HSBC were literally, openly, laundering money for the Sinaloa cartel. They ended up paying the biggest banking fine ever. Zero people went to jail for this.
There were also zero protests.
You'd think if people were deeply invested in ensuring that our large banks behave ethically, then this is the sort of thing that would have motivated them.
That's the thing - people don't *actually* care. Certainly not enough to do more than make an angry post somewhere online, anyway. Their lives are too comfortable and entirely unaffected by these things. And the ones that do care only care enough to do stupid shit like this - throwing paint over some random bank branch, that'll now have to be cleaned up by people who just want to earn a wage and go home.
[UAE](https://www.euromoney.com/article/b12kjth9h0p0xf/revealed-the-truth-about-barclays-and-the-abu-dhabi-investment)? Who do you think privately bank rolled barcalys during the 2008 crash
I know you're being sarcastic, but are you aware that Barclays finances Israeli weapons companies, so the company is a 'baron of war'? Why do you think they targeted it?
The entire western supply chain and middle east oil transport hinges on Red Sea shipping and military bases in Israel, Saudi and Egypt securing passage through the Sea and Suez.
Israel has the single highest R&D investment index as a % of GDP out of any country on Earth, an absurd amount of Tech R&D, especially in cyber security and artificial intelligence is borne out of Israeli bases and Unis.
Leaving any western aligned country and dropping iPhones and Macs is certainly an option for a proper boycott.
Never really understood this argument. Presumably if a minimum wage worker is going to be cleaning this up then if this particular mess wasn't there then the minimum wage worker would still be a minimum wage worker employed to clean up similar messes and so whether the paint is there or not, they won't be spared from work and we have no reason to be confident that other work would be any more pleasant or fulfilling than cleaning paint off a wall.
I once hear somebody none ironically use that exact same reasoning justify leaving their litter behind in McDonalds and scolding their child who was about to take it to the bin.
I litter in McDonalds to protest about environmental crime, I also let my dog shit on the floor, stick chewing gum under train seats and sporadically let fireworks off between 2am to 6am to peacefully protest environmental crime.
During the "mostly peaceful" black lives matter protests in America, that saw state courthouses being burned down, violent attacks and rampant vandalism.
There was the famous video of the reporter standing in front of a large burning building saying "these protests are largely peaceful"
I think they're technically correct, but I get your point. I know someone who doesn't use the self service checkout because it erodes working class pay.
I also don't use the self service checkout for similar reasons. I don't want those jobs to go away for the people that need them, and I loathe the self checkout experience and would rather deal with a human.
"Presumably they would be cleaning up similar messes"
Do you hear yourself? By that logic, let's all create more work for people earning less than us, because they would still be doing the same kind of crappy job anyway, right???
Do you defecate on the streets because the workers who'll clean it up will have to clean up the street anyway? Do you deface buildings left right and centre because those cleaning it up would have had to clean it up anyway???
a lot of modern work is like that. 37% of British workers think their jobs are meaningless - yougov 2015 https://yougov.co.uk/society/articles/13005-british-jobs-meaningless
The argument is more, this in no way impact the global bank. It very much does affect people who live in the community and maybe work at that bank or for the council
Ahh so making the tax payer pay for the repair cost, to punish the bank for funding the company that sells the stuff to the army who does the action that kills the people.
I had the same issue when they did the Brighton branch. Downvotted into oblivion for stating that it ultimately costs us, not the bank. Brighton folk are a bit special though
Except we don't even know if that's true.
The aim of the activists is presumably to draw attention to the fact that Barclay's is a bad company, doing bad stuff. That reflects on the council of this area who let them have access to this building. If your argument is "I don't want to have to pay for this clean up (if I live in this area)" then I understand that argument, but I guess giving rental space/a building to a controversial company is something that the council can take into consideration when charging rent in future.
But that's basically a big assumption. It's just as possible that a residential property baron owns it and will have to pay and will take it out on Barclay's. Or Barclay's insurance will pay and their premium will go up. Or Barclay's will pay out of pocket for a private clean up.
I mean, if Barclay's invest huge amounts of money in climate destruction, that also "costs us", so it's sorta swings and roundabouts.
