Justice for Manny Tortuguita Terán

GreenLatinos reports that Manuel "Manny" Tortuguita Terán, a queer, non-binary, and Indigenous Venezuelan defender, was shot and killed by a Georgia State Patrol Officer while opposing the conversion of the South River (Weelaunee) Forest into a police and fire training facility and film studio. The organization characterizes this as an act of "climate racism" and notes that 13 other forest defenders faced "domestic terrorism" charges. The statement links this event to a broader pattern of violence against land and water protectors, citing that 200 such defenders were killed in Latin America in 2020, a 67% increase from 2019. GreenLatinos argues that preserving natural spaces is essential to remediating climate disasters, citing IPCC findings.

• Manuel "Manny" Tortuguita Terán was killed by a Georgia State Patrol Officer while defending the South River (Weelaunee) Forest in Atlanta, GA, from being converted into a film studio and a large scale police and fire department training facility. This is identified as the first recently reported instance of an environmental defender in the U.S. being killed by law enforcement during the act of defending nature.
• The killing of Manny Terán is described as an act of "climate racism" due to their identity as a queer, non-binary, and Indigenous Venezuelan of Timoto-Cuica descent. GreenLatinos asserts that federal authorities should investigate the incident.
• The event occurred alongside the application of "domestic terrorism" charges against 13 other forest defenders during December and on the day of Terán's death.
• Violence against environmental activists is a systemic issue in Latin America, where Indigenous, queer, femme, and women protectors are disproportionately targeted. In 2020, 200 deaths of land and water defenders were recorded in Latin America, representing a 67% increase over 2019.
• The document references IPCC findings stating that preventing the conversion of forests and other ecosystems is among the most effective global methods for remediating climate disaster.

APA

GreenLatinos (2023). Justice for Manny Tortuguita Terán. GreenLatinos. https://www.greenlatinos.org/justice-for-manny-tortuguita-teran/

Chicago

GreenLatinos. Justice for Manny Tortuguita Terán. GreenLatinos, 2023. https://www.greenlatinos.org/justice-for-manny-tortuguita-teran/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=GreenLatinos |title=Justice for Manny Tortuguita Terán |publisher=GreenLatinos |date=1 February 2023 |url=https://www.greenlatinos.org/justice-for-manny-tortuguita-teran/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{greenlatinos2023justice, author = {GreenLatinos}, title = {{Justice for Manny Tortuguita Terán}}, publisher = {GreenLatinos}, year = {2023}, month = feb, url = {https://www.greenlatinos.org/justice-for-manny-tortuguita-teran/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }