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Stop the Killing protest (courtesy Stop the Killing Coalition) 02Die-in protests — changing public opinion or scaring people away from cycling?
The die-in is an increasingly common phenomenon in London since a wave of cycle fatalities in November 2013 prompted the birth of volunteer-run campaigning organisation Stop Killing Cyclists, who stage a die-in following each cycle fatality in the capital.
On Monday 200 people turned out remember Moira Gemmill, who died on April 9 after a collision with a lorry. Gemmill was the fifth person killed in London this year while cycling, and this the fifth protest.
While some say cyclists laying down on the street is an effective way to highlight dangerous road conditions others say it risks putting people off cycling altogether.
Jenny Jones, Green London Assembly Member, said at Monday's die-in: "There's two reasons for doing it, first of all I think it's good for all these people on the road to see that cyclists are [here]... a bit of advertising if you like - but there's also a feeling that we're actually here for each other."
Protected cycle lanes needed
Donnachadh McCarthy, co-founder of Stop Killing Cyclists, said the protests have united the media and changed public opinion but have not, as yet, translated to action from politicians.
He said: "They've raised the profile of cycling deaths in London, so any time there's a cycling death it's a news story.
"We now have two thirds of Londoners saying we should have cycle lanes, we now have almost united media from right to left. Whatever the politics of the newspapers, they are saying protected cycle lanes are needed."
He added what hasn't happened yet is for this support to translate to action from politicians, or significant levels of funding.
"The politicians and bureaucrats in place are still acting in a 1970s, 1980s mode where they won't challenge the motor car, they won't challenge the parking spaces, cause they feel the aggro they get from that will exceed the aggro they get from us. That's why we need to keep protesting," he said.
Attending the protest Civil Servant Collette Batterbee echoed Jenny Jones' sentiments. She said: "I think it is bringing people together."
"Now is a good time, because this is the only time politicians will listen - before an election. They can't justify allowing so many unnecessary deaths."
Student Adam Arif said he came to protest so "everyone can hear our voices".
It could be the movement is now spreading. Last week a die-in took place in a less likely place - Tunbridge Wells - with an impressive turnout of around 100 people.
Scaring people away?
Some feel the focus on death is off-putting for would-be cyclists.
In 2013, when Stop Killing Cyclists was set up in response to six cyclist deaths in London in two weeks, Boris Johnson said: "The risk is that the association of cycling with death ... may be scaring people away."
However such protests have yielded results in the past. In the 1970s the Stop de Kindermoord (stop the child murder) protests in the Netherlands were sparked by rocketing post-war motor traffic levels and a concomitant rise in deaths of children on the roads. This movement, which included a die-in outside Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum, set the country down the path away from motor traffic dominance toward a greater and greater focus on cycling.
That was 40-odd years ago. Similarly, McCarthy says the Stop Killing Cyclists movement will need time to take effect.
He said: "Social movements take time and persistence, and what's amazing about this movement is 18 months after our first protest we can block a roundabout. That we can keep coming with event after event and make them different or more relevant means that the movement continues, and that's what you have to do if you want to win, because it is not going to be won in a day, or a year."
Laura Laker is a freelance journalist with more than a decade’s experience covering cycling, walking and wheeling (and other means of transport). Beginning her career with road.cc, Laura has also written for national and specialist titles of all stripes. One part of the popular Streets Ahead podcast, she sometimes appears as a talking head on TV and radio, and in real life at conferences and festivals. She is also the author of Potholes and Pavements: a Bumpy Ride on Britain’s National Cycle Network.
Latest Comments
- David9694 3 hours 20 min ago
I hope you're all checking your insurance policies, helmets, test certificates and road tax, it's the 2024 round-up...
- check12 5 hours 1 min ago
200 people out of a close by population of how many? Just build it and stop being a wuss
- Spangly Shiny 6 hours 34 min ago
To paraphrase Field of Dreams, "Build it right and they will come: and use it!"
- Rendel Harris 8 hours 55 min ago
And a Happy Christmas to you, road.cc staff!
- Rendel Harris 9 hours 43 min ago
The odds of not being able to find a single pedestrian - just one, note, "any pedestrian" - in an area containing more than about ten of them who...
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They don't make them like they used to
- LongitudeLatitude 13 hours 19 min ago
Thanks for using my picture of chocolate in your opening picture. The original can be found here, chocolate! | LongitudeLatitude | Flickr.
- lesterama 13 hours 46 min ago
Fair comments. I'll put my hands up and say I got the wrong end of the stick with this one. ¡Feliz navidad! Here's a pic for the season of goodwill.
