Skillbuilder discussion Investigating contemporary civics and citizenship issues 1. What do you know about the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society? 2. Which issues of concern do they tackle and how do they do it?
FIGURE3 The Steve Irwin is a previous flagship of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society used in direct action against whaling and illegal fishing.
17.2.4 Direct action Most of the time, people are prepared to participate in Australia’s democracy by exercising their right to vote at state, federal and local government elections. Circumstances arise at other times when many feel that an issue requires immediate action, or they believe that the government is making the wrong decisions. In these circumstances, people will often take direct action to influence government actions. Direct action usually consists of some form of public demonstration, and can sometimes involve citizens deliberately breaking the law to bring their views to public attention.
CASESTUDY Student climate strikes
School Strike 4 Climate is a global movement of students who demonstrate and protest against policies that promote fossil fuels and industries which damage the environment. The movement gained traction across the world in 2018, when Greta Thunberg — then a pupil in a Swedish school — staged a protest outside the Swedish parliament building. A global strike followed on 15 March 2019, which included over a million strikers across 125 countries, including Australia. School Strike 4 Climate (SS4C) operates in Australia and makes the following demands of politicians: • net zero by 2030, which means no new coal, oil or gas projects, including the Adani mine • 100 per cent renewable energy generations and exports by 2030 • funding of a transition and job creation for all fossil-fuel workers and their communities. Is it legal? When getting involved in direct action, it is important to stay within the law. In media coverage of the climate strikes, a number of politicians claimed that the students were acting illegally. The New South Wales education minister informed a news reporter that, ‘You simply can’t strike if you don’t have a job … the law is very clear, this is a notified school day, kids should be at school.’ However, statements like this were countered by Greta Thunberg and organisations like the Australian Youth Climate Coalition. The right to strike is broadly considered in democratic countries to be protected, protecting the social health and economic interests of workers. Australian Lawyers for Human Rights supported the strikes, recognising the young people’s rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of speech.
502 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator