Judith Samson from Brot und Rosen Talks Climate Activism(CCW Ep 20)
In this episode of “Coffee with Catholic Workers,” Theo Kayser interviews Judith Samson of Brot und Rosen (Bread and Roses) Catholic Worker about civil disobedience she’s participated in to combat climate change.
In this episode of “Coffee with Catholic Workers,” Theo Kayser interviews Judith Samson of Brot und Rosen (Bread and Roses) Catholic Worker about civil disobedience she’s participated in to combat climate change.
Episode summary
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In this episode of “Coffee with Catholic Workers,” host Theo Kayser interviews Judith Samson from the Bread and Roses Catholic Worker community in Hamburg, Germany. Judith discusses her involvement in Christian-oriented climate change activism.
Judith shares her journey, starting with joining a climate action group in Hamburg. She connected with Christian Climate Action and Last Generation, groups committed to civil disobedience to address climate change. Last Generation, in particular, employs direct methods like street blockades to disrupt daily life and draw attention to the climate crisis.
She explains the urgency behind these actions, citing the government’s failure to adhere to climate laws and the Paris Agreement. These groups aim to force public pressure on politics for the sake of survival, especially for younger generations already experiencing the climate crisis’s effects.
Judith details specific actions, including a blockade in Berlin involving church representatives and pastors. The action, although brief due to police intervention, was peaceful, with participants singing church songs. She contrasts this with a second blockade in Nuremberg, where activists managed to glue themselves to the streets, resulting in a longer demonstration.
In both instances, Judith emphasizes the non-violent nature of these protests and the importance of the church’s support in these actions. She also touches on the challenges of engaging with Christians who find civil disobedience too radical or prefer to work within legal protest frameworks.
Judith reflects on her personal experiences with civil disobedience, including an action where she glued her hand to a street. She describes feeling vulnerable but peaceful, noting the police’s gentle approach due to media presence.
The interview also covers Judith’s involvement in the occupation of a village threatened by coal mining. She describes the community’s efforts to resist the destruction of the village and its fertile soil for coal extraction, highlighting the solidarity and vision of a different world among the activists. Judith concludes by expressing her motivation for climate activism, drawing inspiration from figures like Dorothy Day. She believes in the necessity of civil disobedience in certain historical contexts and feels a responsibility to act due to her privileged position. She finds strength in the resilience and hope of the people she lives with, who have endured hardships in their home countries and journeys.
Coffee with Catholic Workers is a podcast by and about Catholic Workers. Every two weeks, join Lydia Wong and Theo Kayser for a conversation with some of their favorite Catholic Worker folk. Special thanks to sound engineer Chris of Bloomington, IN.
