How do we respond to the silence of the government on the climate and ecological emergency, in the face of the attempt to silence people?

Still coming down from rebellion and been so emotional since tube disruptions. We did not show people ‘what democracy looks Like’. We must learn and fast. Not sure I want to be part of similar actions next year - where did this get us? Mass arrests will be passe, we’ve already cost met £37m and this will be used against us and stop ethnic minorities from joint us. Please read guardian brilliant article for ideas going forward - ‘how do we rein in the fossil fuel industry? Here are 8 ideas’. We must do more than taking over the capital - think bigger everyone and ensure global XR news is widely spread - if I had a £1 for every comment on, ‘you should be protesting in China, Brazil, Russia’ ... yawn !

Here's the Guardian article Nat mentions: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/oct/14/how-rein-in-fossil-fuel-industry-eight-ideas

Getting media attention of our actions is not enough IF they do not say why we are doing them in the first place. The narrative needs to be moved from us to the issues, otherwise every bit of media coverage is useless. How do we do this - any ideas ?

But you know how, Nat.Jus' by having well-supported focussed actions with big banners and clear simple messages.
Every action plan must foresee all possible contingencies and mitigate against them.
As soon as an action is in place, there needs to be a dozen leafleters and several of them experienced in Outreach.
And cameras, if not the Press.

M.

I wonder if it would be a good idea to try and get more people on board by telling them the truth as the Goverment won't. I think its clear a lot of people just don't realise how serious things are. Maybe handing out leaflets locally with links to some good educational you tube sites e.g Scientist's warning and various XR sites. Speaking from experience here..the Roger Hallam talk he did in Penzance scared me into action!!

On one of the live feeds from before the police cleared out Vauxhall there was a brilliant bit from XR Salisbury that had some really great visual aids in the climate crisis- really informative and clear, if we could get those to use more widely that would be really great.

Visual aids sound like an excellent idea 😊 thanks Lee

I felt that this peoples assembly would have had more impact if the question had been straightforward (i.e.1 not a compound) and if there had been immediacy to the outcome. We had very large numbers at trafalgar and didnt capatalise in the people power to choose an action to go and do en mass with all those people. We could have gone back to Bank and had a sit down protest to highlight that we were not deturred by the section 14 implimentation that resulted from the action in the city the day before. It was a shame it became a wooly collection of ideas on how not to upset people/ do what we are already doing! I saw lots of diversity in the week I was in London in the speakers, arrestees, people attending and even the police. XR functions in a society that is still inhetantly racist and a police force that is institutionally racist. Considering these factors our diversity is better than it could be as we are all making ourselves targets for people to abuse and the police to arrest by being XR in the first place. It is the same for youth climate activists, there is so much diversity but all the media shows us is Greta ( amazing though she trully is, it makes tge movement seem less than it is). Lets celebrate the diversity we have to encourage more and stay true to our demands and principles of being in rebellion and stop blaming and shaming ourselves to destruction. In love and gentle rage, Hannah.

So many good ideas and serious thinking, and also some necessary negatives we have listen to and learn from. Thank you for all the sharing and inspiration.
For me at the heart of XR now is the need for Connection/outreach. Certainly connecting with all ages and every belief and life experience and world view; also connecting with ourselves, take time to listen to ourselves - how we feel, what matters most to us, and anger and fears and confusion as well as compassion and the joy and wonder of life. Taking time to care for ourselves and connect with each other (anyone else on Rick Hanson’s Foundations of Wellbeing course? or ‘Action for Happiness’?). Connecting with successful working people of every kind and those out of work and underpaid, disabled, disadvantaged, discriminated; AND connecting with politicians – we need the heavy lifting power of government, they’re people too, who are mostly there because they want to make a difference as they see it. Watch and listen to them in committees or at their constituency ‘surgeries’, not at PM’s Question time. Elections can be an opportunity for connection with people and politicians, listening rather than adversarial. What about a campaign for cross-party task force (whoever wins next election), if not anational government of unity, to implement the Climate Emergency Declarations ? – already there in embryo, waiting to happen.
In XR we have so many things going right in practice and principle. Stay with the core of action - consistent non-violent protest and compassion, positive potential in change not business as usual, telling the truth and care for our planet and all people, an ever widening connection, affinity, and it will happen. Kit Welchman

XR had a strategy for the 2nd International rebellion which included enormous cultural artistic presentations which would have drawn the media cameras like bees to a hive, and educated the populace regarding climate change at a time when the government refuses to.

