Extinction rebellion protester, ask me anything

[Market1]

I support extinction rebellion protests, ask me anything you like - ( I have a very thick skin, nothing you say will upset me)

Why do you or the people you support enjoy making life hard for ordinary folk?

Have you been involved in any direct action, and if so, might we have heard about it?

We don't enjoy making life hard for normal people

Seems weird behaviour from the outside. What do you actually think is being achieved? And has anything been achieved? Interested to hear of anything because I genuinely know nothing about extinction rebellion except a few headlines.

Yes, I have been involved in a lot of direct action, and been arrested 3 times. I expect you would have heard of it, all the protests I have been involved in have been in London.

Yes, a huge amount is achieved, it is very very effective.

We have people in all sorts of places and in all sorts of companies and businesses, so we know when our actions are changing policies and incentivising more actions to protect the environment, even if the motivation is to avoid being our next target, rather than to protect the planet.

Your protests are just turning people against your cause. Do you realize that?

Some people, but all research we have indicates we are turning more people towards our cause.

We have a lot of popular support, not all of it public, but opinion polls and other surveys indicate that we have more than enough support for politicians to take note of.

What about when a woman was trapped on the motorway dying of a stroke and her son couldn't get her to hospital? How do you think that's anything but making life hard for people?

If you’ve ever stopped an emergency vehicle from getting through, I really hope someone does that to you one day when it’s you, or your family or friend.

Protesting can't be an activity that sits in the background by definition. You have to make a stir or no one sits up.
I feel frustrated that the people with power and influence don't seem to care. In my work I support people with little resources of their own, many of them are really worried about climate change and will be affected by it (flooding worries mostly) and feel powerless.
Does your movement have any notable people with big resources or clout in it,?

We arrange transport past blockages for anyone in need of reaching hospital, as long as they make themselves known to us

But we are not really an organisation with a member list, as people understand it, so anyone can do anything under the extinction rebellion flag, as it were, without having any contact with others working under the same flag, so I can't categorically say everyone is following these principles - they should be, to use the flag, but there is no control over that, or limits to the people using the flag

I can only say people who have not adhered to the main principles will get no legal support from ER if they are taken to court

Can you link to the research please?

I'd be interested to read it.

Thanks.

I really appreciate what you do. Takes courage and integrity, and there's nothing more important to campaign for. I can't understand why people don't want a better future for themselves and their families.

@Dombasle Stop being so silly, that's a physical threat.
OP, do you have any scientists helping with the research side of things?

No, never, and I would never agree with that happening, however, the number of people killed by climate change is millions, ( literally MILLIONS) of times higher than the number of people likely to die in a ER protest.

I have been prevented from attending a chemotherapy appointment by an environmental protest ( not ER, a different organisation) and I understand the frustration.

However, I am just one person getting medical treatment, and the problem of environmental damage affects not only the future of billions of people, but also the future of billions of animals and plants as well

Exactly what research shows that your methods are effective?

Genuine question. I support your cause and think you are very brave, but I worry that you're not actually helping.

Like @user9630721458 , I admire what you do. I may even join you when I retire. On a global level, there’s no more important cause.

I think XR lost a lot of public respect when they pissed about annoying ordinary folk. Not helpful. You cannot gain public support when you negativity impact people's lives. You're targeting the wrong people.

Oh and I know someone who does a lot of public "stunts" for XR and he's paid. Paid for the event, and paid for his time when arrested. He's also a twat.

When was the last time you flew or travelled by car? How often to do you fly? Where to and why?

Do you get deliveroo and Uber eat deliveries? Do you take taxis?

Basically how green is your life?

Hard to say! Most people are anonymous, and we only know each other by code names, however there are people on the boards of some big internationals, particularly banks, which is how we can assess how our actions influence policies. And there is money for legal support for anyone arrested, a lot of money, and very specialised support..

A lot of people I come across in the organisation are retired professionals, doctors, teachers, lawyers, bankers, politicians, - some have influence, some have money. A lot of people I come across are very young, below the age of graduation, and unlikely to have any influence or money at that stage of life- and many of course are somewhere in between.

Anyone involved in our protests is well aware of the risks they are taking, and prepared to be the victim of violence, and to suffer serious injury in the course of fighting for this cause.

If you have children or grandchildren, how would you explain to them in the future that you contribution to protecting their world and their future was to dump noxious substances or kick protestors in the ribs?

I’m convinced ER and just stop oil are fakes, designed by Big Oil to pit us against real climate action and keep their bottom lines healthy. Whether this is true or not, your foolish actions make the very real climate emergency seem like tinfoil hats.