In the summer of 2019, I remember watching on the news a big pink boat blocking traffic in the centre of London. It was the focus of a protest by a group called Extinction Rebellion (XR) and their action was instrumental in our government declaring a Climate Emergency. Like many others I also started on a road of understanding about the impacts of global warming and its cause, the burning of fossil fuels.
That summer I attended Greenbelt, a Christian festival of music, art and seminar. I noticed an organisation there with a similar logo to XR, a circle representing the earth and an hourglass representing that time was running out, but it also had a crucifix at the top. This was Christian Climate Action, CCA.
It was a ‘burning bush moment’ for me that stopped me in my tracks and set me on a new route. I joined XR and CCA to protest.
I wrote about my first experience in London: “We gather in Regents Park, a sea of flags fluttering in the morning breeze. A long banner is thrust into my hand and the hands of three others who look as hesitant as I feel. We are beckoned forward, we emerge from tree cover and stride out into the traffic at Horse Guards Parade, the car driver looks as surprised as I am when everything stops. Then sounds the refrain of “Extinction Rebellion, Extinction Rebellion!”.
We owe much to those first rebellions in 2019 and to the bravery of normal people who took to the streets to protest and were prepared to give up their liberty to ensure roads were held for days, not hours, to draw attention to our warming planet. Their sacrifice resulted in the first declarations of Climate Emergencies and changed the conversation to “What can we do to protect sacred creation?”