Nuclear weapons crime in the UK has been reported to Thames Valley Police.
In this Action AWE newsletter:
- Wool Against Weapons
- Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm!
- World in Chains book launch
We’ve had a busy time of it over the last few months, with several blockades of Burghfield AWE and of course the huge success of Wool Against Weapons – over the summer of 2014, thousands of people have demonstrated their commitment to opposing Trident replacement. But we’re not stopping here – there’s still a lot of work to be done if we are to manage to change the tide towards full disarmament of our countries weapons of mass destruction. In this newsletter, you can find out more about Action AWE’s next phase, called ‘Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm!’, a write-up of Wool Against Weapons with links to media coverage, photos and videos, and information about a new book, called ‘World in Chains’, edited by Angie Zelter.
Wool Against Weapons
Firstly, thank you to all those who contributed to making Wool Against Weapons on the 9th August the huge success it was. Thousands lined the route between Aldermaston and Burghfield, and thousands more contributed by knitting – Jaine Rose, who led the organi
sing, estimated that the knitting took somewhere in the region of 250,000 hours!That some sections of the route were lined on both sides of the route with pink scarf is a testament to the energy and creativity of the people who got involved with the action – in the end, we hada good deal more than the seven miles we had hoped for!
At 1pm the final links were made in the scarf and silence was held to remember the atomic bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, and all those whose lives have been effected by nuclear weapons (such as the residents of the Marshall Islands, where dozens of nuclear tests were carried out).
Wool Against Weapons was not just an act of historical remembrance though – we were there to protest the nuclear weapons being built at Aldermaston and Burghfield by the British government, and demand that instead of replacing Trident, we take the opportunity to disarm our nuclear weapons system. At the Burghfield end of the scarf it was possible to see the construction cranes which work everyday to prepare the site for Trident replacement, a reminder that £3 billion is being wasted every year in contracts to corporations like Serco, Lockheed Martin and Jacobs Engineering.
Wool Against Weapons was a huge milestone in our campaign to stop Trident replacement and make the first steps towards disarmament. See Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm! for information on what Action AWE are planning next!
Wool Against Weapons media coverage
There was lots of media coverage from Wool Against Weapons, and below is a summary of the print and online media. The day was covered on the BBC Berkshire news, and a clip of that is available at http://vimeo.com/103128783. Stroud Community TV also produced several short films documenting the day, and you can see these at http://stroudcommunity.tv/tag/nuclear/. A large collection of photos from the day are available on this flickr feed: https://www.flickr.com/photos/126451407@N03/.
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BBC News online – ‘Seven-mile scarf unveiled at Berkshire Trident protest’
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Bristol Post – ‘Bristol activists help create seven-mile long “peace scarf”
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Ekklesia – ‘Seven-mile peace scarf protest against Trident replacement’
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County Times – Jonny Drury, ‘Seven-mile long scarf is peace symbol, says campaigners’
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Reading Post – Jennie Slevin, ‘Campaigners plan protest at Burghfield AWE site today’
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International Business Times – ‘Nuclear weapon campaigners knit seven-mile “peace scarf” protesting Trident replacement’
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Morning Star – ‘Giant peace scarf unfurled between atomic weapons plants’
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Plymouth Herald – ‘Protesters at peace camp’
Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm!
In May 2015, we’ll be granted an historic opportunity to vote for nuclear disarmament; the approaching election will be the last before the ‘Final Gate’ decision is made on Trident replacement, and is our best opportunity to vote for those who would act for disarmament, not replacement.
To increase the pressure on decision-makers, Action AWE are calling for a month of action at Aldermaston and Burghfield AWE in March 2015, just a few short months before we go to the polls. We’re calling it Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm!, and we’re aiming for 31 actions in 31 days. In the build-up to the month, we’re asking people to sign a pledge, committing themselves to one day of action; see www.actionawe.org/pledge. We can also send out printed postcards and leaflets. Help us get the word out – spread the message, get friends signing the pledge, and start planning an action!
Five ways to support Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm
- Distribute leaflets and pledge cards (we can send you them in the post), or share our Facebook, Twitter and website publicity;
- Include leaflets and pledge cards in your organisation’s next mailing;
- Host a nonviolence training session or speaker from Action AWE in your local area;
- Sign the Act, Speak, Vote > Disarm! pledge, and ask people you know to do the same.
- Start planning an action – it could be street theatre, it could be a vigil,a blockade, some street theatre, an act of remembrance, a banner drop - it could be anything (and our website is full of ideas!)
Email [email protected]if you would like pledge cards or leaflets, or to find out about hosting a nonviolent direct action training (find us a room and some people, and we’ll be there!)
World in Chains book launch
To accompany the Action AWE campaign, Angie Zelter has edited a book, World in Chains. With contributions from a wide range of activists and scholars, World in Chains is a collection of essays that question the integrity of a society that accepts nuclear deterrents as valid forms of defence. It focuses on a lack of respect for international humanitarian law and the integrity of a society able to act compassionately in the wider public interest; awakens the UK to a need for a government that will work on a global ban for nuclear weapons; and criticises the militaristic mind-set that is currently dominating most societies as the cause of many catastrophic world problems. There will be book launches organised in other parts of the country – check the website for details, and get in touch with [email protected] if you would like to host one.
The book is available to purchase now via the Action AWE (email [email protected]). A book launch event will take place at Friends House, 173 Euston Road, London, NW1 2BJ, on the 4th November, 6:30-8:00pm. See http://actionawe.org/london-book-launch-world-in-chains-by-angie-zelter/ for more details.
