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The New Protest Culture

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It's generally safe to say that most of us have been concerned about the environment for a long time, so why are we expanding aviation and building new coal-fired power stations? Have the lines of communication in our proudly democratic society broken down?

A few months ago I interviewed Tamsin Omond, activist and campaigner for Plane Stupid and key figure in the recently established Climate Sufragettes. When we spoke, Tamsin was on bail after being arrested, with four others, for climbing onto the roof of the House of Commons in protest of government aviation expansion plans.

On Monday 13 October, Tamsin was arrested for breaching bail conditions during not-so-subtle attempt to enter Parliament that was the Climate Rush. She was released the following day, with tighter bail conditions.

But Tamsin was only one of some six hundred people who attended that event. Only one of some six hundred people who, more notably, took direct action that day. And so we wonder, is this becoming a growing trend, this involvement of the 'normal' men and womenfolk in the environmental movement so traditionally reserved for 'tree-huggers' and 'eco-warriors'?

During the hearing that resulted in Tamsin's most recent release, District Judge Michael Snow spoke of the need for 'proportionality' in such cases, and his reluctance to refuse bail to someone who was "simply exercising her democratic right to protest". The word 'democratic' is key here. The idea of democracy is perhaps the key to explaining why middle-class fathers and middle-aged ladies are donning sashes and chanting slogans all of a sudden.

Watch the video 'The New Protest Culture', and have a think... What will you do?

Posted at 11:42 on 23 October 2008 by Hazel Cullen