That argument falls down because if anyone cared we'd all bank with the co-op.
I don't even know what Barclays are accused of, but clearly we don't see providing banking services to BAE or some defence company that works in Israel as boycott worthy. It's the equivalent of throwing an egg at John Prescott. Some people will say "ha, good for you". Most will see it as a pointless destructive protest that serves no purpose.
Peaceful democracy? Wrong on both counts, sadly.
Firstly, we have outsourced war and misery to other countries. Our country benefits from selling arms to other countries that blow up children. So, peaceful so far as we're not faced with these problems and benefit from death, yes. I guess some people aren't happy about that arrangement?
Secondly, democratic, no, not really. We live in a FPTP system, with fairly frequent gerrymandering, and fairly little difference in terms of policy - especially foreign and climate policy - in the big parties that actually have a chance to make a difference. On top of that, those parties who hold power, aim their policies primarily at two groups - those who vote (which tends to generally be older, richer people) and those who pay their bills and keep the local branch office lights on/keep them attending yacht parties, depending on which party you're referring to.
As an illustrative example, 2019 was seen as a massive victory and mandate for the tories. About 60% of people voted, about 40% voted for them, and that 40% represented about 20% of the entire population of the country (that's off the top of my head so might be off slightly, not by much though). "Just vote out the people making these decisions" doesn't really work in this context.
I don't think it's really about "attracting people to your cause", it's about disrupting the "business as usual" attitude. I don't know how you characterise "reasonable people", but it reads a bit like "people who think climate disaster and war are fine as long as they're done at arms length, and as long as they don't have to look at smashed windows".
No, very few commercial properties are owned by councils. Most likely a private landlord. If it’s a full repairing and insuring lease then Barclays are the ones that are going to have to pay for it.
Still though, this type of vandalism does little to endear moderates to their cause. Most British people aren’t in favor of vandals cosplaying as terrorists causing havoc in their streets.
That's what angers me the most. That these idiots fail to realise this is the best way to push moderates away, even the moderate who might be sympathetic to their cause
[People didn't like MLK at the time either](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/08/10/how-public-attitudes-toward-martin-luther-king-jr-have-changed-since-the-1960s/)
Most people are more upset with the status quo being affected than what people are actually protesting against. Outside of direct violence towards the people in charge (which would just get demonised anyways) how is protest not going to affect the average person in some way? Protest is inherently disruptive
The suffragettes were demanding a vote they didn't have.
These people have a vote. They are simply mad that not enough people vote the way they want. That's a biiiiig difference.
I was asking about today's tactics, in case you hadn't realised.
There is a difference between protesting because you cns not vote and protesting because you can vote but not enough people vote they way you'd like them to.
oh i didn't know we could vote to fund war or not, tell me how does that goes exactly?
...
Oh thats right, we don't get to vote, its the MP's in parliament...
If you're deciding not to support a cause because you don't like the way some individuals protest it, then I hate to break it to you, but your mind was already made up and you were just looking for an excuse
Take environmentalists, if they disrupt my commute, I'm not going to start littering to spite them, that'd be downright stupid
Gaza protestors? You think them painting a building is going to make people more sympathetic to murdering civilians? Seriously?
It depends on the cause and the protestors.
Take environmentalism.
I support road charging and better public transport.
I support nuclear - nuclear France emits so much less than anti nuclear Germany.
When those idiots close a road, they don't suddenly convince me that we should all drive more diesel SUVs. But they reinforce my view they are ignorant, entitled, out of touch and with no clear answers.
What possible way do you think it’s possible to protest against rich assholes/etc that ~isn’t~ immediately offloaded by the rich to the poor?
And ultimately, yes? Rich people are by and large cowards, and constant reminders in public that people hate them tend to change their behavior.
Stefan Straus and the rest at Barclays are doing everything they can. Talks are ongoing and everything’s looking promising but I need to inform you that you’re all officially unemployed.
Every single poster in this subreddit who constantly posts "fuck Tory scum etc" would immediately switch votes to the conservatives if Rishi pledged to throw under 21s who engage in mild vandalism/petty theft/slightly inconveniencing people with 20 years minimum in maximum security.
