“Lay down our differences”

An interpretive study of problem representation(s) and inclusion in Extinction Rebellion

By: Emelie Isaksen

Uppsala University - Fall 2019 Development Studies Supervisor: Malin Holm Word count: 13507 Number of pages: 45

Abstract

Previous research on social movements shows that as a consequence of social stratification, structurally privileged groups in society are more prone to engage in and take on leading positions in collective action than those who are structurally marginalised. This essay takes off in the puzzle of deficient inclusion in social movements that identify as inclusive, and looks at how that problem also appear empirically in the environmental movement Extinction Rebellion (XR). As attention to environmental issues and climate activism has increased significantly over the last years, many activists and scholars have pointed out the importance of tackling the problem with an intersectional feminist approach. Therefore, an interpretive discourse analysis with a “What’s the Problem Represented to be?” (WPR) approach is applied to the strategically chosen case of XR, and the results are interpreted through an intersectional feminist lens as conceptualised by Angela Davis (1981, 2016). The analysis contributes to the research problem through identifying two parallel problem representations, one representing the problem as proximate, local and technical-environmental and one representing it as current, global and societal-environmental. It is concluded that part of XR’s discourse rests on a problem representation that risks reproducing structural power relations. According to Davis’s conceptualisation of intersectional feminism this could have dire consequences for a movement which has shown to have potential to influence politics.

Keywords: environmental movements, Extinction Rebellion, structural power, inclusion, intersectional feminism, WPR

2 Table of contents

1. Introduction ...... 4 1.1 Theoretical and empirical research problem ...... 4 1.2 Aim and research question ...... 5 2. Previous research and background ...... 7 2.1 Lessons from the social movement literature ...... 7 2.2 Brief background on Extinction Rebellion ...... 8 3. Connecting the dots: Theoretical framework ...... 10 3.2 Intersectionality in environmental movements: Environmental Justice ...... 11 3.3 Reproduction of structural and relational privilege ...... 12 3.4 Applying the theoretical framework ...... 13 4. Research design and methodology ...... 16 4.1 Assumptions ...... 16 4.2 Strategic case selection ...... 16 4.3 Material ...... 18 4.4 Methodology ...... 19 4.5 Analytical Framework ...... 20 4.5.1 MODIFIED WPR QUESTIONS ...... 22 5. Analysis ...... 25 5.1 Overview and identification of the problem representation(s) ...... 25 5.2 Analysis of the proximate, local and technical-environmental problem ...... 26

5.2.1 PRESUMPTIONS AND CREATION OF PROBLEM ...... 26

5.2.2 IMPLICATIONS FOR SOLUTION AND AGENCY ...... 27

5.2.3 WHAT REMAINED INVISIBLE ...... 30 5.3 The current, global and societal-environmental problem ...... 31

5.3.1 PRESUMPTIONS AND CREATION OF PROBLEM ...... 31

5.3.2 IMPLICATIONS FOR SOLUTION AND AGENCY ...... 32

5.3.3 WHAT REMAINED INVISIBLE ...... 34 5.4 Contribution and answer of research question ...... 35

5.4.1 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO PROBLEM FORMULATIONS ...... 35

5.4.2 MANIFESTATION OF STRUCTURAL POWER ...... 36 6. Conclusion ...... 38 6.1 Reproduction of structural power relations ...... 38 6.2 Implications for future research ...... 39 7. Bibliography ...... 40 7.1 Material ...... 40 7.2 Other sources ...... 41

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“Together, our rebellion is the gift this world needs. We are XR and you are us. ”

Extinction Rebellion UK, Guardianship and Visioning Circle, 2019

1. Introduction

1.1 Theoretical and empirical research problem “Climate change is a man-made problem with a feminist solution” is the slogan of the podcast Mothers of Invention, hosted by Irelands former president Mary Robinson and the comedian Maeve Higgins. Taking of in the assumption that because women, especially those living in the global South, are the ones hit the hardest by climate change, they also need to be at the forefront of developing a sustainable solution (Mothers of Invention, 2019). Throughout numerous episodes they interview female scientists and entrepreneurs from around the world who are working hard to tackle the problem from different angles. They are far from alone in emphasising the need for an inclusive approach as necessary for social change. In the formulation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UN explicitly recognise the need to come up with integrated strategies that tackle climate change and preserve our environment while simultaneously combating inequality and ensuring social inclusion (United Nations, 2015, p. 8). Transferring that ideal to practice requires an understanding of how challenges and problems are interdependent and cannot be fixed with single-issue tactics. This essay therefore examines the problem representation(s) of one of the most prominent environmental movements in present day, Extinction Rebellion.

The activist Angela Davis has long emphasised the need for intersectionality in collective action and the importance of linking the grassroot and global level, it is mainly her theories that serve as

4 a lens through which the results are interpreted in this essay. One of her main concerns about current political struggles of different kinds is what within development studies is called white saviourism; That structurally privileged people (often white upper or middle class) think of non- privileged groups as charity-projects rather than partners on equal terms (Davis, 2016). As a result of social stratification, many social- and environmental movements are initiated and managed by people with stronger capacities and resources (Bondesson, 2017; Campbell, 2014; Snow et al., 2008). When this happens, issues of less privileged subgroups within the movement are often framed as much more narrow and particularistic in their effect than they actually are – they are thereby less prioritised in action (Strolovitch, 2006, p. 908). In practice then, many environmental movements resting on the ideal of inclusion and self-organisation in reality do little to challenge unequal relations in society. Although structurally marginalised groups are the ones affected most by climate change they are ultimately not the ones allowed to be heard on the matter (Trócaire, 2017).

Recently, the UK based climate justice movement Extinction Rebellion (XR) has been pointed out as an example of this very phenomenon. XR is a very young and therefore understudied organisation, yet their actions have undeniably been important in the struggle to put climate change on the political agenda. They have through their notorious effort to shut down parts of central London for a week and force the government to declare a climate emergency managed to reach a global audience (BBC, 2019). Outspokenly aiming to be an inclusive movement, anyone following their 10 basic principles can join the movement. Although these principles include for example “breaking down hierarchies of power for more equitable participation” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a) – it’s activists and founders have been largely accused of failing to acknowledge the voice of people from marginalised communities. Twitter has flooded with long threads of well elaborated criticism (Flood, 2019; thanki, 2019) other environmental activists have joined forces to write an open letter to the movement (Wretched of the Earth, 2019) and every week some magazine or paper seem to publish a new article on the matter (Dhaliwal, 2019; Dines, 2019; Lewis, 2019; Shand-Baptiste, 2019).

1.2 Aim and research question This essay aims to investigate the tension between the normative call for an inclusive feminist approach to collective action (see chapter 3) and the absence of it in environmental activism in practice. The tension is illuminated by assessing how the core problem in XR - a movement

5 claiming to “appeal to and include all” - is represented and what that assumes about forms of power and privilege. This helps us better understand the consequences this has for proposed solutions, which will thereafter reach and influence public spheres such as official media or legislation. By conducting a critical discourse analysis with a feminist informed “What’s the problem represented to be” (WPR) approach, this interpretive empirical study hopes to shed light on how structural privilege and marginalisation is reproduced within environmental movements. It does so by answering the question:

How are power relations manifested in the problem representation(s) of Extinction Rebellion UK?

Applying the framework to the case of an environmental movement, Davis’s (1981, 2016) intersectional feminist thoughts, a brief discussion on Environmental Justice and Young’s (1990, 2000) theory of Power as structural are used. The analysis does not assess whether Extinction Rebellion is a successful movement, whether they are inclusive in numbers or whether they have the capability to evolve. XR are simply strategically chosen as a relevant empirical example in relation to the research problem. In addition, this study does not wish to assess whether inclusion is needed in a movement for it to be successful, nor explore what in that case should be done to ensure it. Instead, the result should be understood as a stepping- stone for future research. In a time where environmental struggles are increasingly globalised and the threat of climate change increasingly acute - especially to the most structurally vulnerable – it is crucial to better understand how global and local power relations are (re)constructed or reinforced within movements.

6 2. Previous research and background

In the first section of the background, the research problem which this essay aims to contribute to is underpinned by some lessons learnt from the social movement literature, shedding light on how intersecting power relations within movements tend to mirror those in society at large. The following section provides a brief background to Extinction Rebellion, and gives an account of a few of their conducted actions that will later be discussed in the analysis.

