Disagreement within Extinction Rebellion as it supports no candidates
Here is a link to a video I made to complements the article.
Extinction Rebellion (XR) stated they will not support a specific candidate which displeased members arguing they should take a position.
The upcoming general election posed a dilemma to extinction rebellion (XR): the organisation had to state its position on whether it supports a candidate or not. In one of its statements, it expressed that they do not want to support any candidates.
However, there is a dissonance within the organisation as members won’t vote for the same candidate, with some even calling all main parties corrupted.
Connor, event organiser for XR students, said: ‘XR should not be partisan to party politics, if they did that would alienate more people.’ However, Connor thinks XR actions are a way of taking part in politics, as ‘class and race issues are inextricably linked to the climate,’ he said.
For example, he evoked the severely deprived neighbourhoods inhabited by people of colour where heavy good vehicles are chosen to be diverted through, causing health complications. ‘That makes pollution a social and racism issue as well,’ he said.
Other organisational members argued XR should not be involved in the election for its own sake, Adam, press officer at XR, support this view. ‘No party has taken the climate emergency seriously enough. XR should encourage people to vote and to interrogate the climate policy of the candidates,’ he said.
Lecturer in politics at Kingston University, Andy Higgins stand strongly against XR supporting any party, in an article on Mronline, he explains why: ‘Main parties are corrupted as they deflect attention away from the dirty business of imperial capture and extractivism.
Higgins also accused the Labour party of greenwashing, ‘during the Labour’s one-day climate emergency debate no MPs mentioned the fossil fuel corporations. The Corbyn/McDonnell strategy is more about saving the Labour Party than saving the planet,’ Higgins said.
On the other hand, Lewis, XR activist and event organiser for the Socialist Worker expressed that ‘XR should support the Labour party as I am sure they would prefer him to win rather than Boris Johnson.’
As for political parties themselves, Jeremy Corbyn and Caroline Lucas gave speeches at an XR meeting on May 2. However, a press release hinted Labour does not fully endorse XR: ‘Any criminal acts should of course be handled by the police,’ it says.
The Greens opted for a similar language ‘Join us in heeding Extinction Rebellion’s message and in supporting peaceful actions.’ said Carla Denyer and Sandy Hore-Ruthven.
