Lois Lane--Environmental Superhero!

(left to right: Joanie Kresich, Frances Stewart, Margot Kidder, and actress Tantoo Cardinal)

On a recent trip to the hair salon, I had the good fortune to run into Margot Kidder, one of Livingston’s colorful local celebrities.  If you were raised during the ‘70s and ‘80s, you are well aware of Margot’s film career—most notably, her role as Lois Lane in the original Superman series starring Christopher Reeve.

For decades, Margot has been a highly visible member of the small community of Livingston, Montana and over the years I would bump into her at various local events, never really having the chance to speak with her one-on-one.  It seems that everyone in Livingston knows Margot (or Margie as she likes to be called).  She can be seen regularly pedaling her bike through town, stopping to chat with the locals on her way to do whatever Hollywood actresses do… I imagine that it’s something very glamorous!

But to know Margie, as so many in this community of just over 7,000 people do, is to know that she is more than just a successful actress—she is an amazing force and committed activist for countless causes.  As a founding member of Montana Women For, a non-profit organization that encourages women to participate in democratic processes, she has tackled such issues as health care, mental health issues, and energy development. Her work on energy has focused most recently on fighting the development of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline—the now infamous 2,000 mile pipeline that would stretch from Canada to the Gulf Coast, passing through Montana, which NRDC has also worked hard to block. 

Leaning back in a chair while my stylist Staci worked her magic, Margot shared stories of her recent travels around the country including one story of her arrest during the August protest of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline in Washington, D.C.  (This is the kind of excitement you hope to get when you go to the hair salon!)

It was a hot August morning.  Margot was flanked by friends that had traveled with her from Montana to protest the development of the pipeline.  All were prepared to be arrested and each was ready with bail money—Margot secreted her money away in her bra.  After her arrest, she was contained inside a “paddy wagon” (remember…this is D.C. in August), to await transport to a police station where she would be able to post bond.  When the time came to pay her fine, Margot reached into her bra and extracted a very soggy $100 bill which she then handed over to the officer.  The officer pinched the corner of the bill holding it up and away from his body with a less than enthusiastic “thank you Miss Kidder.”  For months, Margot wore her police bracelet with the number one written on it in sharpie.  She was the very first person arrested that day.

The stories about Kidder’s activism are legendary—I’ve heard many tales about the bravery she has shown in the face of heated opposition—moments where she has walked straight into the heart of rival protest groups, facing harsh words and anger, only to come out unshaken and even more committed to her cause.  Months after our chance meeting in the hair salon, I finally get the chance to sit down and talk with her in more depth—I ask how she does it.   She just laughs and credits her 63 years on this planet and a childhood spent in the mining camps of the Northwest Territories.  I imagine years of public scrutiny have a role to play in shaping this firebrand as well.

Speaking with her, I’m struck by her immense depth of knowledge on issues ranging from electoral politics to the environment—particularly energy development.  She only half-jokingly credits much of her knowledge about the oil and gas industry on her new favorite periodical, Downstream Today, an industry magazine.  When I ask her about the recent decision by President Obama to reject the permit that would have allowed the construction of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline, she seems happy, but cautiously so, noting that the Canadian oil and gas industry is ruthless. She seems genuinely distraught by the vast amount of misinformation that has permeated the public discourse related to the pipeline—energy independence and job creation being chief among the myths perpetuated by the industry and other pipeline proponents.  She challenges the claims made by the oil and gas industry estimating that 20,000 jobs would be created in building the pipeline, while the government estimates construction job creation would be more in the range of 5,000.  And as for energy independence, Kidder notes that most of the tar sands oil flowing through the pipeline would be refined for export to countries in Asia and South America, not the U.S.  

Sitting with Margot, I find it impossible to disagree with her.  I’m inspired by her outright courage to stand up for what she believes and her dedication to help build a better future for everyone.  If you’ve spent time on the “front lines” of any social movement, you know how difficult it is to summon the strength to put yourself in the line of fire, and for someone who has spent so much of her life under the glare of the spotlight, I find her activism all the more stunning.  I know there is much to be learned from this woman born in the wilds of Canada, raised in the wilds of Hollywood, and given to the wilds of conservation and social justice.  I feel confident knowing that she is out there—walking into the heart of opposition, facing arrest, threats and hostility—that she is there standing up for the rights of the people to live in a free and just society.

Who knows what the next chapter of her life holds, but I’m sure it will be a blockbuster!  Actress, teacher, grandmother, environmental superhero!  That covers it… for now!

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