Their activists had taken to sticking to roads or airplanes to warn about climate change. Last August they even blocked Tower Bridge, London’s iconic tipping bridge. Extinction Rebellion is now considering other modes of action.
The environmental organization announced on Sunday January 1st that it would suspend the spectacular lockdown actions in the UK they were publicizing. The network of activists, which was founded in 2018 and has since been known for these acts of civil disobedience, prefers to mobilize a large demonstration against the government’s inaction in April.
“This year we’re prioritizing participation over arrests, relationships over roadblocks,” the group said in a press release. He announces that for 2023 he has made the “controversial decision to temporarily move away from disruption to public space as the main tactic”.
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Controversial Actions
Extinction Rebellion recognizes “the power of disruption to sound the alarm” but believes it is “necessary” to move forward, and says it wants above all to “interrupt the abuse of power” by pressuring the political class to use it put an end to fossil fuels. The organization is therefore calling for a large demonstration on April 21 in front of the British Parliament in the hope of bringing 100,000 people together.
Extinction Rebellion’s actions were often controversial, with the group infuriating a section of public opinion, conservative power and much of the press by attacking the public. Many activists were arrested during these events and the government plans to further tighten the right to demonstrate.
At the same time, Extinction Rebellion was overtaken by the emergence of even more radical groups such as Just Stop Oil or Insulate Britain blocking London’s ring road or dousing Van Gogh’s masterpiece The Sunflowers at London’s National Gallery in October.
Also read: Article reserved for our subscribers In the face of the climate catastrophe, British activists are looking for more radical and targeted measures