The Crude Awakening: Newsletter 3 - BLOCS REVEALED

Submitted by Anonymous on Mon, 10/04/2010 - 11:04

The crude awakening - oil, your time is upBefore we get into this week's newsletter ... we would like to announce that Rising Tide will be on the Body Bloc. The bloc is meeting at 10am at Victoria Train Station – please come along and join us! Or, if one of the other two blocs suits you better then head along to one of them. The important thing is to sign up to a bloc (so you can receive texts on the day) on the Crude Awakening Website - Sign Up Page.

Also here's very short text on - Why Rising Tide signed up to The Crude Awakening...

“When we were emailed about supporting The Crude Awakening, it took us very little time to make the call. Of course - a mass action against the oil empire in central London! RT has been taking action on oil, particularly BP and Shell, for ten years, but now is the perfect time for a huge action; with many, many climate justice groups working together, all placing the oil industry directly in their sights. The Gulf of Mexico, tar sands, the Niger Delta, Rossport, oil exploration in the Artic...the list of disaster zones goes on and on. The time is now. We’ve also always felt that mass actions can be hugely inspiring events, extremely effective and are often an ‘easy in’ for new people. Plus a change in tactics: why tell the police where we're going? Why not keep the destinations under wraps and stay one step ahead of the Met? All that, and it's part of the Climate Justice Action global week of action. So we signed up, we are mobilising and we hope to see you on the streets on the 16th October!”

Right back to this weeks newsletter …

In this week's newsletter?
1. Blocs revealed: Dirty Money Bloc, Building Bloc, Body Bloc
2. Sign up now!
3. Upcoming events
4. Travel and accommodation
5. South Coast video

1. BLOCS REVEALED

Your day's adventure will be shaped by what bloc you choose to join. You can get as much or as little involved in the blocs as you want - from helping to make props in the run-up to bringing or wearing something specific on the day to just turning up. So sign up now and choose your own adventure.

Dirty Money Bloc, meeting at Euston Station, 10AM

The devastating global effects of the oil industry rely on company headquarters, banks, financial services and investment right here in London. Oil lubricates our whole economy - to stop oil, we must stop this dirty business.

After demonstrating examples of their dirty trade, the workers - ever-chained to their desks, imprisoned in the world of dirty money, finance and the oil industry - will gather, all suits and smarts; cuff-links and corruption; chanting shameless slogans, their placards and banners beating the morning sky. These advocates of avarice will be poised and ready to wreak more havoc on the earth, to take a hand in, direct and fund destruction.

Bloc aim: Business as usual.
Primary bloc activity: Expect oil spills, prospecting, extraction, desk based destruction and bags of dirty money.
Who should join this bloc: People ready to hold a space and beat the oil industry at their own game whilst doing it, a healthy amount of creativity and wit won't hurt a bit.
What you should bring: Yourself, some warm clothes, waterproofs and enough food and water to last you for the day.

Ready yourselves for a day at the office, trading floor, well or refinery. Come dressed as a banker, oil worker/prospector, or just in a boiler suit etc. with the tools of your trade - brief cases, office furniture, drilling equipment, hard hats, oil (molasses/treacle), symbolic(!) chains, bags or wads of money etc. If you have a trowel, spade or other digging device and are happy to bring it, do so.

Building Bloc, meeting at Waterloo Station, 10 AM

As long as both the flow of oil finance and the flow of the black stuff continue unchecked our treacherous course towards catastrophic climate change continues. The building block will be there to stop the oil industries flow, helping construct a cleaner future for us all.

Bloc aim: To stop the flow of oil.
Primary bloc activity: Expect to build. A fence, a ladder, a dam, a windmill perhaps. What we need is a structure, a structure big and strong enough to stop the flow of oil and help us stand our ground for a brighter future.
Who should join this bloc: People ready to be active while holding a space and ready to beat the oil industry at their own game whilst doing it. You don't need to be a builder, just have a desire to create, agitate and to claim and hold your space.
What you'll need: You'll need yourself, some warm clothes, waterproofs and enough food and water to last you for the day.

As with all constructive activities we'll need tools and materials.
Wood, screws and an electric screwdriver (with a fully charged battery). Chains, locks, sand bags (empty, unless you're very strong!) and cable ties might also be useful. Gloves might also come in handy too. Avoid anything that might be conceived as a weapon though. We all know the police like to play that trick! And remember, whatever you bring must be transportable on the tube and light enough for you to carry with you while we make our way around the city.

Body Bloc, meeting at Victoria Station, 10 AM

We are putting our bodies inside the spaces many would rather put out of their minds. Bones joined to bones becoming bodies in a world that we will turn inside out. We will interconnect our bodies, raising ourselves as giants in the moment. All you need to bring is your body.
Be the body bloc.

The Stilt Group will be part of the body bloc. This time we're thinking big, we're thinking high, we're thinking tall and we're going as a Stilt Group.

2. SIGN UP NOW!

Sign Up Page.

Choose your bloc and head on over right this minute to crudeawakening.org.uk/node/12 to sign up for it. Entering your email address will make sure you get all the juicy details running up to the 16th - but most important is your mobile number, which is needed to receive vital communication on the day.

Note: Even if you have already signed up on the website, you'll need to do it again to get information specific to your bloc. As you might have noticed, the sign-up page has been gone for the past week or so while we sorted this out ;) We're really sorry to make you do it again - but we're pretty sure you'll be glad you did!

And rest assured, your details will only be used for this action and we will never, ever pass them on to anyone else. Ever.

3. UPCOMING EVENTS

If you have been itching to get involved and get prepared then read on and come along to one or more of the following events.

LONDON

*Weekend of 8-9 October. London Rabble Rouser_ Mass Capture the Flag. It's a 3-way showdown between the three blocs - who will carry the day - Day, time, meeting point TBC.

MANCHESTER

*9 October. Public 'dis'order training. 12 noon - 6PM. Manchester Students Union. Prepare for the Crude Awakening by doing your own action! Learn why and how to do mass direct action with workshops and affinity group building.

4. TRAVEL AND ACCOMMODATION

If you're coming from the North, get yourself booked on transport leaving from Manchester. DEPARTS: Saturday 16th October at 6am.
Returns: Saturday very late evening. To book your ticket email: manchester [@] climatecamp.org.uk

Plan to stay overnight in London on Saturday night if you can, ideally with a mate. If you need help finding accommodation, email london@climatecamp.org.uk.

5. NEW VIDEO

Courtesy of our friends at South Coast Climate Camp Idea Lab - should get you thinking!
http://blip.tv/file/4158517.

That's all till next week... don't forget to sign up to your bloc!

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