Climate activists vandalize Stonehenge by spraying orange powder
Climate activists with the group Just Stop Oil vandalized Stonehenge this week by spraying the ancient monument with orange powder to protest the continued use of fossil fuels in the U.K. (Just Stop Oil /TMX)
A climate activism group vandalized an ancient landmark in the U.K. as part of a wider protest against fossil fuels.
Just Stop Oil, the organization behind the Wednesday incident, is demanding "the incoming U.K. government commit to working with other governments to agree an equitable plan to end the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030."
"Stonehenge at solstice is all about celebrating the natural world — but look at the state it’s in! We all have a right to live a life free from suffering, but continued burning of oil, coal and gas is leading to death and suffering on an unparalleled scale," said 21-year-old Oxford student Niamh Lynch, who participated in the stunt.
Just Stop Oil vandals Rajan Naidu, 73, and Niamh Lynch, 21, run with orange spray canisters toward Stonehenge as bystanders yell for them to stop. (Just Stop Oil /TMX )
She added, "It’s time for us to think about what our civilization will leave behind – what is our legacy? Standing inert for generations works well for stones – not climate policy."
Stonehenge is an ancient megalithic circle of vertical arches made of stacked stones that align with the sun's path during the summer and winter solstices.
The structure, built during the Bronze Age and considered an important landmark of British heritage, is protected by law and cataloged as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Bystanders attempt to stop the two activists with Just Stop Oil as they spray orange powder paint on the ancient Stonehenge monument in the U.K. (Just Stop Oil /TMX )
Just Stop Oil claimed on social media that the orange substance was made of cornstarch and would easily wash away.
The other vandal was identified as Rajan Naidu, a 73-year-old man from Birmingham.
"Either we end the fossil fuel era, or the fossil fuel era will end us," Naidu said in the statement. "Just as fifty years ago, when the world used international treaties to defuse the threats posed by nuclear weapons, today the world needs a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty to phase out fossil fuels and to support dependent economies, workers and communities to move away from oil, gas and coal."
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In this handout photo, Just Stop Oil protesters sit after spraying an orange substance on Stonehenge in Salisbury, England, on Wednesday. (Just Stop Oil via AP)
This stunt is similar to dozens committed over the past several years by multiple climate activism organizations that have sought public attention via temporary or superficial vandalism.
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