At 10am, in Zuccotti Park, 100s of climate activists gathered in preparation for a mass civil disobedience demonstration.

   Most were not yet aware of the exact target, but climate justice and mass civil disobedience were promised - so people stood out in the cold with soaking shoes and listened carefully to the instructions.Slowly, the crowd grew bigger, as personalities such as Peter Kalmus and Rose Abramoff with Scientist Rebellion, Lisa Fithian, Bad-Ass Grandma, and many more joined the ranks. Many were going to be first timers for arrest for climate. Some were seasoned veterans from Occupy Wallstreet, or before. All had the common purpose, to raise the awareness and put pressure on the establishment for climate justice.
   As editor-in-chief, it was my plan to not be arrested on this day, but support the rebels who would be take the risks. The target was announced, the Federal Reserve Building.
When you are marching and singing through the streets, and don’t know the area very well, time goes by very quickly. It wasn’t long before we were at the Fed Building, the police following us the whole way. Along the way, police ordered protesters out of the streets, and threatened with arrests. But when we arrived at the Fed, that’s when arrests really started.

   Two or three at a time, climate protesters were zip tied and taken away to police busses and vans around the corner, to be taken to the station. This editor-in-chief also committed to arrest, being taken in after snapping a few photos for the paper. Five hours later, I was out and enjoying pizza. In an hour, Peter was debuting a new film, “Arresting Science.” It seemed appropriate, so I went there and watched the film.

   After the film was over, Bill McKibben and Peter Kalmus gave a Q/A. It wasn’t the normal kind of Q/A, as Peter let us know that his job is more at risk than ever due to his getting arrested and that Rose Abramoff had also lost her job due to climate protest.

  I had a chance during the Q/A to ask Peter about the recent Stockholm Resilience Centre update - which has 6 planetary boundaries now being crossed. It also features a massive update to the climate, where radiative forcing is included. This isn't exactly making headlines - so it's strange. Peter says that although climate scientists are scared, it's often hard to express what's happening in their work, and getting into the streets to get heard is sometimes not an option. He didn't go into detail about the radiative forcing, but he mentioned it earlier in the talk that he is studying that as part of his work at NASA. 

   This is climate week in NYC - a whirlwind of sacrifice, emotion, and triumph. See you on the streets. (Or at the meetings).

 

SMALL NUMBERS, BIG IMPACT

hosted by XR NYC

September 28th, 6:30-7:30, EST

Four civil disobedience activists (including one rebel) blocked the road to the Burning Man festival. It generated hundreds of media stories.

Another rebel glued his feet to the floor of Arthur Ashe stadium and stopped a US Open semi-final game for 49 minutes. It generated thousands of media hits worldwide, inserted the topic of climate emergency where it is least seen - the sports pages.

Would you like to be a part of this new wave of climate actions, where a small number of brave people can make a big impact?

Come learn from these two rebels. It's not hard. It just needs a bit of pluck, a bit of creativity, and a straightforward message.

 

Register for a Zoom link.

 

for other events with XR NYC visit xrebellion.nyc/events

 

 

Join up with Declare Emergency and make Headlines in DC

Join DE This Sunday for a talk about how you can join this exciting group - and start making headlines of your own! Or at least help others do the same.
“What are our responsibilities at this time? Because of the fossil fuel industry, we are facing horrors of a magnitude never before experienced in our existence. Our government continues to lead us to the edge of no return. We must stand up and defend ourselves. No one else is going to do it. It must be us, if we want to live.
Our methods must be disruptive, and they must be nonviolent. Our actions are evidence-based, credible, and we have a plan. The only thing missing at this point in time is YOU!”
Register now at declareemergency.org/events