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Focus on France 5 December 2009
Paris flash mob makes climate ultimatum
by Daniel Finnan
Article published on the 2009-12-05 Latest update 2009-12-05 16:00 TU
A placard reading Social Climate Change at the Flash Mob in Paris on 5 December
French environmental activists gathered at Place René-Cassin in the middle of Paris on Saturday to demand climate justice ahead of the Copenhagen summit next week. Representatives from 11 NGOs and members of the public started a flash mob at 12:18, symbolic because it marks the last day of the Copenhagen meeting.
Focus on France: Climate Ultimatum
Despite the pouring rain around 1,000 people gathered near Les Halles shopping centre to demand a serious agreement to help stop global warming.
Organisations such as Greenpeace, Oxfam and Friends of the Earth were represented collectively under an umbrella group called L’Ultimatum Climatique.
The flash mob, a large group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, was split into three groups – orange, black and white – which each adopted a different drum rhythm, chant or melody, coming together in an ensemble signifying a mass mobilisation ahead of climate change talks.
Young, old, rich and poor confirmed an ever-increasing assortment of people firm in their call for a proper deal at Copenhagen.
The mob continued through the French capital with further gatherings at Place Stalingrad and later a soirée in the 18th arrondissement which will give activists the time to wind-down and discuss the next step in direct action.
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