Standing Up to Fracking in the North of England
I work with Reclaim the Power (RtP), including supporting the community in Lancashire, in the north of England, in their fight against fracking (hydraulic fracturing).
As “Rolling Resistance,” we successfully blockaded a fracking site every working day in July 2017.
In April, May, and June of 2018 the local community followed up with “United Resistance.” There was a different theme for each week: women, unions, Greens, health, faith groups, and more. Reclaim the Power organised a mass action camp, “Block Around the Clock,” and enough people participated that the fracking company was unable to get vehicles in or out of the site for fifty-five hours. We danced, sang, held workshops, and slept out on the busy road. With a bike-powered projector we screened the inspiring Australian film, The Bentley Effect, about community resistance to fracking: .
Here is a short video clip of “Block Around the Clock”:
www.facebook.com/ReclaimThePower/videos/1407953125971120.
For a fuller picture of fracking in the United Kingdom, including footage of RtP actions last year, check out Power Trip: Fracking in the UK, an hour-long film by Undercurrents. It is free to download at www.undercurrents.org/powertrip-fracking.html.
Ireland, Scotland, and Wales have rejected fracking, as have all political parties in England except the ruling Conservatives. The Conservatives want to bypass local democracy and make fracking exempt from planning law, treating it the same as putting up a shed in your garden! 350.org and Friends of the Earth are mobilising to take action on this.
Climate activism makes me confront and discharge a lot of fear. It moves my “mental health” liberation forward.
Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England
Reprinted from the RC e-mail discussion listfor leaders of “mental health” liberation
(Present Time 193, October 2018)