2.1 Lessons from the social movement literature In order to grasp what we do not yet understand and why this is important to study, this section draws upon the social movement literature where the theoretical problem is located. Why is it that intersecting power relations within movements tend to mirror those in society at large although many of them aim to change the system they work within? Albeit a rational and instrumental approach to collective action has been criticised as insufficient to explain the nature of social movements, Snow et al (2008, p. 117) argue that availability of resources - especially time and money – is of importance in determining the success of collective action. This essay does not elaborate more on mobilisation nor the mechanisms determining the successfulness of achieving political goals, as focus lies on the discursive and not the material aspects of power. It however serves to underpin the research problem further. Since resources are unevenly distributed among social groups, upper or middle-class groups have better access to social movements in practice, and thereby also to their agenda (ibid, p.117). People who are spatially located in wealthy industrial democracies (Smith and Wiest, 2005), metropolitan areas (McCarthy et al. 1988 as cited in Snow et al., 2008, p. 118) and have access to internet - something which is in many contexts in turn related to race, gender, income and education (Wilson et al., 2003) - are simply better equipped to make their voices heard. Social stratification creates a situation in which social movements are more often initiated by privileged actors with extensive access to resources. Ergo the social change preferred by those less well-resourced remains invisible in discourse and in practice.

The research problem guiding this work is to a large extent inspired by previous scholars’ critical examinations of power relations within social movements. Sara Bondesson’s thesis (2017) examines the tension between privileged and less privileged groups and their differing access to agency within social movements. Bondesson focuses on how activists in the US attempted to empower vulnerable groups in the wake of hurricane Sandy. Her research shows

7 that emancipatory movements are guided by the belief that empowerment is best achieved through grass-root engagement, however they are often initiated by privileged actors who are themselves not part of the marginalised group they are trying to strengthen (Bondesson, 2017, p. 20)

On the same subject, Dara Strolovitch investigates whether social and economic justice organisations actually represent the most disadvantaged (Strolovitch, 2006, p. 894). Her research shows that even though most officers express a strong will to advocate on behalf of the most marginalised in their constituency, in practice they end up working more actively on issues affecting the relatively advantaged subgroups. Issues affecting relatively marginalised subgroups within the group are instead often framed as much more narrow and particularistic in their effect than they actually are (ibid, p.908). This essay pays attention to whether, like in Strolovitch research, some issues are framed as more important than others in the material. While not being explicitly or solely “emancipatory”, many environmentalist groups have emphasised inclusion as necessary for long lasting results, hence emancipation of marginalised communities or groups can often be seen as at least a partial goal.

2.2 Brief background on Extinction Rebellion Extinction Rebellion erupted on October 31st 2018, as a response to the release of the IPCC report that stated we only had 12 years to stop catastrophic climate change (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b). XR was created as a project by the group Rising Up!, that has been around since 2016 (ibid). It was originally founded by Roger Hallam, Gail Bradbrook, and Simon Bramwell1. The movement quickly spread across the world, is based on a “self- organising system” and has about 130 groups solely in the UK (ibid). In essence:

“Extinction Rebellion is an international apolitical network using non-violent direct action to persuade governments to act justly on the Climate and Ecological Emergency.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019c)

Over time and as XR has grown in size, their approach to disruption has evolved, and their relation to the police has changed. In April, XR launched what they called an “April Rebellion”, a two-week long effort to bring London to a stand-still by blocking traffic every

1 They were later joined by i.e. Stuart Basden, Ian Bray, Robin Boardman, Clare Farrell, and Nils Agger, Frieda Luerken and Sibi. All of them white and in majority from an academic background (Duell, 2019).

8 day at five central locations in the city (BBC, 2019). Launching the rebellion XR stated that “The Rebellion is an opportunity for people to make their voices heard, but it’s also a chance to get together and celebrate our love for all life on earth.”(Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019d). In hindsight, many argue that the April Rebellion was a successful action, especially notorious as it managed to force the parliament to declare a climate emergency – one of the three demands of the movement (BBC, 2019). The October Rebellion was a similar attempt to further put pressure on “world’s governments for their criminal inaction on the Climate and Ecological Crisis” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019e). This time however, the London Police issued what is called section 14, a ban of protests in the entire city of London, which led to a change in ambience and put matters to an edge (Dodd and Taylor, 2019). Both “rebellions” included actions which stirred debate, especially in relation to who XR was disrupting and how the movement discussed their relation to the police.

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3. Connecting the dots: Theoretical framework

This chapter presents the theoretical framework employed in the analysis. Firstly, the call for inclusive action is outlined by elaborating on Davis’s (1981, 2016) theories on intersectional feminism. In order to grasp the implications an intersectional approach has for environmental struggles, the second section briefly defines and discusses Environmental Justice. Thereafter, a feminist reading of Young’s (1990, 2000) theories on structural power determines how we approach reproduction of marginalisation or privilege.

3.1 The call for inclusive collective action: Intersectional Feminism

Theories on intersectionality were first developed by Women of Colour as a critique of “White Feminism” which treated gender and race as mutually exclusive categories. Scholars from different academic fields pointed to the “double oppression” that for example black women suffered – and argued that they were invisible and unrepresented in the category of Women as well as the category of Blacks (Crenshaw, 2009). With an iconic background in Black Philosophy and Aesthetics as well as Women’s studies, Angela Davis’s theories appear in most journal articles on the subject and are of relevance in all cases where intersectionality is key. An intersectional feminist analysis does not only consider gender as a category of exclusion, but acknowledges that an individual can have multiple identities simultaneously (Davis, 1981, p.20). Therefore, categories such as sexuality, class, race, ability and indigeneity are equally important to include in one’s analysis.

Davis also argues that in order to successfully build well organised and lasting social change, an understanding interconnectedness of movements that at first sight might seem unrelated is crucial (Davis, 2016, p.48). Two of her salient claims on this theme is that transnational solidarity and global understanding is of high importance if one wants to understand and change the local, and that an intersectional feminist analysis is vital if one wants to combat what she argues is the “destructive” forces of capitalism, racism and colonialism inherent in most systems (Davis, 1981; Davis, 2016). Further, we must ensure that we do not continue framing some groups as inferior to others in the process of collectively trying to take action. According to Davis, the purpose of empowerment is defeated if those in charge of social justice movements are privileged people who think of the less-privileged as objects of charity

10 and not as equal partners (Davis, 2016, p. 26). An important difference that will be useful to bear in mind throughout the analysis in this essay is that between 1) conceptualising a struggle without ensuring agency and influence of those who are most affected by the problem (ibid, p.25), and 2) participating in a movement not as experts or directly concerned, but as someone who because they believe in justice want to be part of the movement in solidarity (ibid, p.21). Although Davis is mostly concerned with the American system, focused on the Black liberation- and abolition movements, her theories are easily transferred to environmental movements as well. In order to do so, the next section taps into Environmental Justice, and explore intersectionality as approached in environmental struggles.

3.2 Intersectionality in environmental movements: Environmental Justice In contemporary international relations and politics, intersectionality and interconnectedness are often emphasised as requirements if movements, policies or legislation is to be effective and reduce the risk of contributing to further marginalisation (United Nations, 2017). This section elaborates on the call for Environmental Justice (EJ) and how intersectionality is mostly what differs an EJ approach to environmental activism from one where environment is solely conceptualised as “nature”. Environmental Justice, the most commonly referenced understanding of the connection between social and environmental issues, erupted firstly as a critique of organisations which ignored urban, poor and racial/ethnic minorities communities’ environmental concerns (Sicotte and Brulle, 2017, p. 26). In the UK, it is for example the most ethnically diverse neighbourhoods that suffer the most from pollution (MRC Centre for Environment and Health, 2018). Today, EJ is often defined as equal protection from environmental hazards and equal access to decision-making processes regarding our right to and protection of a healthy-environment (Sicotte and Brulle 2017; Pellow, 2017). The United States Environmental Protection Agency defines EJ as:

“(T)he fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. “ (US EPA, 2014).

11 According to Andreas Malm (2017), the development of industrial countries in the North is directly connected to the burning of fossil fuels, one of the environment’s main foes. He argues that if all countries have an equal right to utilise the atmosphere and the environment, some countries in the global North have overused their resources at the expense of less developed countries in the global South (ibid). In prolongation, the development of the global North has built on an intensively accelerating energy consumption resulting in climate change and catastrophes mostly impacting the global South (ibid).

