Global Justice Site: 4th Demand
XR US have created a 4th demand around a 'just transition' that respects the needs of the most vulnerable:
'We demand a just transition that prioritizes the most vulnerable people and indigenous sovereignty; establishes reparations and remediation led by and for Black people, Indigenous people, people of color and poor communities for years of environmental injustice, establishes legal rights for ecosystems to thrive and regenerate in perpetuity, and repairs the effects of ongoing ecocide to prevent extinction of human and all species, in order to maintain a livable, just planet for all.'
The discussion was around whether we want to include similar sentiments in our demands at all and, if so, how. We could adopt their demand, write a new 4th demand, or incorporate the ideas into our current demands.
Key
@ = High Agreement
- = Medium Agreement
x = Low Agreement
Group 1
@ Shorten the demand to 'Just Transition'
@ Prioritise training/education in decolonisation as well as/over direct action
@ Support existing movements
Group 2
- Not a 4th demand, but a 1st demand
@ Integrate into the existing demands with radical relaunch of the 3 demands
@ Explicitly state anti-capitalist
@ Don't just 'Tell the Truth', but 'Listen to the Truth'
Group 3
- Explicit conditions on Citizens' Assemblies to avoid co-option
- Relaunching the demands to be framed as progress within XR
Group 4
- Education within XR around these issues as mandatory
@ Language of the demand should relate/be accessible to British public (not Americanised) e.g. class, imperialism, etc.
Group 5
- Include reference to people in carbon-intensive jobs
@ Inclusion of 'colonialism'
- A 5th demand referencing capitalism
Group 6
@ Include colonialism as a structure
@ Include language of solidarity and migrants
@ Redistribution of power and resources
Following groups weren't temperature checked, as not enough time to present them all:
Group 7
- Immigrants and migrants are part of the movement, but not Citizens', so can't take part in CAs
- Recognition that Global South/Black people are not responsible
- Links to farming and the need to plant trees
Group 8
- Discussed 4th demand vs. integrating into exisitng 3 - favoured a 4th
- Some people don't engage with XR because of the lack of a 4th demand - we're excluding those people
- Language needs to be accessible, shorter words, less academic
Group 9
- Beyond Politics vs 4th demands - incompatible! 4th demand doesn't work in a right wing environment!
- This will divide their followers, XR need to take in on sincerely, authentically, and not tokenistically that might mean losing some followers
Steve Connor Fri 22 Nov 2019 2:28PM
Leeds XR Branch recently set up a 4th Demand Working Group which has recommended that the Branch adopt the following text which is now under consideration:
JUST TRANSITION
We demand a just and equitable transition to an ecologically balanced zero carbon economy that prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable and redresses the inequalities in our society caused by centuries of colonial, gender and class exploitation.
Rosa Zubizarreta Sat 1 Feb 2020 12:06AM
Thank you for the update, Steve! It seems to me that this kind of fourth demand is already implicit in so many of the principles of XR; (such as, creating a healthy culture (3), challenging ourselves and our toxic system (4), and mitigating for power (7)). At the same time, it can also be SO USEFUL to make things more explicit, especially in areas where our cultural blinders tend to keep us from connecting the dots...
Cliff · Fri 15 Nov 2019 5:34PM
Can anyone point me to an introductory training in decolonisation suitable for use in XR context? maybe 1.5 to 2.5 hrs long.