Arrested for my Grandchildren’s future…

My name’s Hilary, I’m a mother, grandmother and retired head teacher and last October I spent time in police custody – not something many people who know me would have expected! I’ve since been charged and am awaiting with some trepidation my first ever court appearance.

Being arrested was definitely not something I undertook lightly, my only prior experience with the police was in my professional capacity at child protection conferences. Child protection was in fact at the heart of my decision - scientists tell us we’re in an emergency, that we’re facing climate and ecological collapse and that we’re running out of time to make the changes that will help to protect our earth for our children and grandchildren.

I’d been aware of the climate crisis for many years but just over 10 years ago, my husband and I watched a film that literally changed our lives. “The Age of Stupid” suddenly made all the issues I had perhaps tried to ignore crystal clear and so my journey as an activist began…

Our first major change was to stop flying… completely! We haven’t done so since and have joined campaigns to raise awareness of the environmental impact of frequent flying https://flightfree.co.uk/ . I’d been a member of Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth for many years. I’d made donations and signed petitions but now I started writing letters and joining marches – most memorably marching backwards down Whitehall to highlight our Government’s backwards steps on climate change https://www.campaigncc.org/backwards  

I soon began to realise, however, how little effect all these disparate actions were having – carbon emissions, far from dropping were continuing to rise and extreme weather events were becoming the norm. Disillusion and despair began to set in. Then, suddenly, in October 2018, I saw a report of rally in London with passionate speakers including George Monbiot and Greta Thunberg saying exactly what needed to be said!

They spoke of an action planned for London in November. This new group was called Extinction Rebellion and, as I learned more, I was immediately and enthusiastically on board.

So, on 17th November, on an agreed signal, I climbed over the barriers onto Westminster Bridge and sat in the road. My heart was pounding – this was my first ever illegal action and I was scared! Police were out in force and, at that time, I had no real understanding of my rights. We closed that bridge and four others for the whole day and Extinction Rebellion (XR) became a force to be reckoned with!

Following November, I joined the local Brighton XR group. With them I’ve taken part in many local actions – a die-in in Churchill Square, a funeral march for lost species, choir performances and even Brighton Brollies flash mobs! I’ve acted as a spokesperson and been interviewed on local radio and TV all to raise awareness of the huge catastrophe we face.

Last year in April, I joined thousands of others from across the UK in actions that closed central London for 10 days. Through imaginative, non-violent direct actions, Marble Arch, Oxford Circus, Waterloo Bridge and Parliament Square were closed! Roads were blocked, they became free of traffic, air quality improved and people became aware of the climate crisis through live talks, TV discussions and news reports of the action. We from Brighton XR had our own barricade which we manned day and night – it was like being on the set of Les Miserables!

People began to be arrested and, being retired, I decided this was an action I was prepared to take. I am clear that for many people this is not an option due to their work or other circumstances but fortunately there were, and still are, many, many ways to rebel without risking arrest, it is almost always a choice.  Over 1,100 people were arrested in April’s Rebellion and this had a massive impact - it was unlike anything ever seen before and it was magnificent!

Between April and October a great deal happened and XR grew enormously across the world and in the UK. Here in Brighton from meetings of around 70 pre-April, we had over 300 arrive at our first post Rebellion meeting and had to spill out into the gardens!! The climate emergency rose up the political agenda and XR’s three key demands became widely known:

• TELL THE TRUTH (about the scale of the crisis),

• ACT NOW (to reach net zero emissions by 2025)

• BEYOND POLITICS (create a Citizens’ Assembly to guide Government action)

Indeed in May our Parliament declared a climate emergency – an encouraging first step which demonstrated the will of the Commons but, sadly, didn’t legally compel the government to act.

I continued to protest whenever and wherever I could, I’ve supported all the school strikes and I took part in the XR actions at Glastonbury last summer whilst working with the Raw Foundation raising awareness of plastic pollution.

In October, I joined the second London Rebellion and in the morning of 7th October, on a signal, I again stepped off the pavement and into the road at Whitehall. This time it felt really “edgy”. The police presence was huge and we wondered for a while if we would manage to hold the road. More rebels arrived though and our camp was set up. All seemed to be going well and the first night passed with many rebels camped in the road but the following day it became clear that the police tactics were to become much more severe - cooking tents, and all communal areas were ripped down and taken away and in the afternoon, a call went out for “arrestables” to go to the front line to try to protect the site as police were coming to remove all the tents. My husband and I went with others to sit in the road outside Downing Street.  