If the police had not confiscated 80 tonnes of XR infrastructure before and in the 1st two days of the protest,¹ the demonstration would have been more informative and less disruptive.

1) According to the Deputy Assistant Commissioner 09 Oct 2019.

Depressing that people do not seem to get the level of personal sacrifice and disruption that will be needed. Although in some cases low risk dispersal tactics can be effective eg switching off lights at a prescribed time or pot bashing; these take big numbers of people in the capital and are in conjunction with more disruptive law breaking actions
I'm afraid the suggestion that we change tactics although understandable is naive. Extended period mass participation civil disobedience that is characterized by participants breaking the law is our best last and only hope of achieving the system change in the time frame we need...We need 300+ people serving short-term custodial sentences. 3000+ individuals getting arrested at one point, 30000+ people on the streets of the capital en masse refusing to move except on their own terms. 300 000+ activily supporting them logistically practically and financially and 3million+ in full agreement with our tactics and goals...The question now for every individual is How far am I over this system? Have I had enough yet? What am l truly willing to sacrifice? According to Antonio Guiteras the un secretary general we (the world goverments) now have less than a year to start to put the major structural and systemic changes in place or face a future within a generation or two characterised by uncontrollable climate change by fascism, war, mass starvation, mass death through dehydration ect. Having been arrested now seven times in xr actions..three times in the last two weeks..having never been arrested before March last year... I know now that I am willing to give it all.. Liberty and life in peaceable direct action...For people that were on the grief march last Saturday those are the numbers we need to be together on the streets of London fully committed to making a difference by refusing to be compliant in their own and their children's destruction... When the house is on fire you call out the alarm and break the door down
It is not pretty but if you truly love those trapped inside you will sacrifice everything to save them. I saw glimpses of the manifestation of the power we need over the last two weeks...One time during the city action when 1000+ people moved like water under the direction of a few young women and took over the mall on a self directing march through Victoria to ST Paul's cathedral and also during the no food no future action where a few hundred people held the road for seven hours despite police kettling tactics by again moving like water around the police cordons (we could have held it indefinitely I think but chose to move again on a self directed march to Trafalgar sq.) After the city actions we had the blanket section 14 ban put in place...this proves we had the power mongers scared and on the run.. We just need to keep movement building both externally and internally on a personal level of commitment. Am I scared of having to take this path? Yes, sometimes extremely... Am I going to do everything in my power to be a worthy ancestor? Yes because I feel I must.

Indeed... but we need more people engaged and involved and some people outside of XR simply don't get how serious it all is..which is why I feel we need some way of educating them and getting them on board and joining us in mass civil disobedience against
the powers that be.
And quickly😔.

Agree.
Outreach is essential and should be on everyone’s mind right now.
TONS of Heading for Extinction talks, bring your friends and have mass sign-up sessions at the end.
And outreach teams engaging the new joiners to spread further and further.
6 degrees of separation says we can reach the whole planet within months…
We need to be the global pyramid scheme that saves the planet!

Kick arse, Árainn.

I'm right behind you !

Árainn, jus' to be helpful, the UN Sec Gen is António Guterres.
Please tell me on what occasion he said that. . . do you have a link.
I may get the opportunity to bend the magistrate's or judge's ear with that quote in court, if I can pinpoint it.

Thanks,
M.