David N. Pellow (2017, p. 37) argues that EJ movements in the global North as well as in the global South have played crucial roles in redefining issues that have often first been framed within mainstream politics. States, corporations and many of the more influential NGOs or social movements - particularly in the West – tend to frame environmental problems as an issue where the solution is solely technoscientific expertise (ibid). EJ movements have instead shed light on how adverting social (in)justice, flawed democracy and global capitalism might be the solution to i.e. mitigating climate change (ibid). Additionally, Pellow shows that EJ activists have emphasised the importance of knowledge that is not usually considered in state politics or official debate – forms of traditional or indigenous knowledge (ibid, p.46). In contrast to more positivist technical or natural science – often rooted in Western and reductionist thinking, traditional and indigenous knowledge, usually stemming from the global South, is seen as more holistic and better suited to cope with uncertainty and complexity (Mazzocchi, 2006, p. 4).

3.3 Reproduction of structural and relational privilege To identify the processes in which privilege (and thereby marginalisation) is reproduced within environmental movements, the analytical framework will borrow from a feminist reading of Iris Marion Young’s (1990; 2000) theories on power and social structures. According to Young (2000, pp. 93–94), social structures are “a net of restricting and reinforcing relationships” which ultimately determine “social positions that people occupy which condition their opportunities and life chances”. They are seen as reproduced by social actors and their interactions, and as part in determining informal and formal economic, cultural and political institutions (Young, 1990 in Holm, 2019, p. 43). This means that “privileged or marginalised social groups” are understood as groups of people who have been historically and contextually structurally privileged or marginalised (Young, 2000, p. 101).

12 This is not to say that all members of a social group share the same essential identity, but rather that social groups are conditioned by social structures which differentiate between for example men and women, whites and people of colour, those with abled bodies and those with disabilities etc.

Power is often conceptualised as either structural or agency-oriented; More focused on an individual’s intentional domination over another (Bondesson, 2017, p. 44). The reason to why this essay does not choose to see power as agency-oriented is that it aims to investigate how privilege is constructed through unconscious or conscious acts on a structural level - an agency-based approach would therefore be inadequate. However, employing a feminist understanding of power, the conceptualisation of privilege is expanded and understood as conditioned - but not determined - by social structures. This has two implications for the analysis. Firstly, although social structures are believed to produce systematic yet relational power, it is concluded – in accordance with Holm (2019, p. 45) - that those in under- privileged positions are sometimes able to contest or work around these structures. Secondly, it follows that although privileged groups have greater agency within the institutional logic and therefore have an easier time reproducing structural privilege, they are possibly unconscious about their relative power (Young, 1990 & Bjarnegård, 2018 as cited in Holm, 2019, p. 47). This conceptualisation fits well with the post-structural position of the WPR approach, that underscores the importance of understanding power as something relational and productive one preforms or produce rather than has or is (Foucault as cited in Bacchi and Goodwin, 2016, p. 29). As such, it is believed that reproduction of (power-informed) relations, unconsciously as well as consciously, is what enables gendered and racialised institutions to persist (Davis, 2016, p. 106).

3.4 Applying the theoretical framework The theories elaborated on above guide the analytical framework by deciding what information the questions will look for and how the material will be interpreted, allowing us to assess what a reproduction of structural power relations entails in the context of environmental movements. Davis’s (1981, 2016) theories on interconnectedness and transnational solidarity create the intersectional feminist lens through which inclusion is explored. They are discussed in relation to theories on Environmental Justice and differentiated responsibilities of the global North and South (Malm, 2017; Pellow, 2017; US EPA, 2014). Lastly, with a feminist reading of Young’s theories (Young 1990 as cited in

13 Holm, 2019; 2000) power is seen as something relational and productive one preforms or produce rather than has or is. Translating Davis’s (2016, p. 45) claim that interconnectedness matters and nothing happens in isolation to the case of XR entails questioning whether there is an understanding of environmental struggles and social ones as interconnected. Additionally, it means understanding that struggles in all parts of the world are connected. As for ensuring that reinforcement of current power structures is avoided, this calls for an analysis of whether the movement is mindful of i.e. gendered, racialised, class and ability- based hierarchies.

Due to the limited scope and space of the dissertation, it is the four categories gender, class, race and ability that are primarily kept in mind, chosen since they are discussed by both Davis (1981) and Pellow (2017) as well as appear in the material. The reason for not including for example indigeneity in the analysis is that the research will focus mainly on Extinction Rebellion in the UK, where there are no particular indigenous groups. Sexuality will also be excluded since it is rarely discussed in relation to environmental issues.

Just as Davis’ understanding of gender, this essay borrows from Judith Bulter’s Gender Trouble (Davis, 2016, p. 100). Gender is seen not as a binary category of male and female, but rather as a process through which hierarchy and power are articulated (Butler, 2011, p.13). This means that those in the category “men” have different access to power than the category “women”. If the material for example suggests that environmental catastrophes hit women harder than men, this is interpreted as a gendered understanding.

In accordance with Davis and Pellow, race is seen as a constructed category and racialisation and racism central and driving forces of society. Besides impacting national legal systems etc, it is also a category used by the West to represent itself as different from the Rest (Davis, 1981; Pellow, 2017, p. 37). If there is an understanding of the structural othering process of non-white people in the material, this is categorised as an understanding of racialisation.

Class is believed to be largely based on economic and material resources and your dependence on or relationship to labour (Davis, 1981, p. 54). If economic assets and possibilities are problematised, it is interpreted that the material shows an understanding of class-based hierarchies.

Ability is understood as our physical and mental differing abilities to “work” according to the constructed norm. Although not at centre of attention in Davis’s work and briefly mentioned

14 in Pellow’s, it has been a category of exclusion largely debated, especially in more recent social movements, and will therefore be included in the analysis (Dines, 2019; Rawnsley and Gayle, 2019; Sweeny, 2019). If the material discusses that everyone might not be able to access sights etc, this is understood as an understanding of ability-based discrimination.

In furtherance of employing the feminist approach and Young’s understanding of structural power to the case of environmental movements some modifications and remarks are required. Is power (re)produced in the same way within environmental movements as in other social movements or in society at large? In many ways the answer should be yes. For example, environmental movements are built on the same social structures that they are located within. However, one thing that could complicate power hierarchies and inclusion in environmental movements is the actual conceptualisation of environment. According to Haluza-DeLay and Fernhout (2011, p. 727), constructing environment as something solely associated with “nature” could be a problematic barrier to bridging environmental-nature issues with other issues, such as for example power hierarchies. Therefore, the analysis investigates framings and have a particular focus on whether conceptualisations of environment, knowledge and responsibility are inclusive.

15 4. Research design and methodology

Assumptions about the nature of the social and political world and what we can possibly know about it have guided choices related to design, research methodology and case in this study. In this chapter the strategic case selection is explained, the choice of material presented and the methodology and analytical framework introduced in detail.

4.1 Assumptions This essay takes off in a constructivist ontological belief that the world is socially constructed by actors operating within it. Actors in turn attach meaning to their actions that reshape and formulate a context. Based on the belief that there is no objective and real world existing independently of this meaning, it is concluded that we could only have an interpretivist theory of knowledge. Observers can only interpret their surroundings subjectively as they also live and participate in social constructions of reality (Furlong et al., 2018, p. 178).

Choosing an interpretive approach has certain consequences for what we think our research can disclose in terms of causality (Furlong et al., 2018, p. 184). As it will be attempted not to simplify the subjective and contextual social reality, the notion of rigour will not be approached as it usually is in positivist research. Instead, the essay strives for transparency and systematicity (Schwartz-Shea and Yanow, 2011, p. 17). Reliability will be sought through maintaining a transparent dialogue about choices and assumptions and through constant reference to the analytical framework. It is however believed that two researchers will never be able to come to the exact same conclusion since they always see the world through a lens coloured by their own experiences. My own position as the author of this essay is for example that of a young, white woman from Sweden. Furthermore, in an effort to ensure validity, the essay will carefully disclose the steps that have been taken, to reach a reasonable conclusion. In accordance with Schwartz-Shea and Yanow (2011, p. 39), it is assumed that the research itself is part of the social and political world it represents, this essay is therefore in no way to be seen as an objective description but rather an intersubjective interpretation.

