“Pilgrims Procession” – Extinction Rebellion Glasgow welcomes faith groups and walkers

Pilgrimage groups and artists, including members of XR Faith, are walking to Glasgow to raise awareness of the climate crisis and demand a fair deal at COP26 for the Global South. At 2pm on Saturday 30 October, Extinction Rebellion Glasgow will join these groups in marching through the city centre.

The event is being considered an “opening ceremony” to a series of non-violent direct actions being planned in Glasgow, around the UK, and around the world, during the United Nations climate change convention in Glasgow.

The procession will start at the McLennan Arch on Glasgow Green where XR Scotland’s ‘Blue Rebels’ will form a guard of honour for the pilgrims.

The pilgrimages arriving at Glasgow are:

• XR Faith Bridge led Camino to COP: from London / Bristol /Norwich (West Column)
• Marcha Glasgow (East Column) 
• Ecumenical Pilgrimage for Climate Justice coming from Poland / Sweden / Germany
• Pilgrimage for COP26 (Dunbar to Glasgow)
• Young Christian Climate Network

Glasgow based collaborative artists Zoe Walker and Neil Bromwich will be parading the ‘Serpent of Capitalism’, a 30m sculptural work. Artistic Director of Kinetika, Ali Pretty, will be installing her Beach of Dreams, an environmental art installation of flags.

Alex Cochrane of XR Glasgow said: “Those on the frontline of the climate crisis are dying and suffering right now. COP26 must end a growing crime against humanity by wealthy governments where the Global South are sacrificed to bear the brunt of the Global North’s affluent, carbon intensive lifestyles. We welcome the pilgrims of faith (and no faith) who are walking to COP26 to demand governments also walk the walk for the Global South.”

The Camino to COP and Pilgrimage for COP26 are inspired both by the faith tradition of pilgrimage and great justice marches of the past such as the Jarrow March in the UK and the Salt March in India.

Yaz Ashmawi, Physicist and XR Pilgrim, said: “Countries around the world are already suffering the consequences of our historic emissions in the west, and small island states like the Maldives will be submerged by rising seas if no immediate action is taken on the climate. As people of faith we have a spiritual duty of care to those who are less fortunate than us, so we have been using this walk to raise money for activists in financially disadvantaged countries that are already impacted, to empower them to join this conversation themselves.”

A wealthy minority of the world’s countries and corporations are the principal cause of climate change. There is a staggering global climate injustice where many of the countries that have done the least to cause climate change will face the worst impacts. The wealthiest 10% of the world’s population are responsible for over 50% of the current emissions, whereas the poorest 50%, most of whom live in the Global South, are only responsible for 7 % of emissions.

Yet those responsible for climate and environmental chaos refuse to fairly pay for any loss and damage, and put more money into fossil fuels and war than climate finance.

More information about other events planned during the conference.