I accept that mass NVDA is still the way forward. I agree that the sticking point is the public's lack of accurate information.
I think we need to develop many more ways of reaching the public which do not rely on the media.
Maybe we could separate out the creative, educative element from the NVDA element. For example have marches, public displays, poster campaigns etc which are not illegal or distruptive but challenging and inspiring. Use visual arts to convey the information in as many forms as possible and leaflet/, give commentary alongside to explain the science and XRs approach. Run a campaign of direct action alongside. This could be far more immediate and adaptive as it would be hampered by the 'stuff' involved in trying to set up camps. The creative stuff could become a sort of awareness raising travelling exhibitions and could visit all areas of cities and small towns taking the message to a much more diverse population. Whereas the actions could be focused on big buisiness and government.

I think Rowan has made some really good points - yes NVDA is important but we must bring more people with us and that will be achieved by making it relevant to them. Not just focussing on the co2 side of things but highlighting the ecological crisis due to habitat loss, farming, development etc. During my day job (countryside Ranger) I have noticed that offering solutions helps people to connect.

Definitly the work of the local groups needs to carry on extending out.

I agree
This is a good idea, Rowan. In fact it's what many of us have been doing with local meetings and displays, of which XR and the School Strikes and the state of the oceans and reconnecting with nature have been an important part. I think the media (including Daily Mail on Line this week ) are taking Climate Heating seriously which reflects public opinion, but a way to go there. There's plenty of creativity around, plays street theatre and art , teenagers writing poems. We can share and encourage and listen.

In any future naughtiness in london/other cities, take the education to those who need it. Mass nvda outside the education dept and other government departments, and polluters such as oil company and agrichemical head offices. Protest tactics to include handouts and educational leaflets to employees and civil servants,, these could be targetted to the specifics of each department or business, nice loud educational presentations via megaphone so all inside as well as outside can hear. This could include visual arts.

Hey Kit.
Please can you remind us why you use the term "climate heating".
Thanks.

Hi M.

Thanks for asking. It came from the Pledge by the Guardian editor-in-chief Katharine Viner to report Climate Science and Crisis as a priority, which included changes to the style guide for journalists and editors on the use of language. She announced guidelines (not prescriptive) on 6 common word usages which tend to downplay or diminish the seriousness of the Climate situation. One is to use 'Climate
Crisis' or emergency rather than 'Climate Change' (Change happens all the time and is neutral), another suggested is 'Global Heating' rather than 'Global Warming' (warming
implies moderate and harmless or even pleasant associations, Heating can kill and is killing and causing desertification). Words matter, especially because their associations often affect us unconsciously.

However, as perhaps you spotted, in my
spontaneous response on Loomio, I got it wrong! though perhaps Climate Heating can be better than the neutral
Climate Change. And as the editor says it still all depends on the context which word is best for you to choose.
The full article (‘It’s a Crisis, not a change’: the
six Guardian language changes on climate matters’) and the Pledge can be seen in Guardian on line and has also been printed in the paper. (http://www.theguardian.com/environment ).

Can we find a way to make a human chain round Heathrow as was so memorably done round Greenham Common 30 years ago?

The Guardian article mentioned above leaves much to desired. I have written extensively on this- if you email me at peter@dracos.co.uk I will send you copies of my papers.

Thank you, Pete, I would like to read your papers. The Guardian is certainly not impeccable but I find it the best daily newspaper for quantity and quality of Climate coverage and comment available, especially environment on line, and the Editor’s pledge is good news. I think the focus on the subliminal implications of words commonly used in climate reporting is helpful and relevant to be aware of and think about - not only for the Guardian!
I will send you my email address directly to yours rather on line here. Perhaps you could give us an idea of your writings, and in particular of the language use article, here?

