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Report from November 2003
"BURNING PLANET" MARCH
AGAINST BUSH
Photo: indymedia
SUPERB PROTEST MARCH AS BUSH ARRIVES IN THE
UK, PUTS CLIMATE AND THE ENVIRONMENT ON THE MEDIA AGENDA
As Bush arrived in London on Tuesday evening (November 18th) climate protesters were already on the streets !
The "Burning Planet" March was a fantastic success. The march set out from Lincoln's Inn Fields about 7 pm, headed by our globe-in-a-greenhouse, closely followed by our
giant (10 foot diameter) globe displaying the message "Stop Bush, Stop Climate Change", and somewhere behind the "Rhythms of Resistance" samba band, the 'Rinky Dink'
bicycle sound system, and the 'Soapbox trike' system, too.
Already by then we'd had loads of media coverage, just as we got ready at Lincoln's Inn...with live interviews on ITN and CNN, and much more as
the place buzzed with journos and cameramen all over the place. The colourful throng featured a 'Lady Flaming Planet' (Lucy Wills), assorted tiger-costumed figures, 'glowing globe'lanterns
and streaming 'globe' balloons; it progressed past the ExxonMobil offices on Aldwych, down the Strand, through Trafalagar Square, up Pall Mall as the world's leading 'eco-terrorist' flew overhead
in a chopper headed for Buckingham Palace, on to Piccadilly circus and finally through Mayfair, getting to the US embassy around 8.30 pm.
At the embassy we had a really great line up of speakers. First we had a tremendous speach from Michael Meacher - Environment Minister until this summer, now speaking his mind about the
environmental policies of GWB (to read his speech click here )- and then more good stuff from Tony Juniper, Director of Friends of the Earth; Stephen
Tindale, Director of Greenpeace, Darren Johnson of the Green Party (GLA member)
and finally George Marshall one of the moving spirits of the 'Rising Tide' climate campaign group. Altogether it was an effective statement from the British environmental movement as a whole against
the climate and environmental policies of George W Bush....and this was the way it came over in the media : in the Guardian, Independent and Times; on Channel 4 News (interview by Andrew Lockley), BBC 2's
newsnight, and many other British, American and other foreign news channels.
Altogether a fantastic evening's event ! Well done and thanks to everyone who helped make it happen!
Michael Meacher speaking at the rally at Grosvenor Square.
And a superb line-up of other speakers:
Photo Lucy Wills Collection
'Ms Flaming Planet'
and The statue-of-Taking-Liberties'
Photo Jenny Bates
Funky lanterns.
Photo Jenny Bates
The CCC banner, held by Mark Lynas, revered author of 'News from a Warming World'
(or something like that) with John Vidal, revered Environment Correspondent for the Guardian, to his left.
Photo Lucy Wills
That's Phil Thornhill with the megaphone, with Corinne Sinclair from the Howard Dean Supporters' Group, on his right.
Photo Jenny Bates
Auriel Glanville (Coordinator, Merton FOE) as the Statue of Taking Liberties, Rhona Hodges from Shepstow FOE, and an (anti-)Esso-Tiger
Photo John Robinson
Our giant (10 foot diameter) globe with its message : which appeared on ABC TV in the US, that night.
(Despite its habit of keeling over backwards all the time.)
Photo John Robinson
The famous Rinky Dink bicycle-powered sound machine.
Photo Inymedia
Esso (otherwise 'ExxonMobil') fund the ultra-right Republican think tanks which effectively determine Bush's 'do-nothing' policy on climate.
Photo John Robinson
This banner provided by (and held by) Ealing Friends of the Earth.
Photo Jenny Bates
Fancy lantern-thingies from Friends of the Earth
Photo John Robinson
Our Globe-in-a-Greenhouse yet again, with 2 (anti-)Esso tigers.
Photo John Robinson
The 'Rhytms of Resistance' Samba Band.
Photo John Robinson
A Green Party banner. Miranda Dunn is the blurry person holding it, on the left.
Photo Inymedia
Tony Lourenco with his 'soapbox' trike.
Photo Jenny Bates
Funky lanterns again: a picture like this appeared in the Times, next day.
Photo Inymedia
Think up your own caption for this one !
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