"It will make people angry."
That's Extinction Rebellion member and President of Unifor Local 950 Brent Eichler, who told Vancouver Is Awesome that the group knows their demonstrations will make locals angry — particularly those who are behind the wheel.
"We understand that and we accept that there is no other way...because we tried every other way," said Eichler. "There's been promise after promise after promise [and] there's been hundreds of NGOs getting petitions signed and people marching in the streets.
"Nothing has changed."
Group plans to block downtown intersection Thursday evening
Extinction Rebellion's Vancouver chapter is calling on the B.C. government to take urgent action on the climate emergency and plans to block the intersection of Cambie and Georgia Thursday evening during rush hour. The group will assemble at 4:30 p.m. at Nelson Park before making their way over to the protest location.
The plans remain in place, even after several protesters were arrested by Vancouver Police over the week.
The group commenced the first of "14 days of disruption" in the city on Saturday (Oct. 16) by blocking the intersection of Burrard and Georgia streets. The VPD said approximately 50 people marched through the downtown Vancouver intersection Saturday and four of them were arrested.
On Sunday, the same group's protesters blocked the intersection of Broadway and Commerical and five people were arrested.
On Wednesday, two more individuals were arrested after the group blocked the Burrard Street Bridge. So far, 13 demonstrators have been arrested and the group expects more "throughout the two weeks."
David Suzuki took part in weekend protest
Eichler said Canadian environmental activist David Suzuki accompanied the group on Saturday. "I can't really speak for Mr. Suzuki but I know that he did come to us and [sought] us out and accompanied us on the entire day on the weekend."
Eichler said that Extinction Rebellion Vancouver is currently speaking with Suzuki, who also gave some speeches during the demonstration.
When asked how the group feels about the public backlash, Eichler stated that there is "no other way," adding that the protesters must accept "huge personal costs."
"I was just sentenced on Friday and I'll be in the streets again today. I'm at the point where I don't know if I'm going to be able to continue to work," he said.
Each day of the fourteen-day rebellion has a specific theme, with the overarching demand of ending all subsidies for fossil fuel projects.
V.I.A. has reached out to the David Suzuki Foundation and will update the story.
