Calma writes: "Arrests are underway as environmental protesters kicked off what they dubbed a 'global rebellion' for the climate today. Protests organized by the group Extinction Rebellion are planned throughout 60 cities over the week."
Climate march. (photo: John Keeble/Getty Images)
07 October 19
Protesters chained themselves to cars and did yoga on a blocked-off bridge
rrests are underway as environmental protesters kicked off what they dubbed a “global rebellion” for the climate today. Protests organized by the group Extinction Rebellion are planned throughout 60 cities over the week.
There have been more than 135 arrests so far in London, although Extinction Rebellion said as many as 1,000 people have volunteered for arrest. In Sydney, 30 people have been arrested, including four protesters under the age of 16, The Guardian reports. Hundreds more were removed from a sit-in blocking a main road, according to the BBC. The actions are expected to continue across the US.
Multiple #ExtinctionRebellion protestors have been arrested in the Sydney CBD pic.twitter.com/2SdTUMqzKL
— Gus McCubbing (@GusMcCubbing) October 7, 2019
The actions were organized by Extinction Rebellion, a movement founded in the UK last year. The group rose to international prominence after nearly shutting down London with its demonstrations in April. The group says its strategy is to use nonviolent civil disobedience “in an attempt to halt mass extinction and minimise the risk of social collapse” due to climate change. That strategy included drenching the Treasury in Westminster with fake blood on October 3rd. On October 7th, protesters chained themselves to two cars blocking Westminster’s Victoria Embankment. Video shows police cutting protesters free from the cars.
Extinction Rebellion spray 1800 litres of fake blood outside the Treasury, which they say is failing to tackle climate change.
— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) October 3, 2019
But a malfunction caused them to lose control of the hose which flailed across the road before it could be brought under control. pic.twitter.com/5duzoSWCNa
Police are cutting two Extinction Rebellion protesters out of a car blocking off Victoria Embankment in #Westminster.
— Helen Hoddinott (@helenhoddinott) October 7, 2019
They’re locked to a piece of concrete that’s lodged in the vehicle.
The group’s planning to take over 12 sites around Parliament for the next two weeks. pic.twitter.com/QanqTm4eNc
Organizers expect today’s London protests to draw five times as many people as the ones in April. Demonstrators occupying the Lambeth Bridge practiced yoga. While others were cuffed and taken away, onlookers documented on social media. Extinction Rebellion planned to protest in 12 sites around Westminster, each one representing a different cause like “Global Food Justice” and “Peace.” Berlin, Paris, Amsterdam, Madrid, and New York City were also major targets.
Protestors from #ExtinctionRebellion now doing yoga on occupied Westminster Bridge. pic.twitter.com/dvYfCnlO8O
— James Bickerton (@JBickertonUK) October 7, 2019
“It’s the Western countries, the European countries, North America that have got us into this mess. And so, personally speaking, I think we have a big responsibility to try and get us out of that,” Jonathan Mintram, regional liaison coordinator with Extinction Rebellion in the UK, told The Verge. Cumulatively, since the Industrial Revolution, the United States has contributed the most planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions and remains the second biggest polluter after China.
