At midday Kathy is at the JP Morgan building, the rest of the Wanstead Activists have joined up with the crowd of protesters marching up Waterloo St and she watches as they come towards her. The fanfare is preceded by heart-beating drums and the shrill call of the lead drummer’s whistle.
The ever present hi-viz-wearing police outnumber and surround the group as they move, in an extraordinary show of overwhelming and quite unnecessary presence.
There is an indescribable current of electricity flowing freely between the activists. A bond of passion and determination. It’s evident to see on Kathy’s face.
Unity and power to the powerless and the isolated, a voice to those who would be silenced: these are the things on offer and this is what the Wanstead Climate Action group is here to be a part of.
Proceedings unfold and speakers take the stand, listing the inequities of JP Morgan and their continued support of the fossil fuel industry. Journalists capture every moment, every fact, and statistic, and more importantly the crowd’s reaction.
Just a mile away world leaders squabble in the ugly face of the facts, pledging only what is easiest to achieve.
Wanstead Climate Action 