4.2 Strategic case selection To better understand how privilege and marginalisation is reproduced within environmental movements, and whether they succeed in addressing climate change and combatting

16 inequality simultaneously, the discourse of Extinction Rebellion UK is analysed. When choosing a case to study, the specific case is often intended to speak to empirical conditions that can also be found in other – non examined – cases. Taking an interpretive approach, this essay instead agrees with Small’s argumentation (2009, p. 10); While the theoretical models used can (and should) be applicable to other cases, empirical findings cannot be transferable directly from an in depth study to the larger population it is expected to represent. In contrast to striving for the quantitative ideal of statistical significance, this essay aims to ensure societal significance, and hopes to uncover processes and tendencies (Small, 2009, p. 24). Instead of choosing a case that is “average” or “representative”, a case has been chosen on the premise that can reveal something about the essential nature of society at large (ibid, p.20).

The strategic reason for choosing XR as the case of analysis is threefold. Firstly, in theory the movement outspokenly aims to be socially inclusive and address power hierarchies in society, yet it has been widely criticised for failing to do so. This is precisely the theoretical puzzle we want to examine and deepen our understanding of by looking into an empirical case, it is therefore evident that the case of XR has relevance. Secondly, it is argued to currently be one of the most successful environmental movements around the world. As this study aims to investigate whether social movements tackle environmental issues with an inclusive approach in mind, being acknowledged as a political actor with influence seems relevant. In May 2019, XR successfully shut down parts of London and managed to get the government to declare a climate emergency (Brown, 2019). According to Robert Falkner, a fellow at the think tank Chatham House, the movement is “widely credited with accelerating policy change in the UK” (Adam, 2019), and local groups have been created all around the world. Thirdly, XR is a strategic case to examine since the young, contemporary and relevant movement has not yet been studied academically, further underpinning the choice.

The scope of this essay is limited, therefore the analysis focuses on Extinction Rebellion UK – specifically centred on London. The movement was started in the UK and though it promotes autonomous local engagement internationally, it lacks a base elsewhere. Furthermore, precisely because of the fact that self-organised groups in other parts of the world are encouraged but not monitored (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019c), these cannot be supposed to adhere to the principles and values to the same extent as the UK based movement. Finally, this focus also best allows us to investigate the critique, since it is mostly actions within London that have been debated. In order to circle the “hegemonic” discourse

17 within XR and compare it to that of less prominent ones and that of its critics, alternative discourses will be considered as secondary or complementary.

4.3 Material Choosing between a limited range of materials and a broader one is hard – as the first option could facilitate an analysis be but risk losing out on important aspects of whereas the latter instead risk becoming overwhelming (Esaiasson et al., 2017, p. 226) However, since this analysis aims to investigate an entire discourse, different types of sources are considered. This section outlines the choice of material - for a better overview and thorough transparency, all examined sources are presented in a separate section of the bibliography.

The primary material is retrieved from XRs webpage2. Under the headline “The truth”, their framework for collective action is accessible. The framework consists of the Three demands XR has in the UK, their conception of The emergency, where one better understands what they base their proposals on, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), which serves as a deliberative forum where they position themselves in relation to others on critical issues, and About us. About us has three sub-headings; one can find the ten principles of XR guiding the structure of their activism. Secondly, Our Vision shows what they want to achieve. And thirdly, Our Strategy offers details on what kind of non-violent action they want to take.

Since this material only represents what they intend to do and not what they might do or say in practice, newspaper articles, and interviews on XRs official podcast by and about members of XR UK are considered secondary material (see bibliography). By examining critique from within the movement and from other environmental justice movements, it has been found that policing and disruption of peoples’ possibility to get to work seem to be diagnostic of the exclusion XR is criticised for. Two articles from daily newspapers, two from XRs webpage and one episode of the Extinction Rebellion Podcast dealing with these issues are therefore investigated. This selection naturally only highlights one side, but delimiting the material by choosing “critical” sources help us identify the parts of the discourse where relevant matters are brought to a head (Esaiasson et al., 2017, p. 226). Although first planning to include XR twitter posts in the analysis, since Twitter could be interpreted as a more active

2 Worth mentioning is that most pages on the webpage seem to be successively updated to keep up with the movement’s development, possibly as an attempt to practice what they call “Focus on learning and adapting”. This however means that it is impossible to know whether the information that has been analysed in this essay will look the same even a month from now.

18 political sight where civil society and activist from different movements meet and deliberate, these posts mostly mirror what has already been said on their webpage and will therefore be excluded.

With regards to the material representing the alternative discourse, the analysis considers sources attempting to mirror the primary material. Firstly it looks at an official open letter to XR written by another environmental organisation – Wretched of the Earth Collective3 – suggesting five additional demands for a climate rebellion (Wretched of the Earth, 2019). Thereafter, four newspaper articles dealing with the same critical issues are considered (see bibliography).

4.4 Methodology This essay investigates latent meanings that are not by default explicitly spelled out, therefore a qualitative critical discourse analysis focused on problem representation is carried out. A critical approach assumes that discourses set terms for what can be thought and imagined, and thereby done (Esaiasson et al. 2012, p.215). Arguably, those who are relatively privileged within a movement also have a greater possibility to form the hegemonic discourse. It is probable that the discourse in turn serves to reproduce the already institutionalised power relations between privileged and marginalised. Looking at how frames of solutions and proposals are constructed, and what they imply about the underlying problem, allows mapping of the power-relations embedded in a text in addition to the ideas and notions forming the basis of it (ibid, p.214). Since power is conceptualised as relational and productive, the aim is to trace and assess specific realities that are created by and form power relations (Foucault in Bacchi and Goodwin, 2016, p. 29).

As pointed out earlier by Pellow (2017, p. 37), environmental movements seem to propose different solutions to the problem of climate change. The specific method of analysis chosen is therefore a so called “What’s the Problem Represented to be?” (WPR) approach. According to Carol Lee Bacchi (as cited in Bacchi and Goodwin, 2016, p. 60), the proposed solution – which is often the controversial and debated part of politics – have an implicit problematisation built on deep seated presuppositions and assumptions. To identify the problem representation, one therefore works chronologically backwards and starts with the

3 Wretched of the Earth Collective is a collective of several grassroots groups and individuals acting “in solidarity with oppressed communities in the Global South and Indigenous North” (Wretched of the Earth, 2018).

19 proposed solution in order to understand what is problematised (ibid, p.21). In prolongation this gives us a possibility to better understand processes of exclusion as well ponder about as whether the solution - and its consequences for agency - would look different if the problem was formulated adversely (ibid). This method is formulated to fit an analysis of policy proposals. As proposed by Bacchi and Goodwin (2016, p. 18), policy is here understood in an expansive sense and hence organisational principles, media statements and interviews or speeches are all suitable for the cause even if they might not traditionally be defined as policy documents. In accordance with the Foucauldian tradition within discourse analysis, “discourse” is not only referring to language and text, but also includes other practices which have implications for social interaction (ibid). This allows us to for example include actions performed by XR, which are described in articles, in addition to written proposals or statements.

A discourse is always created in relation to an “other” or an outside, and will change over time and space (W. Jorgensen and Phillips, 2002, p. 3). The following analysis primarily focuses on the discourse of XR UK, and only bring in examples from surrounding discourses in order to better understand the relational “battle” of defining environmental struggles. Meaning can never be fixed and is continuously rearticulated through competing attempts to define society and identity. Nevertheless, some fixations of meaning manage to become institutionalised to the point where we think of them as natural - it is these we want to identify (ibid, p.2).

4.5 Analytical Framework This analysis maps the processes in which XR struggle to define a fixed representation of a core problem to which they aim to find a solution. Although the represented problem is environmental in nature, the analytical framework elaborated on below assesses how environmental is conceptualised and what is implied about structural power relations. It is believed that the solution is less probable to mitigate social inequality if it is not represented as part of the problem. The analytical framework consists of six questions, formulated with regards to the six questions proposed by Bacchi (in Bacchi and Goodwin, 2016, p. 20) and elaborated further using the theoretical framework and case as guidance.

