Another video about what we were doing and why. Again in german, but the pictures and music are worth it even if you don't understand the language. It's about some of the actions that were done during or around the climate and RFT Camp(s), like blockading the power company RWE's private coal-railway tracks, dancing on them, squatting an empty house (because RWE gets people out of their way/makes them leace to get at the coal) when the police didn't want them to have their usual climate camp, squatting trees and living in/near them (some people do that for months and years on end!) to save the forest, planting a new community garden (see our previous post) and more.
I am so sorry for all the appropriative hairstyles :( We leafletted against that on the camp, but it will probably be a slow process until more people even learn what cultural appropriation is and why it's a problem here in germany.
The open cast brown coal mine you see at 4:30 is europe's biggest hole, it's part of a coal area with three similar mines and five power plants that together emit more CO2 than anything else in Europe does! Watching the video, you can't imagine how big this f*cking hole is! I stood at it's edge and still can't grasp it. They have several of the worlds biggest diggers working in it day and night, and they look kinda small in that hole. But if you stand beneath one of them they're just the scariest huge shits in the world, I swear. They have like 17 of those shovels on a big wheel, and each of those is big enough to be a tent for an entire family.
RWE already destroyed up to four fifths of the once big and old Hambacher forest, wich is one of the most biodiverse forests in the region, one of very few that were mostly left alone by people until then. It is a rich, beautiful forest with lots of animal and plant species, young and old trees and some species, like the Bechstein bat, who are going to go extinct if RWE gets what they want - because their plan is to destroy more of the forest every year until it is completely gone! They do the same to several villages and lots of very fertile farmland. They also mess with the underground water big time, just so their hole stays dry. The effects are also felt in the Netherlands and Belgium!
The environment suffers a great deal around the mine(s) and power plants, not just those areas that are dug up, but a much wider area. RWE are contributing big time to global climate change, killing people, animals and plants, whole species, the world over and destroying their habitat and livelihoods. The local environment also suffers due to lack of ground water, massive pollution, including partly radioactive dust and general dust, more clouds, light and noise and much more.
The tree squatters could use support, for example if people want to visit them and/or stay there for a while!
They also grow part of their own food in several gardens, including guerilla gardens. And they're anti-capitalist and anti-economic growth.