Thread by @XRLiberation

💚 Rebels 📢

First weekend of the #InternationalRebellion is here and you may be wondering: “Are our actions on the streets enough to tip the scales?”

Honestly? 🚫 Mass civil disobedience on its own won’t achieve system change.

Intrigued? 👀 Keep reading ⬇️

@ExtinctionR

1/

History (both distant and recent) tells us that we not only need a broad coalition of people, but also of tactics!

And no, that doesn’t just mean many different ways of shutting down the streets... though we have to give credit for the creativity where credit is due 😉

2/

We’ve gathered some of the 🔑 ingredients necessary for making this moment a truly global movement that is for everyone, everywhere 🌎🌍🌏

(We’re sure to have missed loads of important stuff out, so please add your own examples to the thread!)

IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER 🥁🥁🥁

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SELF AWARENESS 1️⃣

@XRebellionUK will not grow if we do not take the time to pause and reflect on our limitations.

Are we listening to @GJRSite telling us some of our current principles are exclusionary and can be detrimental to frontline activism in the Global South?

4/

SELF AWARENESS 2️⃣

Are we listening to @XRDisabledRebel telling us we’re not taking into account the many barriers to their participation?

Are we listening to @RainbowRebellion telling us that not a day goes by when they don’t defend their hard fought-for rights?

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THE COMMUNITY 1️⃣

Who are the pillars of your community; the glue that holds everyone together?

Parents, faith groups, small businesses, local government, charities, tradesmen, libraries, schools, farmers markets.

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THE COMMUNITY 2️⃣

Think about how people in the community come together in times of need. How everyone pitches in to help their neighbors.

Meaningful changes to everyday life require the involvement and support of those who shape our everyday lives.

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CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS

There must be no financial barriers to involvement with the climate justice movement, or to the solutions that spring from it.

If the majority of the population can’t afford join in, then our movement is elitist and the transition will not be just.

8/

INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY 1️⃣

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: XR has joined this fight at the last possible second, and we’ve still got a lot to learn.

Communities on the climate crisis frontlines in the Global South have been doing this work for centuries.

9/

INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY 2️⃣

We should always be following their lead.

What does that look like?

Platforming their fight when the cameras are on us. Sharing our resources – financial and otherwise – with them. Showing up to their marches (when invited, of course!).

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TRADE UNIONS 1️⃣

Workers are the backbone of our society. Without them, none of the essential services we rely on function.

Without then, our cities would literally come to a standstill.

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TRADE UNIONS 2️⃣

Imagine if all of bus drivers went on strike to protest air pollution levels.

Imagine if all of airport staff went on strike to protest unnecessary expansions.

Imagine if all the teachers went on strike to protest lack of meaningful educational resources.

12/

EDUCATION 1️⃣

What are future generations being taught about the causes and consequences of the climate crisis, so they don’t make the same mistakes we made?

Do reading lists present a truly global perspective? Does everyone recognize the signs of bias and misinformation?

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EDUCATION 2️⃣

How is our education system preparing future generations so that they’re not stranded without the necessary practical skills and knowledge?

Are we teaching creative thinking, empathetic communication, non-hierarchical decision making?

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INFORMATION 1️⃣

If we are not well-informed, then we are simply a mob.

Our movement is non-violent, but we must be constantly arming ourselves with the facts in order to continue making the best case for our movement.

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INFORMATION 2️⃣

Are we reading news or opinion pieces? Are we listening to doctors/nurses/scientists/engineers?

And who is presenting this information to wider society? Who are the talking heads people see on TV? Which ambassadors should @ExtinctionR be putting forward?

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CULTURE

We need our worldbuilders and storytellers to help us imagine a better future, to build the impossible right before our eyes.

We need books/music/theatre/films/art to help us process all this information.

We need to tell better stories.

theguardian.com/artanddesign/2…

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LEGISLATION

The gains we make must be enshrined in law.

Our laws must protect the vulnerable and their champions, not the powerful oppressors and exploiters.

We must establish indigenous sovereignty and legal rights for ecosystems to thrive in perpetuity.

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REGENERATIVE CULTURE

Let’s be real: @ExtinctionR is already pretty swell at this bit 🌱🌿

rebellion.earth/act-now/resour…

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Phew 😅 That was a LOT (and definitely not everything).

But good that you’re still here, because we have 1️⃣ final thing to say:

We really do need #EverybodyNow. We’re here because we know that the climate crisis demands urgent action yesterday.

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So, how DO we get everybody on board?

We learn to communicate the meaningful role that every person has to play in achieving system change.

We put our passion, organizational skills and resources to use. We show up for the oppressed and marginalized 👏every👏single👏day.

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This whole system needs to change.

If we all show up in solidarity for those this system has deliberately oppressed and left behind, they will show up for us.

Our fight is their fight.
Their fight is our fight.

#TellTheTruth
#SolidarityNotSilence
#EmpathyRebellion

22/22

@RainbowRebels dammit! 😔

We spell-checked this whole thread about a million times...