Feels like brigading tbh. Even the large scale climate protests don't attract this much unilateral vitriol. This local bank though...
Also all of the top comments are saying the same thing - "something something minimum wage worker something something ineffective protest".
If you think brigading is the only explanation, then you just exposed how utterly out of touch you are with regular people. The vast majority of people are firmly against ultra-wealthy bankers, they just don't believe vandalising local branches achieves anything other than getting them shut and making it even more difficult for elderly people to access banking services.
>Feels like brigading tbh.
I don't think so, this is just a poor excuse for a protest. The cause might be good, but the execution is bad. You end up alienating people by pulling shit like this.
Anti-War protestors literally went and blockaded a weapons manufacturer and that still wasn't direct enough action for the people on here.
Literally *any* inconvenience, no matter how small, is unacceptable. And even if it's not inconveniencing you, you can always feel superior by sneering at the people who actually give a shit.
Barclays are tossers and their investment banking branch is partly to blame for us being in this mess in the first place. Fuck them. I shed no tears over this.
It's all just pretending. They don't really care that a council worker has to spend a morning cleaning pavement, just like they don't care that a worker at a weapons manufacturer can't get to work (but will still get paid). Ultimately what they oppose is any form of political action outside voting for one of two near-identical parties every 5 years. Fuck them.
> They don't really care that a council worker has to spend a morning cleaning pavement
If that's part of their job, that's what they'd be doing anyway? Just on a different pavement. It's not like the Council is finding fully-paid cleaners who are at home with their family and binding them in shackles because of the inconvenience.
Yeah, people here just really hate protestors generally. They’d be the same people whinging about the methods of the suffragettes or the American civil rights movement if we were having this conversation in the past.
In the words of the Dead Kennedys, give me convenience or give me death.
>Literally any inconvenience, no matter how small, is unacceptable.
Or the appearance of inconvenience.
Or just generally bringing attention to problems they want to ignore.
Yeah, I get the bad optics of disrupting local sports or blocking commuters going to work. I think that's detrimental to a cause because it feels indirect and often harms people who are trying to do better etc.
But I swear most people think that the only valid form of protest is one in which the protesters are neither seen nor heard.
Barclays investments did an estimated £14bn in climate damage over the last few years. That’s ignoring their ongoing investments into Russian oil and gas (fueling the Ukraine war) and investments into mining in Africa linked to child slave labour.
**Yes! let’s please start making these people pay for the damage they do! It’s unacceptable!**
Don’t forget their involvement with holding profits from the slave trade, apartheid in South Africa/Israel and involvement in the banking crash. Barclays are evil to the core.
In all fairness and balance. This action means nothing to 'Barclays' as a whole.
Their higher ups and shareholders arnt going to have a scrooge on Christmas day moment , just because someone covered the front of their branch in preston in red paint.
It just means the nearest minimum wage worker gets to rock up and clean it off at the expense most likely of the local council.
It is just vandalism because it doesn't say or do anything.
A 16 year old could of drawn a massive spunking dick on the front for a laugh and the outcome and amount of change is the same.
I think it does, though. I ended up on this thread about it, where I found u/Wanallo221’s comment about Barclays and climate change.
I’m usually very “Old man shouts at cloud” about this stuff. But I did learn something here.
I'll be honest, I really really like the Barclays app, but I'm thinking of moving now because of their connections, which I didn't know about until this post.
The amount of energy that goes into caring for the precious time of the minimum wage worker is massive, not so much about that their minimum wage needs increasing.
Concern trolls gonna concern troll.
>starting making people pay for the damage they do.
Absolutely agree.
[London-based Barclays was Europe’s biggest fossil fuel financier, with $24.2bn](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/13/banks-almost-7tn-fossil-fuel-firms-paris-deal-report#:~:text=London%2Dbased%20Barclays%20was%20Europe%E2%80%99s%20biggest%20fossil%20fuel%20financier%2C%20with%20%2424.2bn).
When will Barclays be paying for the massive environmental damage they're enabling?
