– What we see is that there is really only one form of protest that people clearly support, and that is non-violent demonstrations, such as demonstration trains, says Thea Gregersen, researcher at Norce. – But when it comes to all the other forms of protest, there are more negative than positive. As part of a larger study, she and colleagues have asked Norwegians about their attitudes towards different types of climate activism. Only a total of 9 percent support or strongly support suspending sports or culture, while 76 percent oppose or strongly oppose. Throwing food or paint on art gets 2 percent support, 93 percent opposition. Only violent protests get more resistance. Easiest to ignore? School strikes and blocking roads get more support, but still have a solid majority of opposition, the survey shows. People are typically more negative about activism when they do not see the connection between the form of protest and the cause, explains Gregersen. – These results may indicate that people do not fully see what destroying works of art or stopping sports events has to do with climate. But perhaps there is a little more understanding of school strikes, where there are young people protesting for their future? Or even blocking roads, where it’s about cars and emissions, she says. Activists from the organization Stopp oljeletinga tried to glue themselves to the frame of Munch’s “Scream” in 2022. Protest linked to art is very unpopular among those asked. Just Stop Oil in England threw soup at Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” in 2022. Letze Generation (The last generation) entered a ski race in Austria in 2023. The support of 64 percent for demonstration trains may be related to the fact that there is a known form of protest that is used in many contexts. – It may seem that the type of activism that gets the most support is the one that is easiest to ignore? – Yes, that is one way of saying it. If demonstrations are not that disturbing for most people, then you don’t have to deal with it in the same way. At the same time, there is more opposition to throwing paint on works of art than blocking roads, says Gregersen. This is the survey: As part of an international survey, the researchers have collected data from Norway. They asked 1,500 Norwegians, a representative sample of the population, what they thought of different forms of climate activism. The survey was carried out in May and June 2024. The complete study has not yet been published, but the results of this survey have been shared with news. The survey is funded by Norce and the Center for climate change and energy transition. – It is not important to be popular – That it is controversial with the school strikes, for example, which were extremely important and have received enormous support, says quite a lot about us Norwegians’ climate attitudes, says Jonas Kittelsen in Extinction Rebellion (XR). They are behind a number of controversial climate actions. Most recently, they met at the energy fair ONS in Stavanger with Greta Thunberg and 100 other activists. “The naked truth” was one of XR’s actions during ONS. They would draw attention to what they call the oil companies’ greenwashing, while expanding exploration and production. Photo: Extinction Rebellion Norge / Extinction Rebellion Norge He is not surprised that it creates reactions. He has received several hate messages after the stunts in Stavanger. – Is it important for you to be popular? – No. How much political change one creates is more important than how well liked we are. – The labor movement went along, but in order to get the eight-hour day and the obligation to strike, they also disobeyed. People can be very negative towards the activists and their actions, but that does not necessarily harm the case itself, experts in protest movements, politics and psychology write in Nature. – And that is why sometimes the activists make the decision that it is worth being a little unpopular at the moment in order to create a stir, says Gregersen. Jonas Kittelsen is removed by the police during a demonstration under ONS. Photo: Extinction Rebellion / Extinction Rebellion – Polarizing Right after XR’s attempt to put a damper on the oil festival in Stavanger, a peaceful climate march took place through Oslo and several other cities. Organized by Nature and Youth (NU) together with trade unions, doctors, nurses and farmers. – We marched to show that we are willing to talk together and stand in solidarity with each other. By supporting climate measures that are fair in different ways for different parts of society, says Speaker Løkeland Ryste, deputy leader of NU. Exactly the one type of climate action a majority of Norwegians like, according to the survey. Speech Løkeland Ryste takes the floor during the climate march in Oslo. Photo: Natur og Ungdom / NU – I wish the media did a better job of covering the actual commitment that exists all around the population. Not just those who campaign with more extreme methods, because that can also seem a little polarizing, she says. The big dilemma Rewind a few years, and school strikes and climate clamor were at their height. Popular involvement and media coverage have since declined. But emissions continue, extreme weather continues, and temperature records are broken one after another. According to previous research, this can lead to the activists’ methods escalating in order to gain traction, explains Gregersen. But there is also research that shows that if activism becomes too extreme, it can lead to people ceasing to identify with the protest movement, and that support for the cause is reduced. All of this represents a big and well-known dilemma for many activists: – How important is it to get attention, and to what extent can you damage the cause by people being negative about what you concretely do? Just some of the slogans during the climate march in Oslo. Photo: Nature and Youth / Lovise T. Rannekleiv Not afraid to step on toes NU and XR emphasize that they support each other and share the same desperation to cut emissions. – I believe that our demonstrations and broad movements can play their actions well, and that their actions help to create a momentum for our demonstrations, says Løkeland Ryste. NU refers to victories such as in Lofoten, Vesterålen and Senja, the Wisting field and the Fosen case. An important goal for XR is to set the agenda. Kittelsen says the actions in Stavanger were covered in over 100 articles. The world’s biggest climate celebrity Greta Thunberg traveled to Stavanger to join the protesters. Photo: Silje Katrine Robinson / NTB At the same time, only a small proportion of Norwegians vote for parties that want to stop new oil exploration, an important single issue for both groups. – Are you afraid that people have seen you and heard what you have to say, but decided they don’t care? – I think people understand very well what is about to happen, especially when extreme weather occurs. That is why it is so important that we wake people up and say again and again how serious things are, says Kittelsen in XR. The Norwegian Farmers’ and Small Farmers’ Association was among those who marched for the climate. Photo: Natur og Ungdom / Lovise T. Rannekleiv XR will in future focus on what they call fossil power, including oil companies and politicians. According to a smaller American survey, it may indicate that there is more support for activism against people and institutions that are considered responsible for climate change. But Kittelsen believes that there is also a need for actions that can affect ordinary people – The change that needs to happen is so conflicted that if we are afraid of stepping on someone’s toes, we will never get anywhere. Published 20.09.2024, at 11.08
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Great opposition to soup throwing – news – Klima
