Environmental activists are organizing the “largest Disobedient Action Adventure Game” for “climate justice” later this month. The global online and offline disruptions are timed as world leaders gather in Paris Nov. 30-Dec. 12 (dubbed COP21) to try to generate a climate change agreement.
Specific actions are deliberately mysterious, but activists were encouraged to form teams and embrace tactics from a group called Beautiful Trouble. That list included a wide variety of actions including hoaxes, infiltration, blockades, occupations, mass street action, “media-jacking” and “creative disruption.” The site listed potential targets as: “fossil fuel lobbyists’ hotels, corporate events promoting non-existent solutions, and toxic greenwash advertising.”
The Guardian reported on Oct. 8, that activists involved with Climate Games have been talking with the hacker group Anonymous and participants with Attac France have already begun “requisitioning” (stealing) 196 chairs from global banks for an action.
A video trailer for the games said the objective is to “join the global movements swarming to shift the game against profit in favor of life. We are not fighting for nature. We are nature defending itself.” That video showed people interrupting events, barricading a building while chained together, and others running through a building dressed as PacMan and Ghosts, as well as protests on land and water.
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ClimateGames.net said participants will be fighting in person and online against as “Manifestations of ‘the Mesh’ — austerity-dictating politicians, fossil fuel corporations, industry lobbyists, peddlers of false solutions and greenwashers ...” Other examples of “The Mesh” included corporate headquarters, banks, coal mines, refugee detention centers and shopping malls. They have scheduled at least 15 separate training “workshops” throughout Europe later this month.
Plan for global disruption and journalists love it. The games have already gotten positive media attention from The Guardian (UK) and far-left websites including ROARMAG.org and Common Dreams. Climate Games supporters think “revolutionary change to the political and economic hegemony” is necessary.
Individuals using their phones and forming teams for direct action will cause chaos and disruption in Paris, and in other cities, with the help of the ClimateGames’ mapping tools. It calls itself a “trans-media action framework” in order to support “creative disobedience on the streets, in public space and in cyberspace.”
The site advises people to upload information (“map The Mesh”) about where things are happening and where targets for action will be, as well as “movements of the Mesh’s sidekick, Team Blue.” Team Blue is the law enforcement, security and secret service according to the FAQ page. That page also recommends people use Tor in order to remain anonymous and “to confuse Team Blue.”
Teams of participants are encouraging to come with creative ideas for disobedience, but ClimateGames pointed them toward a list of tactics at BeautifulTrouble.org. Many actions were on the list including hoaxes, occupations, “media-jacking” and “creative disruption.”
According to Beautiful Trouble, “media-jacking” is “To undermine your opposition’s narrative by hijacking their event; to draw attention to your side of the story; to capitalize on your target’s media presence; to reframe an issue; to be a jackass.”
“Creative disruption” is “To expose and disrupt the public relations efforts of the armed and dangerous. Particularly useful at speeches, hearings, meetings, fundraisers and the like.”
The Climate Games website also listed many available workshops leading up to the Climate Games including “creative resistance training” and “direct action” training.
The games won’t necessarily be kept to Paris. “The Climate Games are global. You can play in your own habitat, city, town, village, valley, field or forest,” the site explained, It’s also online, so eco-activists could be causing trouble almost anywhere.
Liberals have a long history of disruptive protests from strikes to riots. In recent years, Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter and Shut It Down have all dominated coverage from the supportive news media. Occupy did so while being involved in widespread crimes from arson to rioting and attacks on police resulting in more than 7,700 arrests, according to Occupy Arrests.
