Reject Raytheon AVL

Build a just, sustainable, and local economy

Upcoming Actions and Events

Walk and Rally for

A Peaceful, Just & Sustainable Future

This walk and rally will have 4 activities:

9:00 A 9-mile peace & awareness walk from Vance Monument to Bent Creek River Park. We will carry signs and be led by drumming Buddhist monks. There will be a support vehicle that will carry gear, water, snacks and be able to give people rides when they need breaks. You can join the walk at any point along the route. View the route map here.
1:30 Folks can join the long walkers for a shorter 1.5 mile walk. You can meet them at the ABC Board Building next to the Tractor Supply and behind Farm Bureau. It just off Brevard Rd. Address: 24 Old Brevard. This is a good option if you don’t think you can walk the whole 9 miles, but want to join the group and walk to the rally site Bent Creek River Park.
2:00 Rally and Tabling in Bent Creek River Park
2:30 Direct Action on the Bridge Construction Site. A meeting regarding the direct action will be held on Monday, May 10.

Volunteers are also needed.

If you are interested in participating in any or all of these events or volunteering , contact Ken Jones at jonesk@maine.edu.

From Anger to Activism: Our Story

It all began on November 17, 2020 when the Buncombe County Commissioners met to consider, for the first time, in a public meeting, the tax incentive agreement they had negotiated with Pratt & Whitney (P&W) for a 1.2 million square foot aerospace manufacturing plant in South Asheville. During public comment, 31 people called in to make comments to the Commissioners; 30 were opposed to the tax incentives; 1 was in support. After the public comments, the Commissioners voted immediately and unanimously to give $27 million dollars in tax incentive grants to Pratt & Whitney over a 15-year period.

Among those 30 dissenters were members of several local peace, environmental and economic justice groups.

From their collective anger about

lack of transparency in the courting of and negotiation for the proposed plant,
bringing a multinational defense contractor to the area, and
destruction of forests, wetlands and wildlife along the French Broad River and adjacent to the Blue Ridge Parkway

The movement, Reject Raytheon AVL, was born.

We are a multi-generational movement of local activists and peacemakers who have come together to ensure that the economic development of Buncombe County relies not on incentives given to war profiteering multinational corporations, but rather on investments in a local, sustainable, and Just economic model. We have a responsibility to create a world that is more equitable for all inhabitants of this planet. This starts with local decision-making.