Above Photo: Extinction Rebellion protesters in London. (Photo: Jess Nyman, Twitter)
“One day I want to have kids. But I don’t think I can. I don’t see a future that’s livable at the moment.”
Activists across Europe blocked off major streets and public areas Monday as they called for immediate action from world leaders to deal with the climate crisis.
The movement, Extinction Rebellion (XR), is holding protests across the world from April 15 to 22 for an “International Rebellion” against a climate crisis that is escalating rapidly.
Importantly, XR stresses that it “doesn’t rely on false positivity or hope.”
A London protester bemoaned the fact that she found it unlikely she’d have children due to the climate crisis.
“One day I want to have kids,” said the woman protester. “But I don’t think I can. I don’t see a future that’s livable at the moment.”
“Climate fears stopping me from having children.”
A woman at the Extinction Rebellion protest in London says she doesn’t think she will have children because she worries the planet won’t be “liveable”.
Activists block parts of London, latest here: https://t.co/KltZLRbmyd pic.twitter.com/N6eTiPyyzE
— Sky News (@SkyNews) April 15, 2019
“XR communicates precisely about the climate emergency we face and then asks people to act accordingly,” said the group in a statement announcing the week’s action. “It’s working.”
The protest movement was endorsed by writer and activist George Monbiot in a Guardian column Monday.
“The time for excuses is over,” wrote Monbiot. “The struggle to overthrow our life-denying system has begun.”
“No one is coming to save us. Mass civil disobedience is essential to force a political response.
The time for excuses is over. The struggle to overthrow our life-denying system has begun.” –@GeorgeMonbiot#ExtinctionRebellion #schoolstrike4climate
https://t.co/UDaCut9FBE— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) April 15, 2019
That militant posture is leading to real actions with real consequences.
In London, protesters shut down the Waterloo Bridge and Oxford Circus with marchers and floats.
#ClimateChange protesters from #ExtinctionRebellion block London’s Oxford Circus with boat as part of city wide protest. Protesters attaching themselves to boat. Protests at marble arch, Waterloo Bridge, parliament square as well. pic.twitter.com/kf8houUlDl
— Michael Holmes (@holmescnn) April 15, 2019
#ExtinctionRebellion have just blocked Waterloo Bridge to traffic. Still open to pedestrians and cyclists [ro] pic.twitter.com/RrJ3DnArAh
— BBC London Travel (@BBCTravelAlert) April 15, 2019
Swedish protesters held a die-in to occupy the country’s Parliament.
Swedish Parliament right now #InternationalRebellion pic.twitter.com/6yuyJQCLJu
— XR Sweden (@ExtinctionR_SV) April 15, 2019
The Oberbaum Bridge in Berlin was shut down by protesters as well.
The Oberbaum Bridge, an important connection across the Spree river in central Berlin, is completely blocked by about 200 activists of #ExtinctionRebellion pic.twitter.com/LzP4bzUmcl
— Malte Kreutzfeldt (@MKreutzfeldt) April 15, 2019