The analysis embraces an open approach, as limiting the answers to presupposed categories risk trivialising rather than clarifying the findings (Esaiasson et al., 2017, p. 224). This also

20 ensures a more valid and authentic result as it allows the researcher to include findings that were not expected beforehand. Although this essay does not make use of simplified classification schemes or codebooks, it strives for reliability by revisiting the concepts and definitions in theoretical framework when deciphering the material (ibid, p.209). In order to ensure transparency and relative rigour, it is clearly defined in advance how each question should be approached and what it aims to disclose. This makes it possible for others to recreate the study in a similar way by using the same tools, hence creating intersubjectivity. All questions and sub-questions in the analytical framework have been asked to the material and the answers (including relevant quotes exemplifying the discourse(s)) have been systematically inserted into an excel document to provide an overview. The analysis elaborates on the findings.

21 4.5.1 MODIFIED WPR QUESTIONS

Overarching question Sub-questions Explanation

1. What are the problem(s) • What kind of environmental Question 1 will help us identify represented to be in Extinction problem is represented? the underlying problem Rebellion’s discourse? • Is social injustice part of the representation(s) in XR’s issue? discourse, which will thereafter serve as a starting point for interrogation.

2. How has this specific • Have specific power Questions 2 and 3 tap in to how representation of the problem(s) relations created forms of the problem representation came come to be? authority for certain types of to exist and why it looks the way knowledge? it does. They gives us a chance • Do XR attempt to appeal to to identify the structures in multiple collective which it was created and identify identities? implicit assumptions and implications in place. Important to note is that the identity of individuals drafting proposals is not at focus, solely structural factors such as binaries and hierarchies of power are examined.

3. What presuppositions and • How was this problem assumptions underlie the representation possible? problem representation? • Which assumptions were in place within the proposal for it to make sense? • Which binaries does it depend on? • Are environmental problem(s) understood as

22 equally pressing for everyone?

4. Who is represented as • Is there an understanding of Questions 4 and 5 aim to shift responsible for creating the interconnectedness? Is there focus towards what problem and who is supposedly an understanding of consequences this problem affected by it? transnational connections representation has. They focus between responsible and on whether people have equal affected? access to agency within the • What is seen as legitimate or movement and investigate how possible actions for different the solution affects groups of groups (gender, class, race, people. Building upon the notion ability)? that privilege is reproduced • What consequences does through relational and this have for the agency of productive power allows us to subgroups? Inferiority and assess whether the solution aims saviorism? to disrupt the hierarchies already in place. It is worth noting that it is political implications rather than measurable outcomes we examine.

5. What effects does this • What does the solution representation of the problem(s) actually entail? have for the proposed solution? • What or who is believed to be able to change society? Which subjects are represented as active or passive? • Who is disadvantaged by the solution? • Does the solution risk reproducing current power hierarchies?

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6. What is left unproblematised • Who or what is not Question 6 attempts to examine in this problem representation? mentioned? whether the call for an analysis • Are social structures of structural intersectional accounted for? Is gender, privilege is integrated in the race, class and ability represented problem. What discussed? should be part of the problem is • Is the connection between decided with regards to the environmental and social theoretical framework, and any issues acknowledged? factors which are remotely • Is there a discussion on how relevant for the problem will be the actions of the global searched for. North affect the global South? • Are all issues framed as equally pressing?

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5. Analysis

The first section below elaborates on the overarching themes that were found in the answers - dividing them into a technical-environmental problem representation and a societal-environmental on. Both problem representations (found through question 1 in the analytical framework) are thereafter presented in three parts, outlining their respective presumptions (building upon question 2 and 3), consequences (building upon question 4 and 5) and invisibilities (building upon question 6). The following Discussion then deals with the implications the findings have in relation to the research question.

5.1 Overview and identification of the problem representation(s) After getting an overview of the results derived from the material, the first question in the analytical framework, What are the problem(s) represented to be in Extinction Rebellion’s discourse? helped conclude that there was not such a thing as one problem representation within the movement. In a simplified manner, part of the material derived from the webpage, mostly the emergency, the strategy, two of the three demands and large parts of the FAQ, as well quotes from the newspaper articles – painted a picture of a problem in the proximate future which was mostly “nature”-environmental and UK-based. Other parts of the material – such as Our principles, Our vision and the third of the demands were inconsistent with this view. Instead they implied that the problem was already here and clearly interlinked with global injustice. The problem representation in the material representing the criticism was more focused on interconnectedness and saw environmental concerns as social concerns – rather than looking at them as two different problems linked to each other. The criticism will be discussed in relation to both the technical-environmental problem and the societal- environmental problem, as they have been labelled in this essay.

In this first sub-chapter of the analysis, the representation of technical-environmental problems is discussed. This problem is represented as urgent and proximate, but in a way so that there is still a chance to prepare for it. In addition it is represented as a local problem which is affecting, and can be solved in and by, the UK. The environment is in this problem representation conceptualised as solely nature-focused and scientifically measurable.

25 In the second sub-chapter, the representation of a societal-environmental problem is discussed. This problem is represented as urgent and current, already affecting people around the world – especially the most structurally marginalised groups. It is understood that this problem is based on global systems of oppression and that the global South is affected more severely than the global North. The environment is in this problem representation is still conceptualised as nature-focused, but here environmental and societal issues are seen as interlinked.

Both problem representations are presented and analysed below. The answers from the analytical framework’s questions are juxtaposed based on this division. First, the origin of the problem and its underlying presumptions are examined through the 2nd and 3rd questions: How has this specific representation of the problem(s) come to be? and What presuppositions and assumptions underlie the problem representation?. Thereafter the 4th and 5th questions, Who is represented as responsible for creating the problem and who is supposedly affected by it? and What effects does this representation of the problem(s) have for the proposed solution?, suggests implications this specific problem representation has for suggested solutions and agency within the movement. Lastly, what has remained invisible in this problem representation is discussed through the question 6 - What is left unproblematised in this problem representation?

5.2 Analysis of the proximate, local and technical-environmental problem

5.2.1 PRESUMPTIONS AND CREATION OF PROBLEM The technical-environmental problem representation seems to build on the assumption that an environmental emergency is proximate, yet there is still time to address and mitigate it if we act now. This problem is represented as human induced and heavily resting on a notion that this “massive crisis” has remained invisible or downplayed in “our” consumer-focused current economic and political systems. The problem depends on the binary of the “enlightened us” and the “benighted them”. This can be glimpsed in i.e. the 10th principle, called We are based on autonomy and decentralisation:

26 “We recognise that we can’t look to government to solve the world’s problems. It tends to concentrate power and wealth in the hands of a very privileged few, and often does not have the interests of the majority of people and the natural world at heart.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

In regards to the sub-question about authority of knowledge, “western” science rather than traditional knowledge is given authority in this part of XR’s discourse. The problem is overwhelmingly presented with scientific data about the severity of the state of the environment that will affect us all (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a), and the problem might be presented accordingly in order to fit consideration of the UK government as well as parts of the population who are not grasping the situation. According to XR themselves, Extinction Rebellion is a “result of academic research and mass engagement” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f). The movement’s academic origin is visible throughout the material, and data on how the crisis is universal might make it possible to overlook that differentiated vulnerability in the problem formulation. Although it is stated that people are affected all over the world, explicit examples are only given of how the climate is changing in Europe:

“As global temperatures rise we see an increase in extreme weather events such as heatwaves. For example, scientists from the UK Met Office who examined the extreme heat wave which struck Europe in the summer of 2003 (which is now thought to have killed 70,000 people) concluded that “it is very likely…that human influence has at least doubled the risk of a heatwave exceeding this threshold magnitude.”” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a)

5.2.2 IMPLICATIONS FOR SOLUTION AND AGENCY The “current economic and political systems” are represented as responsible for the crisis, therefore influencing the government is the ultimate goal and mass mobilisation in full public view is an important aspect of the solution. According to research citied by XR, if 3.5% of the population is mobilised it is guaranteed that political change will be achieved (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f). In order to mobilise as many as possible, the movement therefore aims to be “apolitical” and focus on hope – stating that “our hearts tell us a different world is possible” (ibid). In terms of the strategy chosen to tackle the problem, non-violent “above the ground” civil disobedience is determined to be the best solution. The movement focuses less on traditional activist systems and more on i.e. getting arrested, which has consequences for agency. In their resource on Arrestee Welfare we can read that:

27 “Extinction Rebellion is a movement that uses nonviolent direct action and mass arrest as a tactic to achieve its aims. Many XR rebels connect with the ecological crisis and with XR’s strategy and are willing to face arrest to help achieve these aims” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019g).

