Last weekend, activists from Waltham Forest visited a local BP station to present signatures, statements and sketches from the local community, spelling out a wider message: No Tar Sands. When this ‘memo to Hayward’ is eventually delivered to BP HQ it will be just over four months since our network held its first meeting. Not a bad achievement, if I do say so myself, and one which wouldn’t have been possible without the dedication and assistance of friends across London.
Walthamstow is a tough place to campaign. Working class. Ethnically diverse. The majority of those you speak to over the course of an afternoon will not have English as their first language. You’re competing against market traders, live music, choirs and good old-fashioned preaching ‘in the name of the LORD!!!’
It’s not prime Greenpeace territory really.
Maybe this challenge is why activists from other networks have been so eager to spend an afternoon campaigning here. Whether it’s been Airplot, Trident, Nestle or Tar Sands events, network co-ordinators have proclaimed ‘get thee to Walthamstow’ and activists have answered the call in droves. We constructed the turbine, if you like, but the wind which powered the rotors whistled in from Islington, Bethnal Green, Camden and beyond.
And that burst of energy means the people of Waltham Forest, most of whom have probably never signed anything Greenpeace-related in their lives, have added their thoughts to those of thousands across the UK calling for BP to make the right decision when it comes to investing in Alberta or not.
Starting a network from scratch is never easy but, whilst we’re not landing on an aircraft carrier to declare ‘Mission Accomplished’ just yet, it’s fair to say that Waltham Forest Greenpeace is a relatively well established entity now. We’re active in the community and the local public know that we exist. This is a shared success. A prime example of what happens when networks work together. Thanks y’all.
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