Climate protest group Extinction Rebellion is changing disruption tactics such as breaking windows and sticking to public places by 2023, it has announced.
A New Year’s resolution to “prioritize detention assistance and relationships over roadblocks” was embodied in a Jan. 1 statement titled “Let’s Quit,” which said “the tactics constantly evolving are a necessary approach.”
The group admitted the move would be controversial. Other environmental protest groups, such as Just Stop Oil, have stepped up direct action, notably by throwing paint at masterpieces of art.
The government introduced new legal restrictions on protests after a wave of direct action by climate protesters shut down highways and other infrastructure. The introduction of the Policing, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 gave police more powers to clamp down on disruptive protests. The new public order bill is to introduce offenses of “blocking” and “interference with key national infrastructure”, punishable by prison terms. There could be new “prevention of serious disruption orders” aimed at protesters “determined to cause repeated disruption to the public”.
Activists with XR, which launched in 2018, became known for civil disobedience, from planting trees in Parliament Square to sticking to the gates of Buckingham Palace. Some smashed windows at the bank’s headquarters and at News UK, the publisher of the Sun and Times newspapers. But more people disliked the group than disliked them, according to the YouGov poll.
“In an age where speaking and acting are criminalized, building collective power, growing stronger in numbers and thriving through bridge-building is a radical act,” the group said.
“XR is committed to including everyone in this work and not leaving anyone behind, because everyone has a role to play. This year, we prioritize detention assistance and relationships over lockdowns as we stand together and become impossible to ignore.”
Meanwhile, dire warnings about global warming continue – 2022 was the UK’s warmest on record, the Met Office has said, with the 10 warmest years on record since 2003 UN Secretary-General António Guterres has warned: “We are heading for levels of global warming that destroy the economy.”
XR is calling for 100,000 people to “leave the locks, glue and paint behind” and surround the Houses of Parliament on April 21.
“What is most needed now is to disrupt the abuse of power and imbalance, to achieve a transition to a just society that works together to end the fossil fuel era,” the XR statement said. “Our politicians, addicted to greed and inflated by profits, will not do it without pressure.”
The government has said that “in recent years, guerrilla tactics used by a small minority of protesters have caused a disproportionate impact on the working majority seeking to go about their daily lives, costing taxpayers millions and putting lives at risk “. .
The most important stories on the planet. Get all the environmental news of the week: the good, the bad and the essential
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertisements and content funded by third parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
XR also called for greater collaboration between different protest groups, although he admitted that this may be “uncomfortable or difficult”.
“The conditions for change in the UK have never been better – it’s time to seize the moment,” he said. “The confluence of multiple crises offers us a unique opportunity to mobilize and go beyond traditional divisions.
“No one can do it alone, and it is the responsibility of all of us, not just one group… As our rights are stripped away and those who speak out and are most at risk silenced, we must find common ground and unite to survive.”