There is some recognition of privilege and differentiated opportunity to act, nevertheless critically tiny and unspecified. It is for example not elaborated on how this will affect people differently and for whom it is not a good idea, and to be willing to get arrested is seen as an admirable and romanticised action. In reality, romanticising arrestees creates a situation in which those who are – as a consequence of social structures – not able to risk getting arrested less room to act and engage. In the section about XR’s strategy we learn that not everyone needs to get arrested for the collective action to work, explained with the sentence “for some this is not a good idea” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f).

Moreover XR communicate with the police for “security reasons” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f). During many manifestations – especially during the April Rebellion – activists from XR chanted “the police - we love you” (Extinction Rebellion Podcast, 2019). An event which sparked debate was when a bouquet of flowers were left by an Extinction Rebellion protester for staff at Brixton police station with a note which ran “To all the kind souls at Brixton police station, for all you have done with decency and professionalism.” (Shand-Baptiste, 2019). Bearing in mind the “ugly history with deaths of black people in police custody” (Dhaliwal, 2019) those opposing the action – especially people of colour – argued that it was incredibly ignorant to hand over such a note on behalf of the movement to the same station where Sean Rigg, a black man, died in custody in 2008 (ibid). Again, praising an institution which to some groups has proven to be dangerous or even lethal alienates these groups from the movement. Although still criticised for being too pro-police, the discourse was more complex in the October rebellion. According to an anonymous XR activist interviewed on the podcast:

"We are amazingly privileged, we've got a fantastic legal system which obliges the police to be kind to us. One must take ones hat off to the system. But at the same time everything has a plus and a minus and we need to remember that the police are the agents of the government, and we have a government which is absolutely profoundly negligent." (Extinction Rebellion Podcast, 2019)

28 Just as XR’s relationship with the police is controversial, so is some of their disruptive actions attempting to disturb “business as usual”. During the October rebellion, an action was carried out at Canning Town subway station, hindering commuters in a working class area of London to get to work in the morning. According to a poll in XR’s internal chat, a large majority of the movement was against the carrying out the action, and XR later released a statement where they said they were sorry that the disruption affected “those already suffering the hardships of a toxic system” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019h; Osborne and Dalton, 2019). However, the organisational model of XR allowed the group to carry it through, and in hindsight XR did not condemn the action and still praised the activist as:

“… incredibly courageous individuals, willing to face prison sentences, and motivated by the same deep fear and profound love that drives so many of us to do what we do” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019h).

The quotes below also imply that those who feel alienated from the movement are simply not concerned enough with the nature-environmental emergency, and leave out the possibility that people are just not on board with the strategy or other parts of the discourse of XR as a consequence of i.e. exclusion. People who are not able to or feel welcome to join as a result of social structures - but still care just as much about the environmental crisis, if not more since they often are the most affected - remain invisible. In the FAQ section on their webpage, the question Aren’t you alienating a lot of the people that you should be working with? was answered as follows:

“Yes, we may be. There is far less awareness than we need in the public around just how bad a situation we are in, though there are signs that this is finally and rapidly improving. This goes to the very heart of the problem. And so, yes, people who do not understand, or who through denial reject the gravity of the situation being laid out by scientists, may find it easy to disagree with the actions and find us alienating.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b)

And the question How can you justify the inconvenience and loss caused to businesses and individuals as a result of your actions? What if someone loses their job because they are late for work? was concluded with:

29 “We would encourage anyone who feels upset or angry by our actions to find out more about the severity of the ecological and climate crisis.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b)

5.2.3 WHAT REMAINED INVISIBLE Most striking, when guided by the theoretical framework, is the lacking focus on any kind of inequality in the long section called “the emergency” on XR’s webpage (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a). For example, words like gender, race, ability or injustice are not mentioned a single time in the 5400 words text. The north / south divide constructed by coloniality and imperialism is only implicitly addressed in one line;

"…most of these deaths (pollution-related) occur in low-middle income countries and are largely preventable by using modern technologies" (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a).

The environmental emergency is defined as a “global problem” throughout the text, but all examples are euro-focused and it remains rather unclear who is actually responsible for the core problem. Just as in all three demands: “Act now, Tell the truth and Go beyond politics”, the main focus lies solely on the UK and the crisis is not conceptualized as a transnational one. In the third demand – which is to be realised through establishing a citizens assembly - mitigation of impacts of changes on the most vulnerable people in society is mentioned as a partial utility (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019c). This means that alleviating social inequality in the UK is probably also partially represented as a problem that they hope to solve, but it is not framed as equally pressing as for example climate change.

The technical-environmental problem representations contains some vague references to the social structures in which the movement is located, mostly focused on the economic and political ignorance and its direct link to climate change and carbon emissions. But all in all this material treats environmental problems as rather “neutral”. There is i.e. a call to “think about risks in advance, make use of the precautionary principle in environmental policy and avoid tipping points“ (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019a) – all very technical-environmental calls in nature. But other policy principles such as the common but differentiated responsibility, a principle that has been emphasised as crucial by many structurally marginalised (intra- and internationally) and that bases ones responsibilities on one capabilities (Stone, 2004), are for example not discussed.

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5.3 The current, global and societal-environmental problem

5.3.1 PRESUMPTIONS AND CREATION OF PROBLEM The societal-environmental problem representation is based on an assumption that the world is unjust. Discussions on structural vulnerability are however never built upon scientific facts or statistics – in contrast to environmental ones. In addition environmental issues are still conceptualised as equally pressing for everyone. In the ten core principles of XR there is however implicit reference to dividing structures, power hierarchies and dement of discriminatory behaviour in five; 2. We set our mission on what is necessary, 4. We openly challenge ourselves and our toxic system, 6. We welcome everyone and every part of everyone, 7. We actively mitigate for power and 10. We are based autonomy and decentralisation. As can be seen in i.e. the following quotes, the core premise of this formulation seems to be that justice also needs to be addressed if one wants to change the current state of the world. In the 2nd principle, it is said that:

“The world is deeply unequal, with wealth and power levers concentrated in a small minority. We have crises in our mental and physical health, including our children, based in different forms of malnutrition and an increasingly toxic environment. We live with the threat of pandemics alongside antibiotic failure. Our financial system is destined for another crisis bigger than the last. There is a global culture of conquering “others”, of competition, of revenge and of terrorism.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

And in the 6th principle, it is stated that:

“The world is currently defined by multiple hierarchies of race, class, gender, sexuality, etc. /…/ To create safer spaces we need to work actively to continuously build understandings of how these hierarchies operate, so that we can challenge them and build inclusion through making our spaces more accessible. Therefore, for our movement to be safe for everyone, it needs to be safe for the most marginalised.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

Additionally, the section called Our vision – written in a poetic and speech-like way also admit that social injustice probably exist within the movement as well:

31 “Whilst we aim to live in a world where these hierarchies [referring to “various social hierarchies”] no longer exist, we cannot simply pretend that they don’t within our own network.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f).

This problem representation is nevertheless absent from more salient solution proposals, and critics argue that it is merely a politically motivated façade reflecting a will to mobilise a broader base of activists. It is apparent in regards to the sub-question Does the problem representation attempt to appeal to multiple collective identities? that they are trying to appeal to and include all. As stated in Our Vision as well as in a response in the FAQ on XR’s webpage to a question about XRs political sympathies:

“… there is no Them and Us, only all of us together, Extinction Rebellion seeks alliances wherever they can be found.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

“We are working to improve diversity in our movement. We don’t think it is helpful to set this up as a fight between the “left” and the “right”, we have an enormous challenge before us, we believe we need to lay down our differences and find our common ground” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b).

