Climate Change - Who Cares? - Video from clown action when they where violently pushed away by security and one reporter was arrested

Rebelact
Within a few weeks COP15, the conference about climate change will start in Copenhagen, Denmark. A moment thousands of people will go there and protest because of the lack of effective measures. In Amsterdam we couldn't wait and already started to demonstrate. Rebel Clowns marched on the streets with a clear message: Climate Change - Who Cares?
Nederlandse tekst volgt / Dutch text will follow
Sunday, November 22nd in Amsterdam: what a wonderful day - quite warm... And that's what we like! Should be nice to live in a more tropical Netherlands! A few degrees more, some extra sun, no more winters: should be great!
That's why we started our demonstration with our industrial pollution machine: it smells, it makes noises, it moves and it's part of our economic system of offering us consumption sooooo much, that when the whole world should reach that level of western consumption, we should need a few extra planets in the next decades.
But climate change - Who cares?
As Rebel Clowns we've another opinion. At the Rembrandt square and Reguliersbreestraat we shouted loud and clear: "What do we want? - Planes!", "What do we want? - Cars!", etc.
As clowns we love these glitter thingies! For example Porsches, wowww! they are so beautiful! Why should you take a bike when there are also these great cars? That's why we were also yelling: "No More Bikes! - No More Bikes!".
After passing by the Regulierbreestraat we entered the Kalverstraat near the Munt tower and that's really consumption paradise! What else could you do than shopping on a that free day of the week? By buying many things you could show people who you are! It's not about you, but about the amount of products you could collect in your life. That's the real meaning of life: being part of that wonderful consumption machinery!
Symbol of consumption is the shopping mall. Kalvertoren is one of them. Off course it was nice to visit that grate place and to admire all these fantastic and expensive products. But our way of admiring (shouting "Shop till you drop!") was not admired by the security. It didn't take long before several showed up. We even saw an undercover security or maybe it's better to explain: he was one of the guys pushing us out and especially some people who made pictures. Maybe it was their intention to touch the cameras that hard, the photographers should buy a brand new one... Another way of stimulating consumption and maybe a small contribution for the economic recovery!
It's clear also the climate in Amsterdam is changing. Tolerance about having another opinion or acting a bit differently is dissapearing - especially in circles of uniformed people. Next to security we also met the police. It happened later in the Amstelstraat where off course our ID's were checked and registered. The controle state likes to know every individual clown! The police was also looking for a 'leader' of the group: "Who's in charge?" A question we couldn't answer because all of us are or non of us.
After a while we were allowed to leave. Unfortunally without 1 photographer because the blue boys and girl also would like to know ID's from all photographers and filmers! One was kept by the police and got a fine for 'disturbing the order'(???). After a few hours he was released.
Anyway: nice the police found a new great task by checking photographers and arrest them if 'needed'. In the city centre there were many more people photographing us spontaneously... so hope a next time it will also be their turn! Who cares?
rebelact@ddh.nl Website: http://www.rebelact.nl