Greenpeace guerrilla smog protesters adorn London statues with gas masks
Protestors from environmental group Greenpeace have scaled Nelson’s Column and equipped the statuesque admiral with a gasmask to raise awareness of smog in London.
On Monday morning the group embarked upon a series of stunts, applying gasmasks to famous London icons in a socially led campaign carrying the #cleanairnow hashtag on Twitter to direct the public to a petition demanding British PM David Cameron creates a plan to clean up the country’s air.
The petition reads: “Air pollution is responsible for cutting short 40,000 lives in the UK every year. It’s time for this government to take robust and steadfast action to address this national health emergency. Please create a bold action plan that cleans our air, reduces pollution and saves lives.”
Nelson, Cromwell, Churchill, Sherlock Holmes, Thierry Henry, Isaac Newton and more were all altered in the campaign.
Our #mondaymotivation is these incredible activists calling for #CleanAirNow https://t.co/L1AoddkaAJ pic.twitter.com/QKZ8mK212h
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
Here's why Nelson's Column is trending. We want #CleanAirNow - https://t.co/zKLja8UziK pic.twitter.com/BkN1drMnvZ
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
It's not just Nelson's column we've climbed. Here's Oliver Cromwell! Demand #CleanAirNow https://t.co/zKLja8UziK pic.twitter.com/qvU21q8cQw
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
BREAKING! Sherlock Holmes joins statues across London wearing #CleanAirNow masks. Join them! https://t.co/zKLja8UziK pic.twitter.com/bfhe3ItFNJ
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
"Healthy citizens are the greatest asset any country can have" -Winston Churchill. That's why we need #CleanAirNow pic.twitter.com/IU7PW62MfS
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
Activists use statue of Thierry Henry to make a point about air pollution https://t.co/KQpPgiCMQS #CleanAirNow
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
"Tact is the art of making a point without making an enemy" - Isaac Newton #CleanAirNow https://t.co/zKLja8UziK pic.twitter.com/JYPOtRxWRo
— Greenpeace UK (@GreenpeaceUK) April 18, 2016
The Greenpeace website states: "Air pollution in the UK is responsible for cutting short 40,000 lives every year. It's now a public health crisis, where children, the elderly and the most vulnerable people in our society are most affected by dangerous and toxic air
"There isn't a technological barrier stopping us from breathing cleaner air, we have the science and the tech know-how to put a stop to this crisis, what's stopping us is lack of action from our politicians."