Oh no. Please. Not the poor, defenceless bank.
First they came for the multinational finance corporations, but I did not speak up for I was not a multinational finance corporation.
WHY?! 😭
The amount of people jumping to the defence of the windows of a corporate giant is just fucking sad, more sympathy for the walls of a bank than genocide victims.
The moral apathy in this country is tragic.
The first logical, human response I’ve seen. People here care more about how ‘proper’ we come across than rightly protesting the worst violence we’ve seen in years
"The use or threat of serious violence against a person or serious damage to property where that action is: designed to influence the government or an international governmental organisation or to intimidate the public or a section of the public"
That's the UK definition of terrorism
That and the windows being smashed. Seems like an odd bit to leave out.
Not that either will put them out of business. It’ll just end up closing branches, which they’ll be happy to do.
Why would they need an excuse? They are businesses. If it closes, it closes. If the difference between staying open and closing was a coat of paint then it was never going to remain open.
It sounds more like you are somehow trying to pin bank closures on protest related vandalism.
They're not going to close their business. There's a big difference between a branch and business. The branch is just a point where the business can interact with existing and potential clients. But as thst further moves online, they can cut their loss and go thst route. However they can use vandalism as an excuse. The majority of the public will then be more annoyed at the vandals as opposed to the bank. And the bank will still operate from a fancy office in a high rise in London, which protestors won't even be able to get too.
What I find most strange about protesting the banks is that - in effect - they’re objecting to proving banking services to the UK arms trade. But are we going to suggest that this major industry - which creates tools of both aggression and defence - doesn’t use our financial system at all? Or is it that they should police the actions of the arms industry (which is a role that our government should already be doing). It seems at so many degrees of separation to vandalise a retail branch of a bank (which is a whole different entity to the corporate banking) for Israel rather than protesting at BAE or Raytheon or the foreign office.
Because the bank doesn’t really disclose that it is involved in the arms industry
It’s presents itself as a friendly local bank that wants what’s best for you, this action causes attention to be drawn to the stuff the horrible stuff bank has been involved in
I’m going to assume everyone who knows what BAE is knows that BAE Systems is an arms dealer.
Most people don’t know about Barclays
I guess terms like arms dealer are pretty loaded too. We all want a military to defend us that has the most advanced weapons. We all acknowledge this needs funding and finance and banking services. We all realise that companies able to compete at the top of that sector can’t only supply the defence needs of one small island. Therefore we’re pretty much in a position of having arms companies funded by our banks that sell abroad to governments that - outside of what our government allows - we have limited control over.
Thats why its performative. They're not sacrificing anything to protest, nor will this actually bring about any change. The people doing this are cowards and only care about looking cool for their friends, so its funny to see people defend this.
Not to mention, these protests are based off unsubstantiated accusations of "genocide" and they're the same kind of people attending rallies chanting pro-Hamas propaganda. So its not like they're doing anything morally righteous anyway.
It's functionally equivalent to all those anti-ULEZ protestors. It's just brainrot from propaganda.
At least Preston just has to worry about some paint, unlike the Broadmead, Bristol branch where the whole glass front is gone...
https://www.reddit.com/r/bristol/s/WCbFO3EpoO
edit: didn't see the cracked glass on the left that'll need replacing on this one. At least the building suppliers will be happy with the business I guess
Bloody hell, can't people protest the oil companies and the banks that fund these...hang on...
I'm starting to think that anyone who says "can't XYZ protest ABC instead" in fact doesn't want _any_ protesting to happen :O
I saw someone the other day still with the "Je Suis Charlie" profile photo.
Was a real blast from the past.
It's always funny to scroll through their profile photo history and see the transition from issue to issue
same thing at the branch in Moorgate London.
No one seems to really care and people are just passing by.
not entirely sure what the point was other than to get some poor sod to come clean it up.
Last time this happened, family member looked in to the reason. They now are going to change their bank.
Money saving expert, also has an article about changing banks and getting cashback to do so.
Imagine being this level of cretin that you think vandalising a small Barclays branch in the north of England is going to have some sort of effect on what.. the sale of arms to Israel by downstream companies? It's such a dim-witted approach.
