Thread by @IsabelleLetell1

6 police officers coming at 6 sitting rebels.
... What's happening next?
*Play scary music*

😄Yes, I am a normal rather young rather educated mother who never broke the law and I did this.

And here's why I will do it again.

/Thread

Yes I did take part of this double blockade organized by @ExtinctionR_SV We were about 100 rebels blocking two places in the round about. Here's some info about this event - that has not been reported by any media (!!!!!).
klimataktion.se/2019/08/19/akt…

@ExtinctionR_SV We went on a zebra crossing and just stayed there. For our security, a bike with several trailers was placed between us & the cars - some drivers can forget we are human beings - while activists ran from car to car distributing delicious home-made cakes & explaining the action.

@ExtinctionR_SV Many people around showed support, some drivers showed thumbs up, some did not open their windows to the activists and a small - but loud - minority (2) went out of their cars and started to yell at us... apparently one driver ended up hitting a cop! 😰

@ExtinctionR_SV Please note this action took place a saturday afternoon and that the blockade held 20 minutes. The minority of angry people just instantly ran out of their car immediately when we arrived unable to listen anything else. Ok not cool to be stopped... but little perspective please?

@ExtinctionR_SV We are in a climate emergency that nobody is remotely starting to take seriously in our government. One year ago: scientists said we needed immediate drastic actions to avert worst case scenario: we are talking of the collapse of our civilization! Children today have no future!

@ExtinctionR_SV How do we stop this madness? Because we signed petitions, voted, did demonstrations, we committed in multiple groups of activists & did multiples types of actions. What has happened? N.O.T.H.I.N.G
And the tragic thing is that most people don't even get the implications of this!

@ExtinctionR_SV They don't because while there is indeed some papers/news/documentaries here and there in media about the crisis, the vast majority of media space is dedicated to nonsense, advertisement & content that feed people's cognitive dissonance & lack of understanding of the emergency...

@ExtinctionR_SV this... when they don't serve us pure evil denial and "fake expertise" intended to sustain big corporations' profits to prevent consumers to actually start to consume responsibly. The result is a radical assault on democracy.

@ExtinctionR_SV People don't even realize there is an existential threat on their head! And yes, I am absolutely sure that if we would start to really inform - and stop misinforming - people, there would be a big majority of people supporting immediate drastic climate actions!

@ExtinctionR_SV But why sitting in the street you absurd hippie? Well, first, thanks for the compliment 💃, but I don't think I really belong to hippie people, sadly I am more that kind of not so fun people: 🤓
Anyway, I sat & will sit again in the streets, and will civil disobey again because

@ExtinctionR_SV ... it works!!!! See how the climate awareness of people in the UK has majorely been lifted post rebellion week, compared to pre-rebellion week? The thing is civil disobedience is a lot about TELLING THE TRUTH. Is there another to genuinely say: this has to stop...

@ExtinctionR_SV ...but by stopping it, physically, with your body, while accepting potential costs for this: being carried away by the police, being arrested, etc... Is there another way make visible "our rules are wrong"... but by choosing to break them? Now of course, for this to work, we need

@ExtinctionR_SV to be many. We need to have you as one of us!
... so our blockade can hold longer, so media start to be forced to talk about us. Again and again and again. Because this is an emergency. We have to behave like it is. And you know what? it will make you feel good:

@ExtinctionR_SV being with rebels completely attuned to the reality of the crisis, singing together, being in this together. Not to mention Swedish police here is quite nice with us: they didn't even arrested us! ... yes they scream "move!" ("flytta på dig!") and yes they have literally learnt

@ExtinctionR_SV to use their voice and body to scare us. But once you understand this as their role and you know that they actually do not try at any point to harm us in any way... then it is just about knowing what you have to do: the right thing. 💚🌍✊
So will you sit with us next time?

@ExtinctionR_SV The worst that can happen is that you get arrested with some other rebels...
It sounds to me like a pretty small thing to do if this can help us in any way to avert climate collapse! 😰

So yes I will redo this again. For my kids. For all kids.
I will #RebelForLove