The power of modern technology and a deep anxiety about climate change brought a small group of local citizens concerned about the slow pace of action on climate change to Grizzly Plaza in the city’s first experience with “the flash mob” phenomena.
A flash mob is a group of people brought together by e-mail, texting and cell phones to swiftly gather for a demonstration, protest or other civil action. This particular flash mob began materializing at Grizzly Plaza at about 12:10 p.m. and at precisely 12:18 p.m. began attempting to call, e-mail or text Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Premier Gordon Campbell, MLA Norm Macdonald and federal MP Jim Abbott to tell them they want swifter action on climate change.
Locally organized by Anna Young of Avaaz.org, it was one of more than 2,000 similar gatherings set up in about 130 countries through avaaz.org. That group describes itself as “a new global web movement with a simple democratic mission: to close the gap between the world we have, and the world most people everywhere want.” (Find out more at www.avaaz.org/en/.)
She said the demo was prompted by international concern over inaction about climate change.
“We’re just trying to bring our concern to the attention of our leaders,” Young said after the brief demonstration, which was attended by 25 people.
In particular, they wanted to voice their support for Bill C-311, the so-called Climate Change Accountability Act. The Climate Change Accountability Act was originally tabled in October 2006 in the House of Commons as Bill C-377 by federal NP Leader Jack Layton. It passed third reading in the Commons with the support of caucuses of the Liberal and Bloc Quebecois parties but was not supported by Harper and his government. The 2008 election prevented it from going any further although it had reached the Senate. On last February it was re-introduced in the Commons as private member’s bill . The Bill requires the federal government to set regulations to attain a medium-term target to bring emissions 25 per cent below 1990 levels by 2020, and a long-term target to bring emissions 80 per cent below 1990 levels by 2050.
You can see a brief video of the flash mob on The Current Video feature or you can click here —
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vy5Ic73qaKI — to see it now. Here are two other images from the demo:
