Friday 8 January 2010

Final Message from the Streets

Convergence Space: The People's Assembly



Activists gather outside the fences of the Bella Center to hold the People's Assembly.

On the morning of the 16th December, 2009, I cycled through a snowstorm to meet up with my affinity group – the Santa Swarm – to participate in the Bike Bloc, part of the global day of direct actions against the UN Climate talks being held in the Bella Center. The motto of the Bloc was to “put the fun between your legs”, and the Bloc formed part of the protests in Copenhagen. Resistance consisted of the Blue Bloc ( a police-approved march that would culminate in the People’s Assembly [see below]}; the Green Bloc ( a mobile demonstration following its own logic); the Bike Bloc ( a series of mobile swarms (affinity groups) on bikes; and an Autonomous Bloc who would pursue their own tactics.

The main purpose was for the Blue Bloc to march to the Bella Center and hold a people’s assembly, by which global southern delegates at the UN climate talks would disrupt the talks and make a mass walk-out to join the protestors on the outside in a people’s assembly. Here there would be a convergence of mass movements from the global south; NGOs’; government representatives from poor global southern states; and direct actionists. There were few Unions however. The people’s assembly was to be a show of solidarity between Global North and Global South activists. However, unsurprisingly 200 delegates were stopped from leaving the Bella Center and were then not allowed back in. Meanwhile legal protesters were met with pepper spray and police violence.

On reflection, mixing direct action with the people’s assembly seemed like a strategic mistake. Symbolically powerful, if it had worked, but in a sense we were all seduced by this particular narrative. It would have been more effective to have conducted direct action but to have had the UN delegates announce to the media the day before that they were going to boycott the talks on the 16th in order to come to the Klimaforum (where the alternative climate justice workshops, talks, films etc were taking place) in order to have a people’s assembly.

Naomi Klein and Michael Hardt (amongst others) were there and there was a lot of talk about this being the next wave of a global movement, building on the alter-globalisation mobilisations. No doubt there is a wave rising, but it appears to be one of overlapping, interacting, competing, and resourced networks rather than a coherent 'movement of movements'.

Convergence space: Indymedia




The indymedia center at Solidaritets Huset. One of a range of convergence spaces set up around Copenhagen to house and feed activists; construct bicycles; provide information; and produce media.

Thursday 7 January 2010

Message from the Corporate State



Climate Justice protests were largely peaceful and law abiding. However, the levels of police violence, provocation and intimidation were excessive. On the Climate Justice demonstration on 12th December 2009, 100,000 people marched demanding major systemic change rather than climate change. The police waded into the march, split off a section of the crowd and arrested them en masse irrespective of whether they had committed anything illegal or not (usually they had not). There were 968 arrests with virtually no-one charged. Activists were handcuffed and forced to sit on the ground in cold temperatures and in uncomfortable positions, Guantanamo style, for hours. Activists were also held en masse in cages. There were incidents of police pepper-spraying activists while they were in the cages, because they had the temerity of sing to keep their spirits up. Elsewhere, activist convergence spaces were raided by police and hundreds of activists detained. The autonomous district of Cristiana – where Reclaim Power had organised a range of legal events and meetings – was surrounded by police, and tear gassed. The place was shut down with free movement in or out prohibited. The Candy factor – where the Bike Bloc were repairing and constructing bicycles for the global day of action on the 16th December - was raided by police and those dangerous terrorist weapons, bicycles, were confiscated. Legal marches were pepper-sprayed. The message was clear. Buy the Hopenhagen brand or you will be punished.

The Message from the Streets

Wednesday 6 January 2010

Hopenhagen: the business of hope




In the square opposite Tivoli gardens in Copenhagen, a giant illuminated globe slowly turns. Superimposed on the map of the earth, a tally of the global virtual protesters that have signed up to give hope a chance at the UN climate talks. A stage has been set up for bands and a guest appearance from the Yes men. Green illuminated booths explain the dynamics of climate change and renewable energy. Go to the Hopenhagen website and learn about the ‘The business of hope’. “Hopenhagen is built on more than just wishful thinking. In fact, there are already companies out there today that are committed to change. Our corporate citizens are doing more than just supporting the movement. They're incorporating it into their business practices”. Businesses such as Coca Cola; Siemens; and German software corporation, SAP. Sponsors of the Hopenhagen greenwash initiative.