GLOUCESTERSHIRE Extinction Rebellion (XR) members will be lining up hundreds of pairs of children’s shoes in Stroud, Wotton and other locations around the county as they call on local and national authorities to treat the climate crisis with the same urgency as the coronavirus response.
Their efforts follow a larger protest in Trafalgar Square in May which involved more than 2,000 shoes. The footwear used in the action will be given to anti-poverty charity Shoe Aid.
The shoes are intended to serve as a reminder to those in power of the need to protect young people from both coronavirus and climate change.
The touring installation starts in Gloucester today (Friday) and will go across the River Severn to the Forest of Dean (Saturday 18th), Cheltenham (Sunday 19th) Wotton under Edge (Monday 20th), Stroud (Friday 24th), and Tewkesbury (Saturday 25th July).
The county-wide action is part of the lead up to the next national rebellion on September 1 when Parliament returns.
A spokeswoman for the group said: "The plans for this rebellion emerge following news that the government’s own committee on climate change are now warning them to prepare for 4°C of warming – an increase which could result in billions of deaths, with racially marginalised communities and those in the global south on the front line.
"The protest comes as UK lockdown eases and the government begins bailing out carbon intensive industries, writing off chances of keeping within Paris Climate Agreement promises."
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