A Victory for the Grassroots

• Main Author: Dunaway, Finis
• Format: Book Part
• Language: English
• Published: University of North Carolina Press 2021
• Subjects: Arctic; Glenna; Gwich’in; Alaska
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.5149/northcarolina/9781469661100.003.0017

This chapter narrates the battle over the Arctic Refuge in 1991, the same moment where Chapter 1 began, as refuge defenders struggled to defeat the Johnston-Wallop bill. It weaves together the debate on Capitol Hill with glimpses of Last Great Wilderness slide show tours that were organized and sponsored by the Alaska Coalition, the Northern Alaska Environmental Center, and the Sierra Club. The chapter emphasizes the impact of grassroots activism on the 1991 Senate vote and also discusses the significance of Gwich’in advocacy on Capitol Hill, including a story of Glenna Frost changing one politician’s mind (Representative Wayne Gilchrest) on the issue. By interweaving stories from both Capitol Hill and local communities, the chapter emphasizes how refuge defenders applied the trick-up theory of politics.