In this episode, I speak with Clare Farrell, co-founder and spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion (XR) — "an international social movement that aims to drive radical change, through nonviolent resistance in order to minimise species extinction and avert climate breakdown.”* This discussion includes an overview of the principles and the proposed demands of this movement, the realities of the global implications of climate change and environmental disintegration and how it informs the activism of those involved in the movement, and the ground-level organizing Extinction Rebellion is engaged with in communities across the United Kingdom, and internationally as well.
In this discussion with Clare, we examine her role within this movement, as well as look at some of the recent high-profile acts of direct action and civil disobedience organized by XR in the United Kingdom this last year, and how these actions highlight the broadening awareness more and more people now have of the implications of global climate change and environmental disintegration into the near and distant future. I ask Clare to elaborate on the principles and proposed demands of this movement, and how this rebellion against extinction (of both human and non-human life) is a step toward publicly and politically addressing the likely near-term extinction of human life due to anthropogenic climate change and ecological collapse. In spite of this reality, XR means to generate action against, as well as directly confront, the political and economic forces of our global society head on, in spite of our dire prospects. Extinction Rebellion has hit a nerve in the UK and abroad, as can be seen in much of the media coverage XR has been getting, and the awareness and action XR has generated has created a means (one of many) for people to grieve and act meaningfully in light of the reality we are implicitly a part of — a reality that deeply informs the nature of XR’s origin, activism, principles, and demands. We discuss this and more in this episode.
Clare Farrell is a fashion designer and founding member and spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion, a grassroots movement founded in the UK in 2018. The main mission of XR is to address the global ecological and climate crisis through nonviolent direct action and protest. While XR was founded in the UK, its impact and reach is global.
*Source: http://bit.ly/XRwikipedia
Episode Notes:
- Learn more about Extinction Rebellion at their website: https://rebellion.earth
- Extinction Rebellion has gone international: https://xrebellion.org
- Extinction Rebellion's high-profile actions have been featured in major media publications, including The Guardian: http://bit.ly/2STuWX2
- Follow XR on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ExtinctionRebellion
- Follow XR on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ExtinctionR
- This episode features the songs “(What A) Wonderful World” and “(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons” by Sam Cooke from the album The Best Of Sam Cooke.
