Grand Rapids Anarchists

Anarchist Black Bloc at COP15 Protest

A week ago, we posted a video about the protests in Copenhagen that were planned for outside of the United Nations Climate Conference. Since the protests kicked off this week, anarchists—as the video said they would—have tried a number of ways to shift the focus from “climate change” (i.e. focusing on false technological “solutions” to “fix” the problem) to capitalism and the state.

Anarchists participated in a large march on Saturday as part of an anti-capitalist contingent. The contingent—many of whom were dressed in black bloc attire—attacked a few symbols of corporate and government power (several bank windows were smashed and firecrackers were thrown at the Danish foreign ministry) before being cut-off and cornered by police who arrested over a 1,000 protestors (few were actually charged after being detained). True to form, the media and the state has been using these arrests as a way to minimize the gravity of the environmental destruction that is happening. Rather than face up to the impending ecological apocalypse, the debate is focusing on how to preserve the status quo—albeit with some fancy new technologies—rather than addressing the destruction of the earth.

Anarchists have participated in all areas of the protests, including a “No Borders” march this week as well as actions aimed at breaching the security perimeter to the COP15 conference yesterday. The actions yesterday were billed as “Reclaim Power” and were intended to open space up for those denied access to the meetings and for those groups were given access but whose voices have not been heard (see “Reclaim Power! Action at COP15” for an overview of the events). The actions—which were organized by Climate Justice Action—were met by repression, although the “People’s Assembly” happened with activists marching on the conference joining up with those who walked out.

In all of the protests during COP15, the authorities in Denmark have utilized a variety of repressive measures to silence dissent including baton charges, chemical weapons, targeting so-called “leaders”, and random arrests and detentions. Of course, for anarchists, this should be yet another example of the coercive nature of the state—even so-called liberal social democracies are willing to engage in extreme repression to preserve the status quo. However, you know repression is bad when even mainstream groups are willing to criticize it.

Elsewhere in Europe, anarchists burned down a Shell gas station in Sweden. The communiqué in part stated:

We see no other solution to the situation that industrial capitalism has put us in, than burning down gas-stations and all other monuments holding up this system. We are living in a socio-ecological crisis, and it will remain until we remove it’s cause.

Protests will wind down this week (see Indymedia.dk for news on the protests), world leaders will pat themselves on their backs for a job well done, and the Earth will keep on dying.

Props to those who resisted.