environmental activists gather at night to turn off ‘unnecessary light advertisements’

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“Hop! You have a bucket, and I leave you a liter of glue“, launches Joad, in front of a group of twenty people, gathered in a circle, Tuesday, October 25, to listen to a briefing before an action in the 6th arrondissement of Paris. The environmental activists of Extinction Rebellion have made an appointment at night, each with a nickname: “Kiwi“, “Rakmi“, “Seed“, “Lili“… They are going to engage in a rather particular operation: to turn off the light of the commercial windows.

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The decree, issued by the government to generalize the extinction of store lights and illuminated advertisements between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m., will not be applied until June 1, 2023. The Paris town hall has taken a comparable decision with longer hours. (between 11:45 p.m. and 6 a.m.), but you have to wait until December 1st. So the activists take the lead, at night, in small groups and they criss-cross the capital to turn off the lights of closed businesses themselves.

Joad reminds the basic rules to the small troop: “We are non-violent during the actions, with only light degradations which consist of taping up a poster and turning off the light. So you all have a legal contact, who has the number of the legal back office, just in case…” In case one of them is arrested by the police. He can then call this legal contact while in police custody and better defend his rights.

After the presentation of the modus operandi, the activist justifies his fight. “We are in the symbolic… But not so much. On the one hand, we have an energy crisis, we have the risk of power cuts, and we have 12 million people who were cold last winter because they had difficulty heating themselves properly. On the other hand, energy is wasted on illuminated advertisements which are completely useless consumptions.”

The groups disperse in the streets, looking for windows that are still lit. How to turn them off? “In fact, there is a small box [fixé en hauteur]provided with a kind of arm which is raised“, shows one of the activists, And with the telescopic pole, we tweaked a little hook at the end and we’re going to try to lower it.“Clack! Lights out, the window is now dark.

The action is done as a team. While one tries to turn off the window, two others watch for the arrival of the authorities. If the police show up, they shout “cab!“Sometimes it is not possible to turn off the lights, so activists put up posters on the front of the shops.”We have feedback from merchants who told us that they were going to shut down earlier“, notes Joad.

A little further, Nazin, 22, pole in hand, offers his first militant action: “It’s this desire to stop depressing on your own in relation to the future of the world, where the climate and the inaction of the public authorities are heading, and so it’s starting with these kinds of small actions to try to raise awareness, to turn to collective action.”

“Me, I find that very good, I have always found it heresy to have windows lit in the middle of the night.”

A passer-by, at the time of the militant action

France Info

A few curious people watch the scene. If some applaud, others are more reserved on the method: “It would be good to do this in a concerted and voluntary way on the part of traders” After the windows, the group tackles billboards attached to bus shelters. Again, no breakage. Activists use a simple key. “A small, skilful and discreet movement“, smiles Joad, who opens the door where the neon lights are placed.

He removes the advertising poster, and gets rid of it immediately: “If we’re found with it, it’s like we’re flying.” Suddenly : “Taxi!“, launches an activist in the distance. The siren of a police car sounds in the street, but the action continues. The advertising poster ends up in the trash. The yellow one of course.


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