Thanks Kit. I’m an academic writing about the politics of climate change and my latest publication is a critique of climate change mitigation policy in the journal Policy and Politics.
Pete

Hi Pete,
Thank you for this interesting reply and for the email including your papers.
I am a retired primary school headteacher and Relate-trained relationship counsellor, a Quaker and member of UNA-UK as well as a number of active environmental groups. I guess there will be differences in how we see and approach the catastrophic climate crisis. But we probably share the common purpose to end the unthinking unsustainable exploitation of natural resources; to challenge and transform the entrenched power of accumulated wealth and privilege in our societies, and to change our own life styles for the better – to greater equality, health, well-being and inclusive connection; and we probably agree on non-violent group action as the way to achieve these things, with respect for each other and care for the wonderful planet on which we depend. Discussion and decision making are vital, which includes assemblies and this Loomio project and politics. Everyone has a contribution to make.
I look forward to reading your papers and will reply in more detail from my email address when I have read them.
Kit

Hi, agree with key priorities agreed at People's Assembly. Regards comment in thread about targeting politician's homes, i'm not keen that you do this to Corbyn. He still lives in an ordinary home in Islington and despite telling journalists that he won't do doorstep interviews in order to protect his family and neighbours, the media still try to doorstep him just to make him look shifty. I admire the way he wants to remain rooted in his community and would not want to add to the harassment he already gets at his home. Elsewhere, ie his constituency or westminster office, is different.

Directors , board members or hideous corporations, investors etc. How about them ?

Hi there is general agreement amongst Rebel Elders that I meet, which is quite a lot, that we need to spread out to get more support from all diverse communities, and get people to commit to smaller rebellious acts as part of their ordinary lives, as many wouldn't take part in lengthy occupation type actions. Very many people support our intention, but disagree with our tactics, but would be prepared to take actions of protests in: Banks (as happened last Saturday), supermarkets (who surely bear a lot of responsibility for misinformation and skewed purchasing and marketing), airports (who've got it coming anyway), sea ports, petrol stations, car distributors, high street fashion chains etc. In the Connecting Communities collaboration we are working at getting this extra recruitment going already, and people are telling us what they are prepared to do to support the movement.

Like many of the above, I agree with the 5 proposals. I don't agree with ideas of door stepping, as this was a tactic of the animal liberation front and will not get public backing (they may be some exceptions to be made- for some real evil buggers!). Also , go careful in lin king up with other groups, XR stands out in its way of operating, don't get waylaid by other groups who try to steer XR in to their agenda.

We met about 3 weeks ago, and we were wanting something wholly positive-joyful-Beautiful Expansive (like a 'flash-mob'); I think experiencing something beautiful & positive would get people attention in a DIFFERENT way, and would/could be just-Beautiful for its own sake.
I'm in touch with the Arts XR group(s) on facebook and will discuss with them

I'm not sure the public would see anything different with yet another die-in (just like they didn't in 1967, when the Anarchist-provo group the diggers held a 'death of hippie event' to try to get the media to stop using that label to those who were sincerely experimenting with Spirituality and connecting their deep issues with the political situation)

Watch the anti BP action at the British Museum for a beautiful art action. Human statues based on new Troy exhibition (paid for by BP), they freaked people out and poured oil here and there

I love XR but following Principal and Value No. 5, I feel that XR must look at itself critically. To start with our

Principals and Values are far too wordy

They are exclusive and intimidating to the average person on the street and should be refined. It would be far better to have short, punchy 3 word Principals & Values with longer explanations underneath if absolutely necessary. P&V No. 1 isn't needed at all - of course we want change.

I also feel that we should

Check that our demands are sufficient

and that we are fully inclusive and welcoming. At this point of regeneration following the London action it is perfect timing check.

Our Demands and Principals and Values must be assessed by the whole of XR

This internal scrutiny would make us stronger if everyone contributed to the rewriting and refining of what exactly we want and what we believe. If, after scrutiny, they stay the same then at least XR with its current membership will stand fully behind them and be able to move forward in the knowledge that we really are decentralised.

Yes to the first 5 proposals but don't bother lobbying MPs. Inclusivity and targeting the powerful are particularly important - no more Tube fiascos, please! Several local branches of XR are currently discussing adopting a 4th Demand on a Just Transition. Such a 4th Demand should be adopted nationally.

