Just Stop Oil now threatening to slash artworks

The ignorant idiots who’ve been assaulting artwork around Europe are now
reportedly threatening to start slashing paintings – despite the fact the oil
in the paintings is nothing to do with the oil they are protesting about.

Alex De Koning, a spokesman for Just Stop Oil, said it was “insane” that
“more people are outraged” about the activists targeting artwork than the
devastating floods in Pakistan, which displaced millions of people.

The
24-year-old – who describes himself as a climate scientist – told Sky News
that the protest group may follow in the footsteps of suffragettes who
“violently slashed paintings in order to get their messages across”.

In
1914, Mary Richardson attacked Diego Velazquez’s painting The Rokeby Venus
with a meat cleaver in a protest against the arrest of Emmeline
Pankhurst.

Later that year, suffragette Anne Hunt entered the
National Portrait Gallery and hacked away at a painting of Thomas Carlyle,
one of the gallery’s trustees. (Sky News)

The most ludicrous excuse is that they’re going to act “like the Suffragettes”

Clearly these ignoramuses have never studied history. As my other half
pointed out this morning the spokesman 

• neither understands how suffrage was actually achieved 
• nor how to get people on their side.

The FACTS are:

• the movement for women’s suffrage started in 1872
• it became a militant campaign in 1906

However over the course of 42 years absolutely nothing was achieved in terms of change in suffrage prior to
World War I.

Women got the vote after the First World War
only AFTER women had thrown themselves wholeheartedly into the war
effort.

• the outbreak of the First World War saw all political activity suspended –
  including the suffrage movement
• After the War, Lloyd George wanted to recognise the efforts of those who had
  contributed to the War Effort and in 1918 Lloyd George’s Coalition
  Government passed the
  Representation of the People Act 1918, enfranchising 
• all men over 21, 
• as well as all women over the age of 30 who met minimum property
  qualifications.

In 1928 the Conservative government passed the
Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928
equalizing the franchise to all persons, male and female, over the age of 21.

My other half said he did not understand why those protesting did not grasp
that aggressive, combative and damaging protests rarely if ever achieve
anything. Nor do they achieve public support if they constantly annoy the
public at large.

In contrast peaceful non-aggressive protests can be much more successful.

So, he asked,
why do the protestors not act voluntarily to do something of positive and
public benefit to
the community at large – while wearing clothing indicating they are
“#Just Stop Oil” Protestors.

• protestors are acquiring criminal records and sentences of 6 months in
  prison.
• the security at major art galleries and museums has been significantly
  toughened up since their “attack” efforts started.

National Gallery in Trafalgar Square this month (November 2022)

REFERENCE