5.3.2 IMPLICATIONS FOR SOLUTION AND AGENCY Since the underlying problem is still represented as affecting all, tactics are focus on including all. In accordance with an intersectional feminist perspective, hierarchies of power need to be levelled in order to ensure this. To some extent the solution to this problem representation attempts to do so. XR commit to “learning and adapting” on short term, and to make use of a citizens assembly in long term. Their 5th principle, We value reflecting and learning is often referred to as a response to various critiques, and in the 8th principle it is stated that:

“Mistakes are opportunities to learn. We look for ways to connect and understand. Listening deeply to each other is a powerful tool. We especially need to listen to those of us that come from groups whose voices tend to be silenced.”. (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

Another example is the official response to the critique of the action on the Canning Town subway station, where XR claim in their official statement that:

32 “We will revise how to better take into account the feedback loops established /…/ It’s clear we need to take serious time to learn from what went wrong.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019h)

The citizens assembly is XR’s ultimate insurance that all groups are included in the decision- making process, however it would exist only after the movement has succeeded. According to XR, it would work similar to jury-duty, where people are called up at random and thereby represent a cross-section of society:

“Using a Citizens Assembly rather than getting our current politicians to try and resolve the issues of climate change will mean more transparency and real commitment to find a true solution, rather than one that will only work for the few.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b)

In the societal-environmental problem representation, there is some understanding of differentiated agency. Class based marginalisation is addressed in theory by admitting that class discrimination has been a way for the rich elite to perpetuate a self-serving ideology. It is stated in the principles that there is a need to design an economy that “maximize well-being for all people and minimise harm to each other, creatures and the planet” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f). Ability based discrimination is discussed thoroughly in many principles as well as in discussions regarding policing, and it is clearly stated that accessibility is important in meetings and actions. Ensuring accessibility, according to XR, entails ability to provide child care, wheelchair access, and assurance that the movement do not only speak technical jargon. According to a member of “XR disabled rebels” who calls herself Nikki, there were (during an action in the October Rebellion at New Scotland Yard) considerable efforts among rebels within the movement to ensure that equipment for neurodivergent rebels, disabled toilets and disability stewards were available at all sights (Extinction Rebellion Podcast, 2019, 5.17). According to her and other interviewed activists on the podcast, the police rather than the movement was the obstacle to inclusion, as they were “particularly difficult against disabled people” (Extinction Rebellion Podcast, 2019, 3.52). Racial discrimination as well marginalisation is mostly recognised as a problem in the section Our Vision. Race is for example problematised as follows, in a discussion about what is important to remember:

33 “Reparation is needed. So is recognition: that Europe stole its wealth through its imperialism, colonialism and slavery. So is respect: that the global South has resisted for hundreds of years, knowing that a shining kind of courage can end centuries of wrong.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

It is never specified more in depth how a person of colour would be affected different than a white person, however, in one of the answers in the FAQ section, it is stated that XR “especially ask white people to learn about white privilege”. Gendered marginalisation is probably the least touched upon out of the categories this essay chose to investigate. This is however also true for the problem representation in the criticism, where examples of how belonging to the groups “women” “men” or being affected by gendered structures in general affected participation or agency were equally absent. The only place where XR openly discuss gender (more than sometimes including the word “gender” in a list of hierarchies, see above) is where social hierarchies are exemplified with:

“… being a black woman one encounters different forms of oppression to a white woman, because of how race and gender combine and compound to shape experiences.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

All in all, the solution is seldom more elaborate and specific than a will to dismantle the toxic system, but it is continuously argued that there is a need to de-establish the pillars that keep the current economic and political system in place. When responding in the FAQ to the critique that they are solely advocating for technical solutions, they claim that:

“It is down to the Citizens Assembly to come up with solutions, having first heard from various experts. The way we frame the question for the Citizens Assembly will mitigate against narrow solutions that are ineffective for dealing with the wider contact and system-wide issues.” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b)

5.3.3 WHAT REMAINED INVISIBLE Besides addressing climate and environmental issues, we understand that XR do recognise that there is a link or a correlation with other injustices based on power structures in part of their discourse. Nevertheless, some connections still remain unproblematised. Although it is understandable that the movement does not claim to be able to change the world, an intersectional feminist analysis would – in accordance with Davis - remark that the local is

34 always interdependent on the global. Anyhow, inside of this more intersectional problem representation, the 2nd principle presents some sort of disclaimer:

“(O)ur job may be less about “saving the world” and more about trying to develop our [authors italic] resilience as multiple collapses take place. We are based in the UK and we love this part of the world deeply” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019f)

As stated above, the criticism of XR in contrast takes a more intersectional approach by emphasising that the problems are not only linked but in essence one and the same problem and structural in nature. For example, Kuba Shand-Baptiste, a female black activist and writer for the Independent, argues that:

“Environmental issues are human issues; are class issues; are race issues. They have been aggravated and created by the structures we’ve wrongly come to think of not just as irreplaceable but as intrinsic to the survival of the world: capitalism, colonialism, the patriarchy.“ (Shand-Baptiste, 2019).

5.4 Contribution and answer of research question Having found two parallel problem representations in the analysis which have thereafter been examined more in depth, it has been concluded that power and privilege manifest in rather different ways in the two representations. The first problem representation could risk reproducing power relations while the latter could instead help dismantle privilege. In addition, one of the problems is represented as more important than the other one. This conclusion is drawn based on amongst other things, the way XR has chosen to respond to critique claiming that their disruption might alienate or worsen more privileged people’s lives. This will be discussed at the end of this chapter.

5.4.1 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO PROBLEM FORMULATIONS In summary, the societal-environmental problem is elaborated on with decorative language, XR is painting a picture of a hopeful, inclusive and fair future. This representation refers to the environmental and social problems as interlinked. The message XR is sending out in this problem representation and the solution proposals that follow is that we should love all and include all. This problem representation acknowledges that the most vulnerable are hit the

35 hardest while contributing less to environmental degradation, and pays tribute to indigenous groups and people from the global South who have long before XR fought for the environments well-being. The societal problem is underpinned by very few scientific sources and often speak in broad and “neutral” language. “We” is never defined or discussed, and other environmental groups are for example never acknowledged by name. It follows that who is responsible for the environmental problem remains invisible. The societal- environmental problem representation is most present in the ten principles and in the section called our vision. In addition, it is briefly influencing what activists on the street say in interviews in articles and on XR’s official podcast. Lastly this problem representation also shines through in the third demand of XR – where a citizens assembly is assumed able to ensure that all parts of society get to participate in decision-making.

Contrarily, the technical-environmental one is largely built upon scientific reports and academic research, and centres around the “severity of the ecological and climate crisis”. This problem representation suggests solely single issue tactics and scientific solutions in the UK as a response to the problem. It for example fails to mention that the UK has played a big part in establishing the fossil fuel industry that already has had dire ecological and climatic consequences in the global South (Malm, 2017). The technical-environmental problem formulation is most present in the discussion of “the emergency”, the determination of strategy and the more deliberative forum of FAQ. In addition, the articles and podcast informing this essay about the details of some of XRs actions makes it clear that the non- lingual practice of XR also build upon the same problem formulation.

5.4.2 MANIFESTATION OF STRUCTURAL POWER The two problem representations do have similarities, they for example agree that the current political and economic systems are the root causes of the problem(s). Nevertheless, as has been shown, they also vary immensely. In prolongation it seems to be mainly the technical- environmental problem representation that has guided the actions and strategy of the movement. Letting this problem representation guide the actions of XR could, according to an Intersectional Feminist analysis, in many ways reproduce power relations and privilege in society within the movement.

Firstly, since the movement very clearly states that they aim to (and need to) mobilise 3.4 % of the population in their collective action in order to achieve political change, XR claim that

36 getting everyone on board with the severity of the ecological crisis is vital. For them this seems to involve maintaining a “neutrality” and nudge people from the “left to the right” on the political spectrum to lay down their differences. While this might be a good idea and an ultimate goal for many, an intersectional perspective tells us that this is simply not possible for someone who is marginalised in a society. One cannot choose to not be structurally marginalised or vulnerable.

Secondly, the main tactic of Extinction Rebellion is to get arrested, and it is claimed that this tactic is needed in order for the disruption to be radical enough. However, as has been elaborated on earlier, getting arrested is simply not an option for some people – race for example seem to play a particularly important role in determining how you are treated by the police in the UK. Ultimately then, while XR claims that there are other roles one can play in the movement besides being an arrestee, those roles are not romanticised to the same extent. As they are for example never discussed in official statements, one can draw the conclusion that they are framed as “less important”, thereby those who cannot afford to get arrested as a result of structural marginalisation risk marginalisation within the movement as well.

Thirdly, although there is some problematisation and recognition of differentiated privilege, those criticising the movement are met by claims that risk diminishing their agency. Despite claiming that they are “taking serious time to learn from what went wrong” on numerous occasions, XR still “encourage anyone who feels upset or angry by our actions to find out more about the severity of the ecological and climate crisis” (Extinction Rebellion UK, 2019b). This leaves no room for people who are engaged in environmental activism to disagree with or choose a different path than the way forward as advocated by XR.

