We encourage local groups and individuals to organise a local Shell Must Fall action. Even during Corona times, when travelling is harder and we should protect our own and other people’s health, we should not be silenced! We will not stop until Shell has been stopped. It’s time to make Shell history!
Guiding principles
Local actions should respect our action agreement.
The safety of all participants should be tantamount. Therefore, we advise activists to work in small groups and to maintain the prescribed safety distance of 1,5 meter from each other.
Inform us about your action if you need support. We are happy to see how we can support you!
Background and legal info
In times of Corona we are not able to organise centralised mass actions. Yet, many people are inspired by and supportive of Shell Must Fall. We want to give these allies some options to do an action close to their home. This could include an action targeting Shell (e.g., an office, a gas station, or infrastructure).
We plan our actions against the background of severe restrictions on public gatherings. On March 26, an emergency decree entered into force that banned all public gatherings, with only a handful of exceptions. When forming a group of three or more people, one is obliged to hold a safety distance of 1,5 meter from each other. Technically, the emergency decree leaves the constitutional freedom of assembly unaffected. Still, it is likely that local authorities will use the decree to restrict political protests through bans, police interventions, fines, and arrests. The legal situation is constantly shifting and we try our best to follow up on the latest developments. The truth is, however, that it is unclear at this point how exactly the emergency decree will affect our actions. Despite this uncertainty, we are determined to make our voices heard.
Do you have any legal question that you want to discuss with us? Then reach out to our legal team at: legalteam-shellmustfall@riseup.net
Key demands and messages
Our demands are:
DISMANTLE SHELL by any legal, economic political means necessary;
provide a JUST TRANSITION for the workers in the fossil industry;
ensure REPARATIONS for impacted communities and ecosystems;
build a decentralised and socialised ENERGY DEMOCRACY for all
Key messages:
Shell will not change as long as they remain committed to their shareholders: Climate change, ecocide and various human rights abuses will continue.
Due to the corona and the oil crises Shell is already falling. The company is barely holding on and survives only by cutting expenditure and borrowing large sums of money. However, this cannot go on forever. If we let Shell collapse without a plan, the public, workers, impacted communities and ecosystems (will continue to) suffer.
To avoid this, we should take control over Shell’s fall. This is the time to demand a better future! Democratise Shell: No Bail out but a Phase out!
Phase out in a just way:
§ dismantle fossil fuel industry, close the drilling wells
§ transition for workers to sustainable and healthy jobs
§ reparations for impacted communities and ecosystems
§ build a decentralised and socialised energy democracy
Ideas for actions
Below are some suggestions for actions that require different levels of preparedness and entail different risks. This list is meant for inspiration, there are obviously many other creative things to do!
Action ideas:
o banner drop
o chalking protest
o brandalism (posters / stickers)
o physical protest or direct action at a Shell location: gas station, infrastructure, office
Here you can get some impressions from the action week we organised in January 2020.
For more ideas you can check this database, which lists many examples of collective actions in times of Corona.
Ideas for banners
Looking for inspiration for a banner? Check out some ideas here! In our mobi-kit you will find templates of our logo and stickers etc.
Social media and press toolkit
Soon we will share a social media and press toolkit to support you action. For questions, reach out to: pers@code-rood.org
Take action from home
As we have all been called to stay at home as much as possible, or simply can’t leave our homes under stringent lockdowns, there are many of you who may not be able or willing to organise/join a physical action. Therefore, we have identified four other ways in which you can participate:
- Launch a digital action: for example, post a photo with your message on your socials using #ShellMustFall; organise a livestream talk, panel, or workshop; or host a virtual rally;
- Leave an honest review for Royal Dutch Shell at, for example, Yelp or Facebook, or simply repost one of our key messages there;
- Give Shell a call and deliver your message directly to them: +31 70 377 9111; or send CEO Ben van Beurden a personal email: ben.vanbeurden@shell.com
- Donate to Code ROOD, so that we can continue rising up to fossil power: https://code-rood.org/en/donate/
- For more inspiration, please check: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/179hz-OKrfcAr3O0xi_Bfz9yQcK917fbLz-USxPZ3o_4/edit#gid=0
Contact
Wanna share an action? Email us at info@code-rood.org