17 May 2019 — Red Pepper
Jane Shallice examines the history of radical research at the British Society for Social Responsibility in Science
The social consequences of the present direction of science and technology are clear. New technologies used to strengthen state surveillance, the interminable research and production of weapons and delivery systems, the necessity to end carbon based energies, the corporate nature of science and universities, intellectual property rights and the seizure of knowledge as private property for private returns, genetic engineering and GM, AI, algorithms, big Pharma’s dominance and its impact on health care, environmental pollution and degradation and, dominating all, the role of human activity on climate change.
This letter was collaboratively written with dozens of aligned groups. As the weeks of action called by Extinction Rebellion were coming to an end, our groups came together to reflect on the narrative, strategies, tactics and demands of a reinvigorated climate movement in the UK. In this letter we articulate a foundational set of principles and demands that are rooted in justice and which we feel are crucial for the whole movement to consider as we continue constructing a response to the ‘climate emergency’.
On Wednesday, 15 May 2019, Israeli forces wounded 144 Palestinian civilians, including 49 children, 4 women, and 1 paramedic, in excessive use of force against the peaceful participants in the protests organized in commemoration of the 71st anniversary of the Palestinian Nakbah.