So in what way are power relations and privilege/marginalisation manifested in Extinction Rebellions problem representation(s)? Albeit vast efforts to address inclusion, recognise privilege and dismantle power relations, it has been found that power hierarchies are reproduced in at least part of Extinction Rebellions problem representations. Even though the societal-environmental problem representation suggests a collective identity into which all are welcome and all are needed, not everyone might feel like their needs are satisfied by the movement nor be on board with the tactics and strategies to reach its goal. It is thereby natural that this has resulted in criticism of XR from other environmental activists and less privileged sub-groups within the movement.

37 6. Conclusion

6.1 Reproduction of structural power relations

This analysis has shown that part of Extinction Rebellions discourse rest on a problem representation that risks reproducing current structural power hierarchies. Many of the societal problems which are crucial according to an intersectional feminist approach and an EJ perspective are touched upon in one of the problem representations found in XR’s discourse. However, that problem representation is framed as more particularistic and less important than the pure ecological- and climate crisis. So are also the roles available within the movement to those who i.e. cannot afford getting arrested as a result of structural vulnerability. The alienating tactics and the “neutrality” of XR’s discourse show that societal problems are seen as parallel but not integrated to environmental ones. It also reveals that it is the technical-environmental problem formulation that guides the strategy of the movement. Relating this back to the broader research problem, it resonates with what has been found in previous social movement research. In practice, Extinction Rebellion might rest on the ideal of inclusion, but in reality the efforts they make do little to challenge the unequal relations between privileged and marginalised groups. Although it is most probably unintentional to exclude certain subgroups in society, the movement was started by structurally privileged people and the most used tactics are not available to all. For a movement that otherwise have shown to have the potential to influence politics, the overwhelming focus on technical issues could have dire consequences.

However, there is a need to separate between what XR has not yet figured out in terms of inclusion and their effective way of mobilising self-organised groups and reach a global audience. This essay will not go further into the debate on whether their success depend on things like their aesthetics, their appeal to emotions, their community organising or on what the critiques suggest: the fact that their ”harmless” single issue approach is allowing the current political and economic system to remain intact (Lewis, 2019; Shand-Baptiste, 2019). One cannot rule out that to solely focus on “the environmental issues that will affect us all” and downplay issues that are framed as more particularistic could also be part of their strategy. Perhaps, it is even a choice based on a speed/cost analysis.

38 6.2 Implications for future research Choosing an interpretive approach to examine problem representation(s) has allowed for an intersubjective interpretation of power (re)production in an understudied and young environmental movement. The choice of design and methods has significant implications for the generalisability of the findings. However, this case study does not aim to be perfectly generalisable and contributes to the field by offering a certain perspective. It is therefore suggested that future research explore other methods to further examine the mechanisms involved in manifesting structural power hierarchies in environmental movements, as well as involve several other cases for comparison. If we are going to – in accordance with the call from the UN – come up with inclusive and integrated strategies to address environmental issues while simultaneously combatting inequality, this topic needs further consideration in academic research. Is it i.e. possible to have inclusion of the most marginalised groups and effective mass mobilisation simultaneously? If environmental issues are man-made problems requiring an intersectional feminist solution, can Extinction Rebellion be part of it?

39 7. Bibliography

7.1 Material Primary sources [online] Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019a). The Emergency. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/the-truth/the- emergency/ (accessed 11.20.19).

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019b). FAQs. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/the-truth/faqs/ (accessed 12.25.19).

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019c). Our Demands. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/the- truth/demands/ (accessed 11.20.19).

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019f). About Us. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/the-truth/about-us/ (accessed 12.22.19). [including Our Vision, Our Strategy and Our principles]

Secondary sources [online] Sources representing XR’s discourse Extinction Rebellion Podcast (2019) XR & the Police – Extinction Rebellion Podcast Special 2.7 [Podcast]. 20:th of October. Available at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0s58Uw0EHGcQCP4brZefwq (accessed 12.23.19)

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019g). Arrestee Welfare. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/act- now/resources/arrestee-welfare/ (accessed 12.23.19).

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019h). Today’s tube action: how it happened. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/2019/10/17/todays-tube-action-how-it-happened/ (accessed 12.23.19).

Osborne, S., Dalton, J., (2019). ‘Extinction Rebellion express ‘regret’ after commuters drag protester from Tube train and kick him.’ The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/extinction-rebellion-protests-london-today-tube- train-canning-town-station-underground-a9159631.html (accessed 12.27.19).

40 Rawnsley, J., Gayle, D., (2019). ‘Met police accused of “degrading” treatment of disabled XR activists.’ The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/oct/29/met- treatment-of-disabled-xr-activists-branded-degrading-and-humiliating (accessed 12.27.19).

Sources representing the alternative discourse Dhaliwal, S., (2019). ‘Extinction Rebellion haven’t thought about BAME people and it shows.’ Metro. Available at: https://metro.co.uk/2019/10/17/extinction-rebellion-havent-thought-bame-people-shows- 10937741/ (accessed 12.30.19).

Dines, H., (2019). ‘The climate revolution must be accessible – this fight belongs to disabled people too.’ The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/15/climate- revolution-disabled-people-activism (accessed 12.30.19).

Lewis, A., (2019). ‘Too white, too middle class and lacking in empathy, Extinction Rebellion has a race problem, critics say.’ CNN. Available at: https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/24/uk/extinction- rebellion-environment-diversity-gbr-intl/index.html (accessed 12.30.19).

Shand-Baptiste, K., (2019). ‘Opinion: Extinction Rebellion’s treatment of class and race blocks its goal of climate justice.’ The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/extinction-rebellion-climate-crisis-race-class-london-arrests-xr- a9156816.html (accessed 12.27.19).

Wretched of the Earth, (2019). An open letter to Extinction Rebellion. Available at: https://www.redpepper.org.uk/an-open-letter-to-extinction-rebellion/ (accessed 12.10.19).

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42 Holm, M., (2019). The Rise of Online Counterpublics? The limits of inclusion in a Digital Age. (Doctoral thesis) Uppsala University: Department of Government.

Jorgensen, W., Phillips, L. M., (2002). ‘Laclau and Mouffe’s Discource Theory’ in Discource Analysis as Theory and Method. SAGE Publications, London, UK

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Reports [online] MRC Centre for Environment and Health, (2018). Ethnic minorities and deprived communities hardest hit by air pollution. Available at: http://www.environment-health.ac.uk/news/ethnic- minorities-and-deprived-communities-hardest-hit-air-pollution (accessed 1.2.20). Trócaire, (2017). Still Feeling the Heat. Overseas development agency of the Irish Catholic Church 74. Available at: https://www.trocaire.org/sites/default/files/resources/policy/still-feeling-the-heat.pdf (accessed 1.2.20).

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Articles, websites and twitter posts [online] Adam, K., (2019). ‘Extinction Rebellion: Meet the climate protesters blocking traffic in cities around the world’. Washington Post. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/extinction- rebellion-meet-the-climate-protest-group-disrupting-dozens-of-cities-/2019/10/07/e7574c72-e6b2- 11e9-b0a6-3d03721b85ef_story.html (accessed 12.10.19).

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Dodd, V., Taylor, M., (2019). ‘Why was the Met’s Extinction Rebellion protest ban unlawful?’. The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/06/why-was-the-mets- extinction-rebellion-protest-ban-unlawful (accessed 12.10.19).

Duell, M., (2019). ‘The faces behind the Extinction Rebellion climate change chaos’. Mail Online. Available at: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6927195/The-faces-Extinction-Rebellion- climate-change-chaos.html (accessed 1.2.20).

Extinction Rebellion UK, (2019d). From Monday 15 April: Extinction Rebellion to bring London to a standstill with extensive line-up of beautifully curated, artist-led actions. Available at: https://rebellion.earth/2019/04/14/from-monday-15-april-extinction-rebellion-to-bring-london-to-a- standstill-with-extensive-line-up-of-beautifully-curated-artist-led-actions%ef%bb%bf/ (accessed 12.28.19).

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Flood, A., (2019). “This isn’t good - angry commuters drag two #ExtinctionRebellion protesters off the top of a train - the single issue approach has led to the hard right being able to build a rhetorical oppositional base to XR which here takes a dangerous physical …”. @andrewflood. Available at: https://twitter.com/andrewflood/status/1184718270747856898 (accessed 1.2.20). Mothers of Invention, (2019). Mothers of Invention Podcast. Available at: https://www.mothersofinvention.online (accessed 1.2.20).

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