan@zdscommunications.com
- Who: Dodger fans and activists. Campaign sponsor: Sierra Club Angeles Chapter
- When: Wed., Feb. 12, immediately after Phillips 66's 1 p.m. arraignment
- Where: Sidewalk in front of Edward R. Roybal Federal Bldg, 255 E. Temple St., LA 90012
- Visuals: Life-size umpire cutout with 76 logo calling, "You're OUT!"
- Media contact: Zan Dubin (310) 383-0956; zan@zdscommunications.com
The Logo for the 76 gas brand, owned by Phillips 66, is plastered across Dodger Stadium through team's longstanding Big Oil sponsorship deal.
Dodger fans and activists will demand that owners end the team's advertising deal with Phillips 66 immediately after the oil giant is arraigned on criminal charges on Feb. 12, 2025. A federal grand jury has indicted Phillips 66, owner of 76 gas-station brand whose logo is displayed across Dodger Stadium, for allegedly sending thousands of gallons of water contaminated with oil and grease into LA County's sewer system. The company is accused of knowingly and negligently violating the Clean Water Act.
Fans and activists last fall, in what is believed to be the first protest of a U.S. sports team over a fossil fuel sponsor, delivered a petition, now totaling roughly 23,000 signatures, urging team owner Mark Walter to drop the greenwashing sponsorship. Associating Big Oil with America's beloved pastime makes fossil fuels seem wholesome and trivializes the deadly pollution and climate change they cause. Dodger owners, who also use the stadium for Arco gas ads, have not responded.
"The Dodgers shouldn’t be putting a pretty face on any polluter, especially one that's facing a six-count felony indictment for putting LA County's environment and water treatment system at risk of great potential harm," said Dodger fan Carlos Morales of Azusa. "Dropping the Phillips 66 sponsorship would tell the world that Los Angeles and its championship baseball team want a healthy, sustainable future for us all."
Campaign organizer and fan Lisa Kaas Boyle lost her L.A. home in the fires worsened by climate change. She questions why the Dodgers continue to advertise for an oil giant charged with violating the Clean Water Act, especially when Dodger manager Dave Roberts appears in a new PSA for LA County's Safe Clean Water Program. He asserts that “LA County works hard to ensure a safe, clean, reliable water future.”
"Booting Big Oil out of baseball is up to the fans, because team owners won’t take responsibility,” said Kaas Boyle, former LA County Deputy District Attorney, environmental crimes division. “This isn’t abstract. Bad air quality from wildfires has forced MLB teams to move games, a hurricane ripped the roof off of Tropicana Field, and the Dodgers had to give out free water in 103-degree heat last summer. It’s almost becoming too hot to watch at Chavez Ravine."
Campaign organizer Zan Dubin says, “Every effort should be made to help prevent these worsening disasters and shilling for fossil fuels is anything but. Especially with the Olympics coming to LA, Dodger Stadium should be a showcase of sustainability, not a billboard for Big Oil.”
See our previous coverage here: https://www.sierraclub.org/angeles/blog/2024/08/dodgers-campaign-origin-story