Just Stop Oil protest: Climate activists smash safety glass on paintings in London

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In protest against the British government’s plans to build new oil fields in the North Sea, two climate activists smashed the safety glass of a well-known painting in a museum. The group Just Stop Oil released a video of the action on Monday.

You can see a man and a woman using hammers to damage the protection of “Venus in front of the mirror” in London’s National Gallery. They were arrested. It was initially unclear whether Diego Velázquez’s photo had been hit.

“Politics is letting us down”

“It’s time for action, not words,” the 22-year-old activist said after the attack, according to Just Stop Oil. The group cited a similar action by British women’s rights activist Mary Richardson, who in 1914 smashed the glass with a carving knife and made several gashes in the painting. ‘Politics is letting us down. She failed women in 1914 and she failed us now,” emphasized the second activist, a twenty-year-old.

Britain’s Conservative government is expected to unveil far-reaching plans on Tuesday to develop new oil and gas reserves. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (43) recently relaxed strict environmental regulations. He touts countless new jobs and stronger energy security. The responsible minister Claire Coutinho (38) admitted on Monday that the additional financing projects would not lead to lower consumer prices. (SDA)

Source: Blick