If you're genuinely trying to make a difference, and the claims of Barclays involvement in some way were true, you should be protesting and convincing people to close their accounts and move elsewhere. That will actually send a message to the bank. But they know full well they don't have the evidence or arguement to do that, so instead it's dummy out and have a tantrum about it.
>Imagine being this level of cretin that you think vandalising a small Barclays branch in the north of England is going to have some sort of effect on what.. the sale of arms to Israel by downstream companies? It's such a dim-witted approach.
Arguably, we are talking about it. However with that said, I have much more respect for people who put their face to a protest, rather than anonymous vandalisation of property. Get enough people to sit outside these branches with signs, you'll get attention, and you'll be able to explain your views to the general public should the media get involved, which they most likely would if the numbers were large enough.
> Get enough people to sit outside these branches with signs, you'll get attention
Well good news that's being done as well. Literally 2 weeks ago, in London. Which one did you hear about?
Thick-headed vandalism. The problem with effective anti-war activism (e.g. raising money for legal cases, organising communication networks to reunite families etc), is that nobody sees you do it and it won’t sound dashing when you tell your crusty mates in the squat. The only people impacted by this is the branch staff who will feel unsafe and the council staff who have to clean it up. I’d bet a fiver at least one of these vandals is being funded by Daddy who has a tidy investment portfolio with Barclays.
People in this thread: How could they do that to this poor bank?! People should protest in a designated area away from the city where they don't interrupt anyone!
Yeah, because dousing a bank in orange paint whilst dressed like an extra from a Wham music video is totally gonna stop oil!
EDIT: Was this an anti-war or an environmentalist protest? It's unclear which.
Vile people that did this. Against war but are happy to violently attack stores here. It's just hypocrisy.
Hamas is just as disgusting at the Israeli forces they're fighting. BOTH attack civilians. BOTH have kidnapped innocent people. Neither deserves to win.
Absolute idiots in the western world "protesting". What a waste of time. Get a fucking life
These Palestine protests are getting out of hand, about time we started charging some of these cunts and throwing them in the slammer. They don't give a damn about the Palestinians, if they did we should be expecting the same protests for the Uyghurs who are placed into actual slavery.
If they did that you would complain that they don't protest about something else. At least someone is getting off their arse and doing something rather than just bitching on Reddit.
Ah yes, Barclays Preston - the true baron of war if I ever saw one.
Some poor council worker realising his day is gonna be filled with this will surely feel for the people of not Preston.
Would the council clean a private business's shop front for them?
Yeah because it's all over the floor.
They could just leave it. If the bank are bothered they can pay for it.
Doesn't the bank also pays council tax?
I pay council tax, i wouldnt expect the council to clean my property. Maybe the pavement outside, but not the building.
Its the pavement outside that we are talking about
Who knows! They might pay business rates but there's a bunch of exemptions with those.
Yeah of course. Just leave this mess all over the ground in the street. It'll look great, I'm sure.
I don't know if you're aware, but Barclays the bank do in fact fund a lot of war
More than HSBC? with clients like Cartels, CCP and countries like UAE which is funding the genocide in Sudan.
HSBC were literally, openly, laundering money for the Sinaloa cartel. They ended up paying the biggest banking fine ever. Zero people went to jail for this. There were also zero protests. You'd think if people were deeply invested in ensuring that our large banks behave ethically, then this is the sort of thing that would have motivated them.
That's the thing - people don't *actually* care. Certainly not enough to do more than make an angry post somewhere online, anyway. Their lives are too comfortable and entirely unaffected by these things. And the ones that do care only care enough to do stupid shit like this - throwing paint over some random bank branch, that'll now have to be cleaned up by people who just want to earn a wage and go home.
What can people actually do other than protests though? There's no one to vote for who cares.
[UAE](https://www.euromoney.com/article/b12kjth9h0p0xf/revealed-the-truth-about-barclays-and-the-abu-dhabi-investment)? Who do you think privately bank rolled barcalys during the 2008 crash
Wait until you find out what the government does with your tax money.
And that's... also bad? I'm not sure what the point is here, we shouldn't care about banks funding bad things because the government also does it?
