End of August, Bournemouth, UK.
Received anonymously via email:
“During BournemoutH Air Festival, actionists sent the message that incursions of military equipment and the glorification of the arms industry into spaces of nature will not be tolerated, by splashing a battle tank, a display helicopter, and army recruitment boards with red paint. This action was taken in solidarity with Palestine and all other peoples and land under occupation, and those under the long shadow of British colonialism, with the hope of disrupting the normalisation of the UK’s continuous involvement in war and genocide, and that others will also act against all targets of oppression and domination wherever they see them. It’s true that at first it felt like an intimidating task to go unnoticed in a makeshift military village with military personnel, police and stewards patrolling to protect the equipment, but with the sound of the waves and the darkness of the beach acting as our accomplices, we were able to leave our mark and disappear again. There was no media coverage of our action which we assume to be because of the deep and burning embarrassment caused to the armed forces, security, police and the council who paid for this debacle and trying to keep it secure.
Our message to everyone reading this is that any expression of domination can be a target, and that we are not unique or better equipped to cause trouble to our oppressors than you are. Don’t be inhibited by the idea that something should be impossible – go and see for yourself if you can make it possible. Take every precaution you can, stay ready to change your plans, and know that those who want to stand in your way are not infallible in the way propaganda would have you believe. In testing the boundaries, we so often find how unprepared oppressive forces are for any form of resistance because they expect us to remain passive, and we can start to free our own minds from these artificial cages and empower ourselves and others to act in ways that pursue life with more freedom.”
