Switch off – Call for revolt

The certainty that the current system will result in the collapse of the massively damaged ecosystem has already inspired countless people to resist. Tens of thousands are taking to the streets against the “business as usual” of the capitalist machinery, people are resisting the destructive large-scale projects en masse, the infrastructure of the system is being blocked and courageous fighters are setting fire to the machines that are being used to rob them of the very basis of life. What we need in the struggle against the destruction of nature and the resulting social misery is the shared pursuit of real revolutionary rupture and freedom of all. Pursuing an initiative that rejects all compromises and cosmetic corrections of the state and brings about a transformation of our social relations. Because the destruction of the planet by the neoliberal economic system is inextricably linked to patriarchal patterns of thought, racism and colonialism. The initiative for this must necessarily come from below. From the struggles of the excluded. From the struggles of those who enact a self-organized solidarity against the state’s promises of salvation. From the struggles of those who see that there can be no compromises in the fight against the systemic destruction of the biosphere.

We should also be aware that we cannot completely prevent the gradual collapse of a massively damaged ecosystem. Nor the loss of biodiversity. Nor the depletion of resources. We will not be able to prevent the climate catastrophe, because we are already in the middle of it. Admitting this – without any doomsday pathos – does not paralyze us. On the contrary, it should open up, for us and our contexts, the question of what our lives and our revolutionary struggles might look like in the future.

We can scarcely blockade and sabotage as radically and uncompromisingly as climate change made by capitalism requires. But we should not be discouraged by this. In the fight against exploitation, let us challenge, sabotage and sustainably attack the infrastructure of capitalism. So that another world becomes possible! Let us cooperate with each other in solidarity to be able to live a dignified life. Let us realize our ideas in the here and now and within our struggles and actions. We will not be lulled by the appeasement attempts of those in power.

Against their technological solutions

The solutions offered by the rulers to the now noticeable effects of the ecological crisis are primarily technological. This is obviously also driven by lobbyism, but above all it is a strategy of their own legitimization. The development, control and application of the “technologies of the future” that are supposed to make growth capitalism “sustainable” are in the hands of and inseparable from the state, industry and science. If we are sold the illusion that climate change can be stopped technologically, then this is based on the confidence that those in power only have to take the right steps, the right measures, to save this world.
 On the one hand, they have no interest at all in an end to the expansion capitalism that secures their position of power. Technological reform, with the new dependencies it produces, is also doomed to failure. Examples of this include e-mobility or technologies for the production of so-called renewable energies. The raw materials needed are often themselves procured in the course of neocolonial environmental exploitation. The transport of these raw materials and components are in turn highly dependent on fossil energy sources. This makes a conversion of the current industry to renewable energies unthinkable before global oil reserves run dry, in any case.

We can no longer afford their wealth

No matter what terms we use to describe it, we can no longer afford the wealth of the rich. The struggle over climate change and its effects moves along class lines. Who are those who have always been able to profit and secure their supremacy from the crises and wars of recent years? Who is responsible for the majority of emissions of climate-damaging gases? It is not those who are already excluded, the refugees and the poor. It’s the energy companies, banks and defense contractors. It is the rich, whose decadence can only exist on the backs of others. And it is the lifestyle of mass consumption and waste of resources of the societies in the global north, which is based on preconditions and relations of exploitation that we should reject and fight. Therefore, it is clear that a struggle against the destruction of nature must also have as its goal the destruction of property. Let’s destroy the infrastructure of wealth for a world where everything belongs to everyone.

Attacking the system sustainably

In our struggles, we encounter contradictions that affect our own habits and patterns of thinking. Can we imagine projects and worlds that break with our patriarchal roles, gendered oppression, and the continuity of racism? It remains important that we develop ideas of what solidarity can look like in turbulent times.

Those in power, whether with green credentials or not, will respond to advances against their plans with increasing severity in the face of the climate crisis. They are stuck with fossil fuels and the dinosaur of the nuclear industry. They are stuck with the lie that renewables will save the world. They get tangled up in their greenwashing propaganda and they will act all the more authoritarian the more the reality of things challenges their promises.

We think that militant action and direct attack in all possible forms is an important tool in this – though far from the only one. Many of the protests, demos, sabotage actions and blockades that have happened so far point in an exciting direction. We think that we can become a serious threat, however, only if we seek communication with each other. We propose to relate to each other under the slogan “switch OFF! – the system of destruction” and to situate our struggles in a shared context.

Our actions must make clear that there can be no capitalist green alternative, no peace with existing conditions. Let us dismantle the glittering facade of (green) capitalism! In doing so, we choose the means ourselves and on one stands above anyone else. We would love it if many would take up this idea.

This is not meant to be an attempt of absorption, but a call to get further on the offensive and strengthen existing struggles. Let’s ignite a long-term wave of action towards revolt! Take care of yourselves and be brave.

Switch off – sustainably attack the system of destruction.

For a struggle of solidarity under catastrophic conditions – worldwide!

via: Switch off – Aufruf zur Revolte

Translated by Act for freedom now!