The uprising against extinction

Environmental activists in Germany block roads: they are unhappy with the attitude of the government to environmental problems

“There is no place for experiments: a climatic crisis is a game of Russian roulette.” With such statements, the grouping “rebellion against extinction” (Eng. - Extination Rebellion) calls for its supporters to action. The movement recently the beginning of the second stage of climatic protests in Germany. By blocking transport hubs, activists intend to prevent road traffic in Berlin until the authorities fulfill their requirements.

The group arose in the UK in 2018. Its goal is #block (German. - #berlinblockieen) is still unacceptable: in the central square of the Tirgarten park around the Victory column, as well as several thousand people gathered in Potsdam Square in recent days. Despite the police attempts to intervene, on October 9, the protest spread to the Marshalov bridge, through which activists missed only pedestrians.

The student movement “Friday for the Future” (Fridays for Future, “new” recently talked about it in detail), which previously caused a big resonance in Germany, did not manifest itself so radically. For the sake of weekly demonstrations, which were called by the Swedish activist Greta Tunberg, thousands of German schoolchildren on Fridays missed classes. According to various surveys, from half to two -thirds of German voters welcomed protests of student activists. The federal government responded with a “climatic package”, which, in particular, provides for a commission fee from enterprises for the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

But the Extination Rebellion, like most environmental activists in Germany, is dissatisfied with the “climatic package” and makes specific requirements to the federal government:

1. "To tell the truth about the global environmental crisis."

2. “Act immediately,” proclaiming an “extraordinary climatic position”.

3. Create a civilian council to discuss the problems of ecology.

Despite the radicality of the requirements, the behavior of the group remains moderate: activists tirelessly emphasize that non -violence is the main principle of their actions.

During demonstrations, they strive for a peaceful dialogue with the police, avoiding provocations.

“Our requirements imply only an increase in democracy,” explains Annemari Botsk, a representative of the movement. According to her, the “electoral democracy”, supported by political careerists, is ineffective in the fight against the climatic crisis and its consequences.

However, many Germans are concerned about their economic position. From eleven to thirteen million Germans, they go to work daily because of the city, so a third of all workers in Germany rely on cars, buses and trains daily. In cases where they cannot get to work due to strikes or demonstrations, the loyalty of society to protests drops sharply. This showed, for example, a six -day strike of German railway workers in May 2015. She was very angry with the townsfolk.

So now in Germany a wave of public anger may rise if regular police operations against Extination Rebellion will be spent on too much effort and money.

But even if the German workers massively join the “uprising against extinction”, the welfare of Germany as a whole will be at the stake. Almost a million Germans are busy in the automotive industry. And taking into account all professions related to auto -industry, the number of workers will increase to six million. If Germany stops, for example, the production of diesel cars, as required by radical environmental activists, there will be many jobs under the threat of reduction.

The attitude of the Germans themselves to the problem of climate and economic development is contradictory. According to an ARD television survey, 63% of adult citizens believe that environmental protection should be preferred before economic growth. Another survey shows that 61% of the Germans is very concerned about climate change.

Despite this, a significant number of Germans are not ready to change their lifestyle. The vast majority of Germany’s citizens say in surveys that it is especially important for them to “maintain flexibility, independence and comfort during trips”, and such wishes are difficult to combine with the rejection of a personal car. Two -thirds said that in the future they did not want to reduce air travel, regardless of whether they fly once a year, or are regular customers of bonus airline programs. 72% of the Germans argue that Greta Tunberg did not affect or affected a small extent on their attitude to the ecology.

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