Extinction Rebellion have come a long way since their first rebellion in 2018. They have moved direct action to the centre of anti-establishment actions, and upgraded the window of what can be discussed in the media towards the real issues of climate catastrophe.
Their iconic protest symbols, from the hourglass X to the red rebels and the pink boats blocking streets have certainly been eye-catching. Their strong commitment to non-violent protest, no drugs or alcohol and sacrificing themselves to arrest or police harassment has made it difficult for the forces of “law and order” to claim they are thugs or “dirty beardies”, when the protestors are eminently respectable grandparents or accredited scientists.
But they have also revealed the limits of their form of protest: despite some huge mobilisations, there hasn’t been a breakthrough to achieving their aims and in the last protests in 2021 police attitudes had noticeable hardened and the were much rougher at removing people protesting than before.