And outreach, outreach! XR needs to organise a mass mobilisation of the population and create the networks of solidarity and expertise that will be necessary to achieve a just and equitable transition to a net zero carbon economy. The British State will never willingly agree to set up and abide by the decisions of a Citizen's Assembly, but with mass support and the involvement of other sympathetic, non-state organisations and groups, XR could establish a Citizen's Assembly and force the implementation of it's decisions by the use of mass NVDA.

In order to do any of this, XR must reform it's internal structures to increase accountability and improve communications. I would favour a confederal structure in which decisions are reached through a bottom up system of delegatory democracy, in which local area branches run by people's assemblies send mandated, re-callable delegates to city/town assemblies and so on to regional/national assemblies and a U.K. confederal assembly. Commitees of re-callable delegates at each level would be responsible for the day to day running of XR. All delegates should be unpaid volunteers.

Thank you Steve. Yes to inclusivity, Yes to no more Tube fiascos (though there is a need to think about how to do that), to Just Transition, and yes, maybe, to not ‘bothering to lobby MPs’ – ‘lobby’ as associated with weapons and oil giants and Big Pharma.   But a No, for me, to not bothering to include, listen to, talk to and connect with MPs. 

MPs (and local representatives) are part of the essential outreach (Yes Yes) as people, and also because of the powers, and the responsibilities they have.  These powers are a necessary part of what has been called the heavy lifting, which includes making laws and decisions and providing funds which can make a difference to essential change happening now or not.  Inclusivity for me means recognition and respect for all as people, but not for their actions and the system that supports injustice and endangers the planet.  The minds of many MPs and local councillors can and have changed - remarkably so in the past year.  XR has played a major part in getting them to listen, and we need an extended XR to make sure they act.   This may involve new strategies while remaining true to the XR principles

Yes to ‘networks of solidarity and expertise’.  Such ‘Networks for change’ can interact with and can influence the ‘power networks’ in a variety of ways.   And Yes to creating new, more effective and just, structures such as you suggest.  Kit Welchman

Public understanding of what is at stake should be in the top five. We need talented XR spokes people on TV with climate scientists next to them (willing to back them up). Most people are not aware of what the dangers of a 3-4 degree rise actually are and what that means for the lives of their children and grand children. Until people realize how serious the dangers are and that keeping to 2 degrees means changing the nature of our economy dramatically, they will not understand our message, or vote the right way in elections. Otherwise the top five proposals are good.

In this time of regeneration, as one previous commenter suggested, outreach, outreach.
We must swell numbers.
We must look to reach 3.5% globally (260 million people), nationally (2 million) and in every single community.

Our challenge to all local groups must be for them to hit 3.5% in their own towns and cities.

H4X talks as vehicles of recruitment, and then active engagement with new joiners.

Influence the powerful, go to Davos summit, send shareholders to AGM of Shell, BP, Exxon to ask policy questions aligned with Cof E ethical investment

I have been involved in XR since August and was actively involved in October’s rebellion.  I am deeply drawn to XR due to its mission, approach and its ability to bring people together in common cause to advocate for meaningful action on climate change.  

I recognise that XR is an autonomous and decentralised network and that it is a network that is rapidly expanding, both of which are wonderful things that add to the power of XR, as well as being challenging at times.  For me, the most challenging part lies in XR’s participant base and the reasons underpinning that.

XR’s participant base spans all ages and is very inclusive of people with disabilities, which is a very beautiful thing to witness and be a part of, however, it is also is disproportionately white and middle class.  Whilst there are undoubtedly external obstacles for participation by working class people and people of colour, such as income levels, amount of free time, ability to pay for child care and the need focus on other more immediate issues regarding employment, crime, discrimination and housing, there are also internal obstacles to participation, which XR needs to address.

