Green New Deal Rising

A new kid on the environmental protest block

An article in the paper at the tale end of last week featured an analysis of what the reporter called a "new wave of activism".

I've blogged before about the M25 protestors. See here: Another week, another example of direct action | tutor2u

As the paper said:

"Insulate Britain, one of the newest groups, has already had a big impact with dozens of people arrested and condemnation from ministers, police and angry motorists.

Their tactics have been criticised, particularly after a woman was hospitalised after a collision near the scene of one of their protests this week. The cause of the crash is unknown. The transport secretary, Grant Shapps, said on Friday: “This is dangerous and counterproductive. We all agree that climate change must be tackled, but this sort of behaviour achieves nothing, puts drivers at risk and increases pollution. I expect the police to take swift action to clear the roads.”

Zoe Cohen, a spokesperson for the group and a former NHS worker and activist with XR, issued a “deep and genuine apology” to everyone who had been affected by the hold-ups, but said the failure of the government meant the protesters had no choice."

Source: Motorway blockades and green new deal crusaders: the UK’s new climate activists | Climate crisis | The Guardian

On the subject of the protests backfiring, that great bastion of journalism The Sun on Sunday really laid into the M25 protestors yesterday, labelling them, variously, as "eco toffs", and "Insulate Idiots", and called for increased police powers to more effectively deal with the disruption they caused.

What is more interesting is the arrival on the protest scene of a group called Green New Deal Rising.

I suspect this relative newbie might appeal to A Level Politics students because of some of the stunts they have pulled, essentially calling out a number of high profile politicians. According to its Twitter feed @GNDRising: "We are a movement of young people fighting to stop the climate crisis and build a world in which we can thrive. Are you with us?"

It certainly looks like they've got a better chance of getting the public on their side than Insulate Britain, with the COP26 summit in Glasgow just several weeks ago. Whether they will have any impact on the current government, however, seems far fetched.

But, for the time being, it may well be worth students looking at the group as a case study. Dare I say it, students might even want to get involved.

Check out their website where: We’re rising up for climate justice - GND Rising