Blood-soaked Extinction Rebellion members stage ‘die-in’ at London Fashion Week
Extinction Rebellion activists have doused themselves in fake blood and blockaded an entrance to London Fashion Week in a dramatic environmental protest.
Members of the climate change group glued themselves to doors at the trade show venue in The Strand, while others poured buckets of fake blood on the floor to create a ‘bleeding red carpet’.
The campaign group staged the so-called ‘die-in’ in order to urge the fashion industry to ‘tell the truth about its contribution to the climate and ecological crisis’.
Extinction Rebellion claims the industry has ‘blood on its hands’ due to its environmental record and said the protest was just the beginning of five days of action.
A separate protest outside London Fashion Week was planned by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta).
Supporters covered themselves in ‘toxic slime’ to highlight the ‘leather industry’s planet-poisoning waste’.
Extinction Rebellion activist Sara Arnold, 32, who is the founder of a fashion rental company, said: ‘Instead of the fashion industry exploiting sustainability to sustain business as usual, it should use its influence and creativity to sustain life on Earth.
‘The industry is set to grow by 63% between now and 2030. It is time for it to admit that it has failed to make itself sustainable.
‘The fashion industry’s footprint grows season after season. It has now run out of time. We must act now.’
Extinction Rebellion, which was established in the United Kingdom in May 2018, says the fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world, with a carbon footprint of more than that of international flights and shipping abroad combined.
On July 26, Extinction Rebellion sent a letter to the British Fashion Council, asking them to follow in the footsteps of Stockholm and cancel fashion week to pursue a more sustainable alternative.
The five days of action targeting the fashion industry come ahead of an International Rebellion beginning on October 7, which will see cities across the globe call for action on the climate and ecological crisis.
A spokeswoman for the London Fashion Week event refused to comment.