Air Pollution, Lambeth Libraries & Aleppo: Saturday 30th April 2016 was a day that illustrated the diversity of protests in London. Cyclists staged a die-in outside the Dept for Transport against killer air pollution, campaigners in Lambeth demanded the council scrap plans to close ten libraries and Syrians and otheers called for an end to Russian and Syrian air strikes on Aleppo.
Stop Air Pollution Killing Cyclists
Dept of Transport
Air pollution in London is a serious problem with pollution often above legal limits, mainly because of exhaust gases and particulates from traffic on our congested streets.
Studies say that this causes the premature deaths of over 9,500 Londoners each year, as well as many more living in suffering from lung diseases, heart problems, cancers, asthma, emphysema and lung infections.
Cyclists are particularly at risk, breathing in large amounts of dirty air as they ride, though of cause the pollution affects us all. This protest was organised by ‘Stop Killing Cyclists’ who say the Tory government had stopped progress on making London’s air cleaner.
The campaigners who staged the die-in on Horseferry Road demanded fair funding for cyclists to make riding a bike in London safer with more segregated routes and safer junctions to encourage more people to ride rather than drive. As well as resulting in less traffic the exercise would also improve health.
They called for all non-zero emission private cars to be banned now from the city on days were the pollution levels were expected to be above EU safety levels, for all diesel vehicles to be banned in the city centre within 5 years – and all petrol powered vehicles within 10 years, as well as regular ‘car-free’ days in London and other major cities.
To stop the killing of children and other pedestrians they called for residential areas to become living streets Home Zones, getting rid of dangerous and polluting through routes and for a national programme of pedestrianisation of city, borough and town centres.
They also wanted councils to be allowed to limit the number of private hire vehicles and to promote the serious use of pedicabs – currently only fleecing tourists in the city. The protest came in the run up to local elections, including for the Mayor of London, and the candidates were asked to respond to these demands. Only the Green Party candidate Sian Berry (who took part in the protest) really responded positively.
More at Stop Air Pollution Killing Cyclists
Save Upper Norwood and all Lambeth Libraries
Upper Norwood
To save money Lambeth Council was planning to close or end funding to five of its ten libraries, with staff losing their jobs.
There were strikes by library staff and a ten-day occupation of the Carnegie Library in Herne Hill.
Upper Norwood Library on the Croydon/Lambeth border and jointly funded by the two boroughs was being handed over to the Upper Norwood Library Trust to run as a community hub. Pressure from protesters has led to the council agreeing to one member of staff for a transitional period, but the library then had five professional staff.
Save Upper Norwood and all Lambeth Libraries
Save Aleppo, Stop Airstrikes
Russian Embassy, Kensington
Protesters from the Syria Solidarity Campaign came to protest after bombing raid on the Al-Qudus hospital in Aleppo the previous Wednesday night had killed tens of civilians including children and three doctors.
The hospital had a policy of only treating civilians and among those killed were the last paediatrician and the last dentist in Aleppo. The air raid also targeted the building used by civil defence volunteers.
Across the street from the private road housing the Russian Embassy they called for an end to Russian and Syrian air strikes, for an end to the Assad regime and for Putin to get Russian forces out of Syria.
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