Thursday 18 April 2019

The Rise of Extinction Rebellion


The Extinction Rebellion group (also known as XR) occupied a number of important locations across central London on April 15 2019, including Parliament Square, Oxford Circus, Waterloo Bridge and Marble Arch. At the time of writing, April 18, the protest is ongoing and appears to be growing in numbers, despite police making over 400 arrests so far.

This, in their own words, is what the protest is about:

The Extinction Rebellion is a necessity. Our political establishment has failed to protect its people from pollution, prevent further mass extinction of species on earth and prevent the possibility of human extinction in the near future. Therefore we must rebel to protect the livelihood of citizens and our natural world, or risk losing everything we cherish.source

The chart data for the start of this action is April 15 2019, 11am London. The source is one of XR’s posters advertising the action, as well as their website.

Chart for start of  XR Protests - 15 April 2019, 11am, London

The chart (above) is remarkable. The Saturn-Pluto Conjunction sits exactly on the DC. The Nodes, sitting at the midpoint of Saturn-Pluto, are Partile Conjunct the ASC-DC axis. Saturn-Pluto hard aspects are associated with fear, even the threat of apocalypse or ‘extinction’. They are a warning sign that things will be forced to change if we don’t take proactive action. Destruction of some kind occurs and is followed by a necessary rebuilding process. What XR say they want to achieve is “radical change in order to minimise the risk of human extinction and ecological collapse” and in essence Saturn-Pluto is about the transformation of socio-political structures and in Capricorn it’s about the Earth itself and how we need to fundamentally change how we treat it, if we want to preserve it for future generations.

The Cancer Ascendant Conjunct North Node also suggests this need for action for mother earth. The South Node, Saturn, Pluto and DC axis Conjunction certainly denotes the fear of disaster if we don’t change the way we treat our planet. And when veteran naturalist and broadcaster Sir David Attenborough is concurrently saying we face "irreversible damage to the natural world and the collapse of our societies" it’s safe to assume 
there’s something in it.

A Venus-Mercury-Neptune Triple Conjunction in Pisces is also angular, sitting across the MC. Like the DC, the MC is also a public point. XR’s message is of non-violent civil disobedience. This was also the impression I got from spending time at the Oxford Circus occupation (where these photos were taken). As police arrested protesters one by one, they neither fought nor complied, but allowed themselves to be carried away to clapping and the chanting of we love you from the gathered crowds. 

That a pink boat is at the the centre of the protest emblazoned with the words TELL THE TRUTH is a nice translation of Venus-Mercury-Neptune in Pisces, as is its placement at a major transport crossroads (they would probably say that the earth itself is at a crossroads).

On the other hand, the overall public perception seems to be that they are idealistic ‘hippies’ who will never get their demands met.  These demands are that the Government “tell the truth” about the ecological emergency and work towards change, that they act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2025 and that they “create and be led by the decisions of a Citizens’ Assembly on climate and ecological justice.”

Mars in Gemini also Squares Neptune an applying aspect signifying idealistic action, tension and disappointment when dreams meet reality, but also a certain charisma and the potential for this movement to become a phenomenon.

For an action of civil disobedience of such persistence and momentum we must also look to Uranus. Indeed, the planet of rebellion and revolution is in Taurus (the earth) tight to the 11th House cusp (groups, communities, the collective) and Conjunct the Sun in Aries. This is a symbolic picture of the eco-warrior and a strong statement about the group’s mission, especially as it makes a Square to Saturn and Pluto. Sun and Uranus form a Fire-Earth Grand Trine with the Moon in Leo and Jupiter in justice seeking Sagittarius. Jupiter Squares Neptune, Mercury and Venus, symbolising how ideals turn into society’s expectations which are either delivered upon or dissolved into disillusionment and disappointment.

The Moon at 29 degrees 52 of Leo is telling us that things are urgent, time is running out to save our home. Indeed, the logo of Extinction Rebellion is a stylised egg timer. Below is a screenshot from the home page of their website.

Extinction Rebellion was founded on 31st October 2018 and has quickly grown into an international movement. On this date their website states, “we assembled on Parliament Square in London to announce a Declaration of Rebellion against the UK Government. We were expecting a couple of hundred people. Instead, 1500 came to participate in peaceful civil disobedience”. 

This chart (time now known, set for midday) shows Uranus at zero degrees of Taurus (rebellion to save the earth) in an Opposition to the Sun and Venus in Scorpio (its mission is change through peaceful means). A potential T-Square to the Moon brings the message home about our ‘home’. Mars in Aquarius, the activist, is Square Mercury and Jupiter in Scorpio and their demands for ‘the truth’ ring strong and loud in their throats.





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