Open Repetitie: Radicaal Zangblok voor de klimaatmars

What: Open Rehearsal Radical Singing Bloc for the Climate March

When: 4 September

Time: starts 19:00 | ends 20:30

Where: in the Buurtboot on the Workship

Sign up: Feel free to just drop by, or if you already know you’re coming, sign up here: https://cryptpad.fr/form/#/2/form/view/scO1HjyOhatxhv2rYmTJCjh5zVswKvFKPmbIfZyM5r8/

Admission: Free

About the Radical Singing Bloc

“A movement that doesn’t sing is a movement that doesn’t win,” Peter said during a preparation meeting. Joke adds: “Singing together gives us strength.” “Singing in a time of so much destruction helps recharge your batteries,” Chihiro feels. Together, we are building a movement that sings. We consciously bring together songs from different liberation struggles. Everyone who wants to sing along is welcome.

Curious which songs we’ll be singing? Check out the song sheet here and find videos here with recordings of the songs.

More information about the singing bloc and other rehearsals can be found here

FAQ:

What is a singing bloc?

At large demonstrations, there are often different sections of the march centred around a particular theme. At a climate march, for example, there might be a section against nuclear energy, for agroecology or animal rights, or perhaps against polluting militarism. The singing bloc is the section where people walk together and sing protest songs. You don’t need any previous singing experience to join. You can use a QR code to access a page with all the lyrics so you can sing along... or practise at home beforehand using the recordings. Even better is to practise together at one of the rehearsals before the protest. The idea is for the singing bloc to join a variety of protests, such as the anti-racism demonstration in March, housing protests, etc. Each time, you can simply decide whether you’re able to join. So there’s no long-term commitment.

What do you mean by radical?

The words radical and radish are etymologically connected and both refer to “the root”. To address something radically means not simply fighting the symptoms, but tackling it at its roots. In the case of the climate march, we therefore don’t sing only for CO2 reduction. That is a major symptom of the problem. The problem itself is systemic violence by politics and corporations that disrupts the entire biosphere and atmosphere. A more radical approach is about shifting power away from violent politics that sacrifice so many lives for the private profit of a small number of people at the top. That is why our song list also includes songs against forms of oppression that contribute to the disruption of the biosphere and atmosphere, but first and foremost affect communities that are sacrificed because of greed and inequality.

But I’m not a singer... But I’m not an activist

That doesn’t matter. If you enjoy singing together and support a social and green society, you are very welcome to join us.

This open rehearsal is an initiative by Ceuvel member Chihiro Geuzebroek