Suddenly, just as the police arrived, the heavens opened and heavy rain came beating down. This didn’t stop the police onslaught though – black clad police ran in formation towards us, they ripped through the banners next to us and started to tear down and drag away the tents. It was truly shocking, there was much shouting and some tents were even dragged away with rebels still inside - the whole scene was quite surreal! Meanwhile, at around 3.00pm, those of us sitting in the road were told that we were to be arrested.

Hours passed and, apart from police standing by, nothing happened – we were left sitting. At around 8.00pm an officer approached our small group and told us that we would now not be arrested until the morning. He dropped in that a storm was forecast and that we would be closely observed by HD CCTV cameras due to the sensitive location. He then said that we were free to leave but would not be allowed back – meanwhile other rebels were moved away behind crowd barriers and we were isolated in an area about the size of a tennis court. We were a group of people who’d only just met but, realising we were in a key location, it took us no time to decide and we all politely declined to leave!

And so the night began…. none of us was prepared, we hadn’t planned to be out overnight and had no suitable clothing, food, water, shelter or, crucially, toilet facilities!! I was so grateful to have the guidance of more experienced rebels, I learned a lot and did things I would never have anticipated that night...!! Early on people passed some essentials to us over the barriers – emergency blankets, a couple of camping chairs, hats etc – I shall be eternally grateful to a woman who passed me her sleeping bag, I don’t know how I would have made it through the night without!

It was a very long, very cold and uncomfortable night but getting to know each other and mutual support made it bearable. The threatened rain thankfully held off and some even managed a few snatched hours of sleep but not me. During the hours before dawn I was feeling overwhelmed and very sorry for myself but, with the light, rebels began to return to give us encouragement, coffee and even hot water bottles!!

Then at around 8.00am (17 hours after we were first told we were to be arrested) more police arrived and, feeling exhausted, cold and hungry, I confess I was not at all sure I’d made a good decision! As the police eventually approached to start arrests the rebels behind the barriers began to sing “Never doubt that a small group of people can change the world, it is the only thing that ever has” adapted from a quote by Margaret Mead. As, one by one, arrests started, emotions heightened and one of our group began to cry. That was it – I and several others joined in!!  I was determined to get myself together before my turn though and, with the support of three amazing young girls watching from behind the barriers, I did! They sent such love and solidarity, it was a remarkable experience!

So, at last, at around 9.30, I was read my rights and again given the opportunity to walk away which I again politely declined explaining to the young arresting officer exactly why I was making that decision.

After such a build up the arrest itself was fairly uneventful, I was held at the roadside for some time before being transported in a closed cage in the back of a police van to Lewisham Police station. Luckily I hadn’t been handcuffed – I was sitting sideways on a hard bench with no seat belt and needed to hold on to protect myself on the journey. On arrival there was a long wait before I was “processed” and taken to my cell. I was treated with respect and was allowed to choose a book from a small store room before being taken to my cell but it was still a cold, uncomfortable and, surprisingly, boring experience – very disorientating with no means of telling the time or to see or hear anything that was going on. I was eventually released from custody at around 7.00pm in an unfamiliar area miles from base. I was met by three kind, concerned people from XR arrest support who offered me hugs, food, drink and, had I needed it, money to get safely back to where I was staying. I arrived back at around 9.00pm, slept really well and was back on the streets the next morning!

Would I do it again? Yes!! In fact I did a week later!! It felt, and still feels, immensely important that ordinary people are prepared to be arrested, detained and charged to highlight the urgent threat we face. By taking action at the heart of government, my hope was to put pressure on our leaders to ACT NOW.

Our Downing Street arrests generated a great deal of interest not just from friends and acquaintances but also from local and national press. That alone felt a worthwhile result but, as a bonus, I later learned that, hearing of our overnight standoff, rebels who had thought Whitehall had been taken back by police returned and held it for a further two days...

POST SCRIPT

As I write this, had the dreadful coronavirus crisis not occurred, I would again have been on the streets of London prepared to face another arrest. XR’s third Rebellion may have to wait but the climate crisis will not so I’m continuing to do all that I can online to raise awareness. I want to be able look my grandchildren in the eye in the future and say that I did my best to prevent the collapse of all that sustains us!

We have shown over recent weeks that massive change in response to a crisis IS possible, we cannot go back to “business as normal.” Normal was an emergency!

Join the campaign:  #NoGoingBack   https://rebellion.earth/event/no-going-back/