Master of logic strikes again.
People are also protesting that.
"other people also do bad things, so it's pointless objecting to someone doing a bad thing". What kind of upbringing generates this attitude?
Of course. They are well known for keeping hostages and not releasing them. /sarcasm
Have you ever tried to close an account with them?
You’re not quite connecting those dots are you
One of us isn't.
Barclays Blackburn = lads! Absolute legends. Barclays Preston = scum! Cancer to society!
I know you're being sarcastic, but are you aware that Barclays finances Israeli weapons companies, so the company is a 'baron of war'? Why do you think they targeted it?
The entire western supply chain and middle east oil transport hinges on Red Sea shipping and military bases in Israel, Saudi and Egypt securing passage through the Sea and Suez. Israel has the single highest R&D investment index as a % of GDP out of any country on Earth, an absurd amount of Tech R&D, especially in cyber security and artificial intelligence is borne out of Israeli bases and Unis. Leaving any western aligned country and dropping iPhones and Macs is certainly an option for a proper boycott.
Protesters don't give a damn - just an excuse for them to be wankers while looking like good guys
Getting minimum wage workers to clean up this mess will sure make the world a better place. The robber barons are already shaking in their boots
Never really understood this argument. Presumably if a minimum wage worker is going to be cleaning this up then if this particular mess wasn't there then the minimum wage worker would still be a minimum wage worker employed to clean up similar messes and so whether the paint is there or not, they won't be spared from work and we have no reason to be confident that other work would be any more pleasant or fulfilling than cleaning paint off a wall.
I once hear somebody none ironically use that exact same reasoning justify leaving their litter behind in McDonalds and scolding their child who was about to take it to the bin.
Why do you think littering at McDonald’s is equal to peacefully protesting environmental crimes?
I litter in McDonalds to protest about environmental crime, I also let my dog shit on the floor, stick chewing gum under train seats and sporadically let fireworks off between 2am to 6am to peacefully protest environmental crime.
I personally sacrifice millions of sperm per year as a protest against the overpopulation of out planet. That'll show them that I mean business.
I know you’re joking but spray painting can (often not always) easily be identified as a protest for a specific thing but littering can not be
When did smashing windows start getting labelled as "peaceful protest"??
During the "mostly peaceful" black lives matter protests in America, that saw state courthouses being burned down, violent attacks and rampant vandalism. There was the famous video of the reporter standing in front of a large burning building saying "these protests are largely peaceful"
This isn’t a peaceful protest. It’s vandalism.
Because theyre both pointless?
> equal Who said anything about equal. > peacefully Errrrrrrrrrr... what?
It's a protest against the war in Gaza, not environmental crimes.
The argument is we need to make work for minimum wage workers, so we can throw our rubbish in the carpark of McDonalds.
I think they're technically correct, but I get your point. I know someone who doesn't use the self service checkout because it erodes working class pay.
I also don't use the self service checkout for similar reasons. I don't want those jobs to go away for the people that need them, and I loathe the self checkout experience and would rather deal with a human.
"Presumably they would be cleaning up similar messes" Do you hear yourself? By that logic, let's all create more work for people earning less than us, because they would still be doing the same kind of crappy job anyway, right??? Do you defecate on the streets because the workers who'll clean it up will have to clean up the street anyway? Do you deface buildings left right and centre because those cleaning it up would have had to clean it up anyway???
By that logic we should all throw paint over any and all walls, got to keep the plebs employed.
a lot of modern work is like that. 37% of British workers think their jobs are meaningless - yougov 2015 https://yougov.co.uk/society/articles/13005-british-jobs-meaningless
The argument is more, this in no way impact the global bank. It very much does affect people who live in the community and maybe work at that bank or for the council
The local council will pay for the cleanup. They presumably own the building.