- Mike Holmes 13 hours 51 min ago
A trip down memory lane (or street) for me - Harry Quinn's bike shop was at the top of our Street and I used to spend time staring at the bikes and...
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25 comments
These die-in protests are as effective as Critical Mass: both piss off everybody. No wonder drivers, fellow cyclists, pedestrians all hate us.
Amnesty did one at Brighton Beach at the weekend to draw attention to the drowning of refugees. It certainly drew mainstream coverage
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-sussex-32411431
The die-ins are an effective shock-tactic when viewed as part of a broader campaign. Alongside The Times's campaign; Chris Boardman's appearances in front of select committees; and the rest of us holding our MPs and councillors to account we can nudge progress. The danger, I think, is that because the UK is not really given to radical changes over night, it's easy to lose heart instead of appreciate the progress already made.
After reading this: http://www.voleospeed.co.uk/2011/07/cycling-is-dangerous.html
I'm inclined to agree. There's only so much that can be achieved by refusing to point out the current issues with cycling in places like London for fear it might 'put people off' doing it. I think cycling has gained enough momentum that there's no excuse for fudging the current reality.
If 'die ins' are putting people off cycling, it's because the actual 'dying' that preceded them is putting people off cycling. It's the dying that we need to put an end to, not the die ins.
I'm not sure that die-in's work as a conscience prod to those sociopaths that govern us, but they may worry about whether the negative publicity impacts on their hold on power.
The (original) title of the article asked the pertinent question “Are die-ins effective?” To which I think the answer is a resounding “yes”.
I attended the first die-in outside TfL’s headquarters. We gathered in the junction outside so the road was “blocked” for longer. I also attended last Monday’s die-in at Lambeth Bridge. This time we gathered on the pavement first where there was a very dignified and powerful ceremony before we moved to lie down in the roundabout for a few minutes. Would anything more be achieved by “blocking” the road for longer? I don’t know.
I don’t see any issue with lying down. Like me, plenty of people were there in their ordinary work clothes and the road is no dirtier than the pavement. Many people choose to stand anyway.
I like the idea of a picnic but that would take a huge amount of organising and would obviously be weather-dependent. Still, it’s a wonderful idea especially if it were somewhere like Westminster Bridge. When the bridge is opened to walking and cycling (and closed to motorised traffic) for the annual Free Cycle event it creates an amazing space. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it was like that more often?
I'd like to see an event where a series of tombstones is placed outside the London Assembly building every time there is a road death (of any sort).
It would make for a pretty sombre scene for the members of the LA to walk past on their way out of the building.
its in many ways just preaching to the choir, and reinforces the image of cyclists of a out group.
mainstream media ignore it, even most cyclist media and social media bar interested parties.
thats why Chris Boardman, Jon Snow and so on are much more important they get on mainstream media and sound like sensible "normal" people
Quite the opposite, for the number of people attending these events, they punch above their weight in terms of media coverage. The Oxford Street funeral event last year had the front page of the Standard plus TV coverage. Each die-in has had good exposure
As everyone who lives in London knows, there are protests in the centre every single day and most are lucky if they get a mention anywhere.
yes that *one* event got in the london papers and london tv, national tv, papers? no.
did the interviews express clearly what it was about, or was it a fluff news story with folks dressed up having fun during the a quiet news week?
I've objected to the use of unnecessary bad language on this site in this past, but the following is entirely necessary.
You're talking bollocks mate. Research the coverage yourself.
I attended the die-in for my club-mate Alex Kollaros. It was the first time I'd been to one and would do so again.
The actual lying on the road element was a very small part of the event. Most of the time was given over to tributes to Alex.
I don't understand the view that says such events will put off people from riding bikes. The death has happened; are we supposed to just sweep it under the carpet and go quietly on our way? On the contrary, I think we should make as much fuss as possible.
I also don't understand the 'the roads are too wet, dirty and cold' viewpoint. The roads weren't wet that night but you don't have to lie down if you don't want to. You can also participate and pay your respects by standing.
Seeing a protest ride on the news is hardly going to scare anyone off cycling. The risk of getting killed or seriously injured is what’s putting people off cycling.
Cycle campaigning in this country has been transformed and invigorated by these protests, and by the protest rides that began with the “flash ride” in March 2011 over the removal of a cycle lane on Blackfriars Bridge.
Before then, no major cycle campaign group had a clear message about building better cycle lanes. Now the call for better cycling infrastructure is mainstream news.
