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The Anti-Coal-Kidz - AKK

On this page you will find

• information about the Anti Kohle Kidz (AKK = Anti-Coal-Kidz),
• our adapted AKK action consensus (also as PDF ),
• our AKK packing list (also as PDF )
• as also our reading suggestion as PDF and our stickers.

Who we are and what we do

We are the Anti Kohle Kidz. We began our work in 2019 and we see ourselves as a self-organized part of Ende Gelände. After we were in Lusatia for the first time in 2019, we want to go to the places of destruction together with Ende Gelände again this year and express our protest in a creative and colorful way.

Why do we want to go as AKK towards the open-pit mine, the excavator and the rails?
Because we are part of the young generation who will carry the weight of the climate catastrophe. We are also part of the weekly Fridays for Future protests, we come from different self-organized young political groups, or we want to take the coal exit into our own hands.

Since September 20, 2019 – when more than 1.4 million people took to the streets in Germany in protest – we have seen that despite all the people on the streets, the politicians cannot be persuaded to adopt climate-friendly policies. For us this means that it is time for more civil disobedience.

The destruction of our livelihoods continues against the will of the majority of people. The consequences are forest fires, water shortages, hurricanes or droughts that drive millions of people to flee. A rise in sea level that threatens to swallow up entire cities.

With the backing of national governments, coal companies pump billions of tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere every year. In Germany for example, RWE is razing forests and entire villages to the ground for the extraction of lignite. Hard coal on the other hand is no longer mined in Germany – it is imported primarily from Colombia and Russia, where huge areas of land are being destroyed for coal mining. Those who live on this land are simply displaced and expropriated. Environmentalists who resist are regularly murdered. This “blood coal” is then burned in Germany. Energy production fueled by hard coal is based on colonial structures.

We think it is imperative that we as young people try to stop what can still be stopped. For this reason we will go one step further and take our protest to the places where climate crimes happen every day. We want to go to Rhineland this year from the 23 to 28 September.

Just like last time, a thorough preparation is essential before the action. For this purpose we have published a series of informative handouts before the action starts. Among these you will find a summary of all legal matters , including information about how police may react differently if they encounter people under the age of 18. There is also a commented packing list that explains what essentials you will need to bring and contains helpful hints about what you might forget. An important document that all activists should read is our AKK action consensus . This is based on the Ende Gelände action consensus, but adapted to our needs as Anti Kohle Kidz. It contains guidelines for individual and collective behavior, in particular dealing this year with COVID-19. Following these guidelines will help us make the action as positive as possible for all people.

COVID-19 is a topic of particular concern to all of us this year and requires us to adapt our behavior to the special circumstances. Within the Ende Gelände alliance, many people have spent time considering how we can responsibly deal with the virus. Ultimately, it is each person’s individual behavior that determines how successfully we protect ourselves and others collectively. A guide on how to behave with regards to COVID-19 during the action can be found under hygiene concept .

Last but not least, it is worthwhile to prepare for the action by forming an affinity group (a group of people you trust and who you want to participate in the action with), attending an action training and taking some quiet time to build up anticipation and pose any remaining questions you have.

During the action, Ende Gelände’s concepts will act as an example for us. In dynamic situations, we will try to take care of each other, support each other in solidarity and not put ourselves and others in danger.

From 24 September onward, we plan to meet at a base station organized by AKK to prepare for the action together. You will find out the location of the base station when you arrive via the travel plan published by Ende Gelände, or with one of our organized buses.

Organize yourself in groups, plan your journey together and contact busmobi@ende-gelaende.org ( PGP-Key ) to get information about your travel destination.

On site there will be sleeping facilities, food and an exciting schedule of events!

We look forward to seeing you in September!

The AKK Action Consensus 2020

The action consensus is a binding framework for the action of the Anti-Kohle-Kidz in the context of the Ende Gelände action 2020, which was developed in an open and collective process and was decided by consensus. It is therefore very important to us.

The action consensus is a prerequisite for the action to be transparent and easy to assess for all AKK participants. It conveys that we also pay attention to each other and support each other in an action involving many people. As AKK at Ende Gelände, we say what we do and will do what we say. We heartily invite all people who join this agreement to join us and take part in AKK’s action. The AKK action consensus follows on the action consensus of Ende Gelände.

Our forms of action are openly announced blockades of coal infrastructure. We will also be visible in areas affected by the mining of fossil fuels. Our actions offer a wide range of opportunities for participation along the lines of the successful Ende Gelände actions in the years 2015 to 2019 and AKK’s first appearance in Lusatia in 2019. Whether experienced in action or not, everyone should be able to participate: We will block relevant infrastructure, such as railways or roads and their immediate surroundings, while making every effort to meet various needs. We are part of the overall action picture, but we will not block pits or similar dangerous places. We do not want to push through police chains on the way to our place of action.

