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'Privileged mindset' - Climate protesters block route to Burning Man festival site
The Guardian
|August 30, 2023
The road into Burning Man is a rural, two-lane highway winding through north-west Nevada. Approximately 80,000 people make an annual pilgrimage to the bacchanal, many hauling caravans and RVs across miles of scorching desert in order to make it to their fabled Gomorrah.
This year, however, climate activists temporarily halted the influx of eager festivalgoers, blocking the road with a 28-foot caravan and causing a traffic jam for over an hour. They clashed with outraged Burning Man attenders and Nevada rangers.
In recent years, Burning Man has drifted from its hippy roots and become better known for luxury RVs, wild orgies, and Silicon Valley tech bros. Protesters from the Seven Circles - a coalition of activists representing the climate groups Extinction Rebellion, Rave Revolution and Scientist Rebellion - demanded Burning Man ban private jets and single-use plastics, as well as unlimited generator and propane use. Signs painted with the slogans "Burners of the world, unite!", "Mother Earth needs our help" and "System change" were erected around Sunday's blockade, while four activists chained themselves to the caravan and locked arms through PVC pipes.
The activists had driven to the site in separate vehicles, stopping on the road while the driver of a trailer pulled ahead and turned to block both lanes.
This story is from the August 30, 2023 edition of The Guardian.
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