Just Do It: A Tale of Modern-day Outlaws

Go ahead and make some tea.

Oh, a lovely cup of char.

One with sugar.

Tell me about the relationship

between tea and the revolution.

Taking tea is what the British do,

when they're

in a difficult circumstance.

If you have some bad news,

you have a cup of tea.

At a funeral, you have a cup of tea.

If they bomb your homes,

you have a cup of tea.

We're going to make loads of tea.

So, you serve tea at most events?

Hiya. Like a cup of tea?

I've often served tea

outside the Bank of England.

I've served tea to the Silver Command,

the second in command on an action,

when the police are involved.

I've served tea to politicians.

Outside factories I've served bailiffs

as they're evicting.

It's a free cup of tea, or if you want

to make a donation, that's allowed.

Yes, but we don't have a...

As an anti-capitalist,

it would be hypocritical

to start selling people tea.

You don't want alcohol on the front

line, because your judgment goes,

so if you just drink tea

and save the drinking for the party,

when you eventually go home...

We're professional

domestic extremists -

we don't drink while we're working.

- So, you're a domestic extremist?

- I'm a domestic extremist.

What makes you a domestic extremist?

You will have

to ask Special Branch that.

I care passionately about politics

on a global level,

but work on it on a local level,

within my own country, mostly.

That's the domestic bit.

I'm extreme

because I've gone well beyond

in my climate-change activities.

I've gone beyond recycling

and walking the kids to school -

all that goes without saying.

I put my body in the way,

and I don't mind being arrested.

You know when you watch the news

and see things like this?

Our dogs will be used!

And the newsreaders

say helpful stuff like this.

Let's bring you now the latest

from this so-called

"camp for climate action".

Environment campaigners have scaled

a London building, unfurling a banner.

I hope he's going to have a shower -

his feet were filthy!

Well, this is what you don't see -

a glimpse into the secretive

and clandestine world

of environmental direct action.

We just fing do it.

We've got a banner.

We've got four D-Locks.

I'm James, and I'm your guide.

How do I know what I'm talking about?

That's me

climbing into a power station.

But this film isn't about me.

It's about people like this.

The climate science scared the crap

out of me - I'm not going to lie.

And I went,

"This is not something I can know

and not do anything about.

I have to do something. "

I want to feel

like I'm doing something,

and not just watching the world

go to sh*t.

We don't really have that much choice

about the fact

that we've put so much carbon dioxide

in the atmosphere.

What we do have a choice about

is the future.

Lots of getting arrested,

running around, hiding, escaping,

playing with the media.

But if you think

you can make a difference,

through campaigning

then that's empowering.

It doesn't matter if it's illegal

or if it's dodgy.

It doesn't matter

if it's big or small.

You've just got to do it.

Just do it.

It's April Fool's Day, 2009.

The world's leaders are in London

for the G20 meeting,

and a flurry of protests

are welcoming them to town.

More tents. More tents!

Climate Camp plan to turn

the heart of the financial district

into a street party.

Their target:
blockading

the European Climate Exchange.

Why? They don't want the climate left

in the hands of the bankers.

Exactly.

Some trouble needs to be caused.

The camp had all the ingredients

for a good party,

and everyone was there.

Here's Paul getting his groove on.

There's Sophie climbing into trouble,

as usual.

And of course,

Marina's getting the kettle on.

Even the press were loving it.

At the moment things are very calm,

very relaxed.

But as evening drew in,

a bunch of uninvited party-poopers

gate-crashed.

This is not a riot! This is not

a riot! This is not a riot!

Sit down!

We want a revolution now

We are resisting for climate action

We want some climate action now

Policing like this

would normally go unnoticed,

but a death

is harder to brush under the carpet.

Ian Tomlinson,

on his way home from work,

in the wrong place at the wrong time,

was pushed to his death.

The ensuing outrage led to a dramatic

change in the policing of protests.

Gone, police claimed, were beatings,

brute force and random kettling.

In came a PR offensive

of kindly coppers and tea.

This is public land, and the police

are entitled to come in here.

Be reasonable.

I would love a cup of tea.

Thank you very much.

How long the police would behave for,

nobody knew.

Down on the Isle of Wight,

champion tea-maker Marina

is about to dig her heels in.

Hello?

We're at the protest camp,

outside the Vestas Blades UK factory,

on the Isle of Wight.

The factory is being occupied

by the workers. Yay!

A wind-turbine factory

was closed down,

because there was no demand

for wind turbines,

and over 400 workers lost their jobs.

- Reinstate the workers!

- Reinstate them now!

People think that people making wind

turbines must be cool people, hippies.

No, no, they are capitalists.

Profit, bottom line,

is all they're interested in.

They went in with stuff,

but they'd run out of supplies,

and food could only be got into there

in tennis balls being lobbed in.

They were getting hungry, and Vestas,

this multinational company,

was starving them out.

Well, we weren't having that,

obviously.

This lady turned up and said,

"I've made fish and chips,

and I want to deliver them

to the men in the factory,

and I want to deliver it myself, and I

want them to eat it while it's warm. "

I was like,

"OK. We can facilitate that. "

She wants to deliver them herself,

and I think that's right.

You have to cause a diversion.

OK. Are we ready? Coming?

Fish and chips! You run the other way.

Come on, everybody!

And half the fish and chips

got through.

- Are you gonna give a speech?

- No!

Yes. Come on.

We can't let bullies

tell us what to do.

- Exactly.

- What nonsense!

It was a fantastic celebration,

because the locals were like,

"Yay! They've been fed!"

And people were saying, "Oh, those

terrible environmental anarchists

have fed our lads,

and they've done it with the locals. "

And everyone's

suddenly on the same side.

But the beautiful thing about it,

and what warms your cockles, is...

it was direct action for two days.

We took direct action.

We did it with manners,

and we just did it with courage,

and we did it with humour.

And now Vestas has said...

"Sh*t. We can't have this. We're gonna

feed the guys whatever they want.

And the guys

want a roast dinner today. "

So now we're going to take in soap,

shampoo,

things to wash their hair with,

new underwear, socks, T-shirts,

hand-written cards from their children

and family, newspapers...

In London, a plan is afoot to get

the Vestas struggle into the papers.

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