Beyond inclusion? Perceptions of the extent to which Extinction Rebellion speaks to, and for, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) and working-class communities

Bell, K. and Bevan, G. (2021) Beyond inclusion? Perceptions of the extent to which Extinction Rebellion speaks to, and for, Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) and working-class communities. Local Environment, 26(10), pp. 1205-1220. (doi: 10.1080/13549839.2021.1970728)

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Abstract

There is a resurgent interest in, and debate about, inclusive environmentalism. Within this context, it has been alleged that Extinction Rebellion (XR) exclude Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) and working-class people. To understand more about whether and how this occurs, and how it might be remedied, we interviewed 40 BAME and working-class people in England and Wales about their perceptions of, and opinions about, XR. We found that, while XR’s tactics and messages have varied across time and place, their discourse and activities, overall, have tended to alienate BAME and working-class people. The interviewees were very concerned about climate change, and supported urgent government action, but they were not interested in being included in XR. To effectively build a social movement against climate change, we, therefore, recommend XR activists go “beyond inclusion” to the transformation of XR and environmentalism more broadly.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Bell, Dr Karen
Authors: Bell, K., and Bevan, G.
College/School:College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Urban Studies
Journal Name:Local Environment
Publisher:Taylor and Francis
ISSN:1354-9839
ISSN (Online):1469-6711
Published Online:01 September 2021
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2021 The Author(s)
First Published:First published in Local Environment 2021
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons Licence

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