I have noticed that since XR came under considerable criticism for this after April’s rebellion, particularly with regards to people of colour, the network has done a lot to remedy this, through the provision of oppression and decolonisation workshops and increased focus on climate justice in local actions in the UK and in supporting networks in the Global South.  This is incredibly positive and reflects the willingness and ability of the network to engage constructively with criticism that it receives.  I also believe however that the network needs to go further to embed social justice within its very core.  

If we truly want to see a world that acts effectively to the climate crisis we are facing, we need that action to be underpinned by a recognition that its impact is most catastrophic for economically marginalised communities and people of colour and therefore those communities must be at the heart of any action.  In my opinion, our vision, why we rebel, strategy, structure, principle and values, and demands (hereafter XR ethos) do not sufficiently embody social justice and yet we need to be the change we want to see in the world.  References are made in some of these to oppression, colonialism, slavery etc. but these need to go further.  There are references to “poverty,” for example, which seeks to put the blame on marginalised communities, rather than on the established elite, for the pernicious nature of capitalism.  There is also a section on “our interaction with the police” and yet nowhere do we acknowledge that the police have traditionally acted and continue to act as a brutal, sometimes murderous force of racist oppression and that our interactions with them need to be guided by that, amongst other things.

I am curious to know the demographic make-up of the people who developed XR’s ethos.  I would imagine (and may of course be wrong) that it was not very diverse and so cannot accurately and fully represent the experiences and voices of oppressed communities.  

It is therefore unsurprising to me that during XR rebellions and actions, there are often incidences that create further network-related barriers for participation by working class people and people of colour.  In October’s rebellion, for example, I was most struck and upset by (and I’m sure there are many more incidences of which I am not aware):

·       XR participants leaving flowers for the police, singing “we love you” to the police, engaging the police unnecessarily in friendly conversation etc.  This is grossly insensitive to the reality of many people of colour in this country who are routinely harassed by the police, disproportionately arrested, suffer violence and/or are murdered by the police.  By engaging in this type of behaviour, which is widespread across the network, XR is condoning and fraternising with a structural system of oppression.  XR can still hold true to its principles of non-violent direct action and no blaming or shaming (at an individual level), without fraternising with the police.

·       Arrestees being celebrated.  Whilst arrestees should undoubtedly be supported throughout the process, celebrating their arrest is, in my opinion, again insensitive to the lived experiences of many people of colour who are stopped and searched and/or arrested often in a discriminatory, brutal and undignified way.  This is nothing to celebrate and XR celebrating their arrestees (we can be grateful and supportive without celebrating) is wilfully and harmfully oblivious to the people who experience structural oppression through arrest  - and throughout law enforcement and the legal system. 

·       The Animal Rebellion action at Billingsgate Fish Market and XR swarms that operate in areas largely used by taxi drivers (e.g. by Charring Cross station entrance).  This targets individuals, who may be working independently, at an economic level and shows no concern for the financial impact that this may have on people, particularly those with lower income.  

These actions and behaviours are rooted in white, middle class privilege.  I have no doubt that this is both because social justice is not truly and meaningfully embedded in XR’s vision, why we rebel, strategy, structure, principle and values, and demands and because XR’s demographic is predominantly white and middle class.  If we work on addressing the former, I believe we can address the latter by removing barriers to participation.

It is my proposal that XR form a People’s Assembly for people of colour and a People’s Assembly for working class/economically marginalised people to review and amend XR’s vision, why we rebel, strategy, structure, principle and values, and demands and/or make decisions on any area that is relevant and necessary for ensuring social justice is at the core of why XR exists, how we operate and what we want to achieve.  This in turn should inform our future actions and rebellions to ensure that challenging structural oppression is at the heart of our climate activism.

I have no doubt that this process would be beneficial for many marginalised communities but feel that given much of the criticism levelled at XR over the past few months, perhaps this is where we need to start.

I should name here that I am a white, middle class, British woman, which is inherently problematic for the reasons named above.  I do not know how to resolve this tension and so can only name it.

Love and rage!

Beautifully put Skye