There’s still an awfully long way to go but groups like Stop Killing Cyclists should be congratulated for taking the lead in demanding our politicians take action, while the more moribund organisations like CTC and Sustrans have been happy to sit it out on the sidelines.
I think the likes of Julian Huppert, Chris Boardman, Jon Snow etc fronting Parliamentary committees has had a lot more to do with it. And yes, flash *rides*. Agree. Positive, active participation.
I agree 100% - they should be congratulated. But their method needs changing to one that embraces everyone, that is positive, and actually impacts on traffic. Like standing up, and staying there for an hour. Not scuttling quickly off like the inconvenience the Met, TfL and others see us as. If TfL and London's transport/construction community knew that a random evening the week following a cyclist death that there would be total gridlock you might see faster change.
Let me try to explain the problem with that approach.
Every protest that SKC organise is notified to the Met, and they attend and facilitate the road closure for the die-in. In London such a protest requires this support, and without it after a certain amount of inconvenience the Police will act and make ultimately make arrests. Even the LTDA had the situation made very clear to them last year when they threatened to gridlock central London.
The people that attend these protests come from quite a mix of backgrounds. The young and fairly militant may want to risk the threat of arrest, but the majority wouldn't. In fact an awful lot of the people attending are the exact opposite of the hardcore protester and wouldn't attend such an event.
You'd end up with something resembling a rowdy student protest, with press coverage to match. At the moment, the press coverage is largely sympathetic.
Are you seriously telling me that the Met would *arrest* hundreds of office workers in suits, families and retired people?
Really?
Even in Cameron's Britain, that would be beyond the pale. young-to-middle-aged weirdos in lycra and Hi-Viz, sure. But upstanding, nicely-dressed office workers, parents with kids and retired folks?
Just can't see it. They don't have the logistic capability, even if it would be politically acceptable.
No. I'm telling you that those types of people don't attend protests, when they aren't legal.
"Are you seriously telling me that the Met would *arrest* hundreds of office workers in suits, families and retired people?
Really?
Even in Cameron's Britain, that would be beyond the pale. young-to-middle-aged weirdos in lycra and Hi-Viz, sure. But upstanding, nicely-dressed office workers, parents with kids and retired folks?
Just can't see it. They don't have the logistic capability, even if it would be politically acceptable."
In 2012 more than 130 cyclists were arrested by police close to the Olympic Stadium on the opening night of the Games. People taking part in a monthly mass bike ride held in London said they were "kettled" near the stadium. The Metropolitan Police said people were arrested under section 12 of the Public Order Act and for causing a public nuisance.
I find vigils fine but die-ins seem hugely disrespectful and tasteless. I also don't believe they're effective - they only make an impact on the same demographic as the participants ie. white, middle-class liberals.
The kind of driver that is a danger to cyclists is unlikely to pass a bunch of these people lying on the ground and change their driving habits. If anything it may create more animosity due to them holding up traffic.
Please take off the helmet and sunglasses before lying down.
I think 20 odd deaths a year does the scaring job well enough on it's own.
At risk of a flaming from the pro-diers, I beg to differ from accepted wisdom.
'die-ins' limit participants to those willing to lie on dirty, wet, cold London road. Anyone wearing normal clothes, let alone a decent suit or dress/shoes/stockings simply will not do it, unless they are at the extreme spectrum of cycling politicisation.
A normal person who wants to ride a bike, or thinks they might, or has had a distant colleague knocked off a bike - are they about to lie down on a wet, dirty London road?
No. I say they won't. Therefore this is greatly limiting those who might otherwise be willing to ***stand up for cycling***.
Literally.
What is wrong with standing, quietly, in a dignified manner, holding a bike, or a sign, or simply standing.
Someone explain to me why having to lie down on a filthy, cold, wet road in work clothes doesn't exclude many who might otherwise join in.
The Dutch ones in the 70's (the ones Ive seen piccys of anyway) were *picnics*. They stopped traffic for HOURS. There were children. It wasn't a hurried 5 minute plop down after work then on your way. These must have seriously screwed traffic. I wager the 'effect' of a die-in on London roads is not noticeable from normal congestion or an HGV/bus breakdown. Maybe that's why politicians aren't really listening.
And no, causation of the current works is not correlation with the recent horizontal hi-viz phenomena.
Flame away...
I suspect that it's limited to just a few minutes otherwise the Police will wade in and start clearing people away to let the traffic flow...
anyway, you can always take a blanket to lie down on if you're worried about the road being wet and dirty...
I'd love to drive a tank over that lot.
Do Daily Mail logins work on this site now?