The end of the blockade will be decided in consultation with the support structures and the delegate plenary. If the situation allows, we will try to decide jointly and democratically. Even in dynamic situations, we trust each other to find a good way forward in the decision-making process to the best of our knowledge and in consideration of the needs of everyone.

In order to cope with the current developments around the COVID-19 pandemic, Ende Gelände has intensively dealt with the topic at various levels in the run-up to the mass action 2020 and developed a far-reaching hygiene concept to keep the risk of infection low. For example, the number of activists coming together will be reduced by organizing on many smaller base stations instead of one large joint EG camp, by preparing and serving food according to special hygienic standards, by adapting logistic processes, etc. Besides, wearing masks is nothing new for us, only that this time we start wearing them already on arrival. We adhere to the hygiene concepts that were developed during the preparation.

We are preparing well for a safe route to our places of action.

We come from different social movements and political spectra. Together we take responsibility for the success of the action. We want to create a situation which is transparent for all participants and in which we respect and support each other. We will prepare ourselves for the blockade together with action trainings in advance.
We see ourselves as part of the movement for climate justice and are in solidarity with all those who resist the climate destruction caused by coal-fired power plants and the social and ecological consequences of fossil energy supply. Our struggles are feminist, antifascist, anti-racist, anti-capitalist and against antisemitism. We are aware of everyday and structural discrimination among each other and by our environment and actively fight against it. We strive to offer space to those who experience discrimination and to strengthen the collective awareness and attention for it. For example, we do not want to reproduce toxic masculinity through dominant speech or appearance. We resolutely oppose any homophobic, nationalistic, racist, conspiracy ideological or other reactionary tendencies and attempts of infiltration.

The AKK Packing List

This packing list replaces the general Ende Gelände packing list.

For the action:

• 3x FFP2 protective masks – important: without exhalation valve, otherwise you will not protect others! (available e.g. in pharmacies; for people where money is really scarce, we provide some at the base stations)
• Disinfectants in size to go
• 2x biros (for filling in the corona tracking lists individually)
• your personal Corona ID
• your personal EA-Number (EA = Ermittlungsausschuss = legal team)
• Waterproof shoes (e.g. hiking boots)
• Robust, old clothes that can get dirty („onion principle“ for evening, night and early morning)
• rain jacket / rain trousers
• umbrella/sunshade (preferably with political message)
• sun protection (for the warmer late summer day)
• Tight universal cloth, cap or hat
• Snacks (food and snacks for the blockade – the Küfas („Küche für Alle“ = kitchen for everyone) do not always provide them)
• Sufficient water (e.g. 2 liters) also for washing out the eyes
• Refillable water bottles
• Tea (as required to keep warm or to relax in the blockage)
• own crockery & cutlery
• First aid kit for smaller injuries (e.g. 1 kit per affinity group)
• Rescue blanket (gold/silver foil) – good for cold and strong sun
• Medication you need regularly, for the period you want to stay in action and possible periods in custody
• Identification papers, in case you want to identify yourself to the police
• Some change in case the police take you into custody and let you go somewhere; we try to organize transport options for this case. But safe is better.
• Old sleeping bag – remember, coal is dirty
• As a warmth supplement for the night and protection for your sleeping bag, survival/emergency sleeping bags are practical; you can also get a firmer rescue blanket and make a sleeping bag from it
• mattress / sleeping mat, which must not get dirty and is not too sensitive to cracking
• Film / tarpaulin as rain protection or for the improvised toilet
• Flashlight or headlamp
• Banner
• Decoration (as ecological as possible) for the action locations
• Books, card games, etc. for somewhat longer blockades
• Musical instruments (preferably robust)
• Street chalk
• Sticker for sticker exchange
• Mother’s note, if you are under 18 years old

Make sure that your luggage is not too heavy. You need to be able to move to places of action with it – maybe even at a slightly faster pace.

For the base station

• 2-3 everyday masks
• Tent
• Sleeping bag
• Isomat
• Weatherproof clothing (wool sacks, long underwear as required
• Washing things and towel …
• Bicycles (the area is partly extensive, please bring your own bikes* with you. It can relax the journey)
• Donation money for Küfa & infrastructure (the recommended donation is 10-15€/day); also great: donate online even before the action :)

What you should leave at home (or at your accommodation):

• Everything that contains information about you and that you do not necessarily need in the action (e.g. calendars, private telephones, glasses passports)
• Anything that can be interpreted as a weapon (yes, in doubt even your favorite little pocket knife)
• Camera (There are enough pictures taken by briefed photographers.)
• Consider wearing jewellery that may prove unpleasant in the event of police contact (e.g. clearing a sit-in)
• In case the police use tear gas or pepper spray, it is better to avoid using grease creams or make-up and not to wear contact lenses.
• And of course alcohol and drugs have no place on the blockade!