Extinction Rebellion protestors smash 19 windows at HSBC’s Canary Wharf HQ as they claim bank’s money is financing climate change
- Activists hammered oversized nails through some 19 windows in Canary Wharf
- Protest on Earth Day claimed bank’s money is financing a ‘climate catastrophe’
- Women stuck fliers to the windows before smashing them and sitting on ground
Extinction Rebellion activists today smashed at least 19 windows at HSBC‘s Canary Wharf headquarters as they claimed the bank is financing climate change.
The Earth Day protest is the second time the movement has broken windows this month after smashing glass at Barclays Bank’s headquarters in London in April 7.
Nine woman took part in the demonstration, wearing patches with the words ‘better broken windows than broken promises’ in a reference to the Suffragette movement of the early 20th century.
Stickers reading ‘£80 billion into fossil fuels in the last five years’ were stuck to the windows, before the women hammered oversized nails through the glass.
They then sat on the floor to wait for the Metropolitan Police to arrive.
Extinction Rebellion activists today smashed at least 19 windows at HSBC’s Canary Wharf headquarters as they claimed the bank is financing climate change.
Several woman stuck fliers reading ‘£80 billion into fossil fuels in the last five years’ to the windows, before hammering oversized nails through the glass
The protest was staged to draw attention to HSBC’s continuing links to the fossil fuel industry, with activists claiming the bank’s climate plan allows it to finance coal power.
In a statement, the group said: ‘Despite HSBCs pledge to shrink its carbon footprint to net zero by 2050, their current climate plan still allows the bank to finance coal power, and provides no basis to turn away clients or cancel contracts based on links to the fossil fuel industry.’
Extinction Rebellion wants to trigger a wider revolt against the political, economic and social structures of the modern world to avert the worst scenarios of devastation outlined by scientists studying climate change.
The activists then sat on the floor to wait for the Metropolitan Police to arrive
A security officer speaks with an activist from Extinction Rebellion during a protest in London
A placard hangs on a broken window as activists from the Extinction Rebellion hold a direct action protest outside HSBC headquarters in Canary Wharf
Three women wearing face masks with the Extinction Rebellion emblem are seen in London
‘It’s time to stand up and be counted,’ said Gully Bujak, 28, from Extinction Rebellion. ‘Doing this today may land us in prison but we’re on the right side of history.’
The activists referenced the struggle of the Suffragettes who used direct action to fight for votes for women in the early 20th century.
Their protest comes on Earth Day, when President Joe Biden will pledge to kick-start a year of action on climate change as he hosts his first summit to mark the occasion.
The White House meeting will be held virtually due to the Covid-19 pandemic, with some 40 world leaders expected to attend including Boris Johnson, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
Earth Day is designed to drive action on the climate crisis on a global scale, with this year’s theme ‘Restore Earth’ designed to highlight a belief that the Earth can recover from the problems it currently faces.
Nine woman took part in the demonstration, wearing jackets with the words ‘better broken windows than broken promises’ in a reference to the Suffragette movement
An activist from the Extinction Rebellion, a global environmental movement, holds a hammer in front of a broken window
The UN’s secretary-general today issued a video message reminding people that the planet is at a ‘tipping point’ in its climate crisis.
Antonio Guterres added: ‘Recovery from the #COVID19 pandemic is a chance to set the world on a cleaner, greener, more sustainable path.
‘We must end our war on nature and nurse it back to health.’
It comes after Extinction Rebellion broke windows at the London headquarters of Barclays two weeks ago.
The Metropolitan Police have been contacted for comment.
A spokesman for HSBC declined immediate comment.