Extinction is Forever. Business as usual = Death
Extinction Rebellion Australia, 18 Mar 2022
Rebels bring Blinky the Koala to the heart of the Adelaide Fringe Festival, with demands that the government must act now.
Blinky, a giant 4.5 metre tall animated koala, was at the head of a funeral procession for the billions of creatures who have died in climate-fuelled disasters around Australia in the last years. The procession moved down Rundle Road between two festival venues; Gluttony and the Garden of Unearthly Delights (Rundle Park). Rebels dressed in black gave speeches mourning the loss of life due to the climate and ecological crisis.
The image of Blinky’s driver, Blinky and other photos are by George Manos, Peter Barnes and Fernando Gonçalves. Also see the live coverage on the Extinction Rebellion South Australia facebook page.
Asked why she was attending the funeral procession, Chelsea said:
“Well firstly, I’ve got a couple of kids, two kids. It may look like a horror show. When I first saw this, I thought – it’s horrific. But, you know what, when you read the IPCC report and you see those koalas burning in the bushfires and you think about what’s going to happen – it’s just incredibly devastating. We have a moral responsibility as a society to our ancestors, all living creatures and for our grandchildren as well. That’s why I’m here.”
The procession halted to hear a powerful and moving speech by Anna Slynn, a working musician and retired social worker. Anna said:
“It is no exaggeration to say that business as usual equals death. If we keep going with relentless deforestation, if we remain dependant upon fossil fuels, and if we continue to do nothing about it, then this is the dreadful truth of what we are facing. In the very near future, koalas, the beloved icon of our country, will be extinct…
“Millions of species of animals and plants will be gone, never to return. The great barrier reef will die, bleached out of existence. Sea level rises will destroy our coastlines and inundate our river systems, damaging them beyond repair. Islands that are homes to many people will simply disappear. Our already polluted oceans will become so acidic that their biodiversity will reduce ocean life to almost nothing.
“Extreme weather events like the Black Summer fires and our current devastating floods will become more frequent, more intense. Communities will not have time to recover. Global weather patterns will become so unstable that food growing will become unviable. Millions will starve. The poorest will starve first. We will experience global mass migration, increased conflict and immeasurable suffering.
“If you are, at this moment, younger than 60 years old, then know this. This will happen within your lifetime. You will witness all of it, while you and your loved ones will be caught in a desperate battle for survival that you may not win.
“Our society is dominated by corporations that have ravaged this planet for profit on a massive scale for more than a century now. Fossil fuel giants like BP, Exxon Mobil and Santos have captured our governments, luring them into partnerships that render our democracy utterly useless in the face of this crisis.
“Our governments are controlled by Big Business, and willingly spread their lies and propaganda, bad-mouthing and sidelining our scientists so we fail to heed their warnings.
“Worst of all, instead of seeing these corporations for the criminally insane monsters they are, we have been deceived into believing that our way of life can go on forever. Well, Mother Earth has news for us.
“There is no longer any time left to take this slowly, to take the gradual course of change. We only have a small window of time left to save ourselves and our planet. So we must act now.
“We must act now to bring our world back from the brink of devastation. We must stop what we are doing and stand together. We must find a better way and find it fast.
“Because there IS a way to live, that does not threaten our own and all life’s existence. Do it for your children, your grandchildren, your partners, your neighbours, your friends, your colleagues, for humanity and for our beloved animals. Do it for this magnificent but beleaguered Earth that sustains us all.
"Join together and rebel against extinction, because extinction is forever."