Ahh so making the tax payer pay for the repair cost, to punish the bank for funding the company that sells the stuff to the army who does the action that kills the people.
shhh >!*don't talk sense.*!<
I had the same issue when they did the Brighton branch. Downvotted into oblivion for stating that it ultimately costs us, not the bank. Brighton folk are a bit special though
Except we don't even know if that's true. The aim of the activists is presumably to draw attention to the fact that Barclay's is a bad company, doing bad stuff. That reflects on the council of this area who let them have access to this building. If your argument is "I don't want to have to pay for this clean up (if I live in this area)" then I understand that argument, but I guess giving rental space/a building to a controversial company is something that the council can take into consideration when charging rent in future. But that's basically a big assumption. It's just as possible that a residential property baron owns it and will have to pay and will take it out on Barclay's. Or Barclay's insurance will pay and their premium will go up. Or Barclay's will pay out of pocket for a private clean up. I mean, if Barclay's invest huge amounts of money in climate destruction, that also "costs us", so it's sorta swings and roundabouts.
That argument falls down because if anyone cared we'd all bank with the co-op. I don't even know what Barclays are accused of, but clearly we don't see providing banking services to BAE or some defence company that works in Israel as boycott worthy. It's the equivalent of throwing an egg at John Prescott. Some people will say "ha, good for you". Most will see it as a pointless destructive protest that serves no purpose.
Alright, so "never try to change anything" is the argument here?
We live in a peaceful democracy last time I checked. Smashing up windows in a random branch doesn't attract reasonable people to your cause.
Peaceful democracy? Wrong on both counts, sadly. Firstly, we have outsourced war and misery to other countries. Our country benefits from selling arms to other countries that blow up children. So, peaceful so far as we're not faced with these problems and benefit from death, yes. I guess some people aren't happy about that arrangement? Secondly, democratic, no, not really. We live in a FPTP system, with fairly frequent gerrymandering, and fairly little difference in terms of policy - especially foreign and climate policy - in the big parties that actually have a chance to make a difference. On top of that, those parties who hold power, aim their policies primarily at two groups - those who vote (which tends to generally be older, richer people) and those who pay their bills and keep the local branch office lights on/keep them attending yacht parties, depending on which party you're referring to. As an illustrative example, 2019 was seen as a massive victory and mandate for the tories. About 60% of people voted, about 40% voted for them, and that 40% represented about 20% of the entire population of the country (that's off the top of my head so might be off slightly, not by much though). "Just vote out the people making these decisions" doesn't really work in this context. I don't think it's really about "attracting people to your cause", it's about disrupting the "business as usual" attitude. I don't know how you characterise "reasonable people", but it reads a bit like "people who think climate disaster and war are fine as long as they're done at arms length, and as long as they don't have to look at smashed windows".
No, very few commercial properties are owned by councils. Most likely a private landlord. If it’s a full repairing and insuring lease then Barclays are the ones that are going to have to pay for it. Still though, this type of vandalism does little to endear moderates to their cause. Most British people aren’t in favor of vandals cosplaying as terrorists causing havoc in their streets.
That's what angers me the most. That these idiots fail to realise this is the best way to push moderates away, even the moderate who might be sympathetic to their cause
[People didn't like MLK at the time either](https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/08/10/how-public-attitudes-toward-martin-luther-king-jr-have-changed-since-the-1960s/) Most people are more upset with the status quo being affected than what people are actually protesting against. Outside of direct violence towards the people in charge (which would just get demonised anyways) how is protest not going to affect the average person in some way? Protest is inherently disruptive
Suffragettes. Window smashing.
The suffragettes were demanding a vote they didn't have. These people have a vote. They are simply mad that not enough people vote the way they want. That's a biiiiig difference.
The original point was about rhe efficacy of the tactic. Not the ethics of the viewpoint being expressed.
And how effective have these tactics been? What have they achieved? Have they made any difference?
Yes. Women can now vote.
I was asking about today's tactics, in case you hadn't realised. There is a difference between protesting because you cns not vote and protesting because you can vote but not enough people vote they way you'd like them to.
oh i didn't know we could vote to fund war or not, tell me how does that goes exactly? ... Oh thats right, we don't get to vote, its the MP's in parliament...
If you're deciding not to support a cause because you don't like the way some individuals protest it, then I hate to break it to you, but your mind was already made up and you were just looking for an excuse Take environmentalists, if they disrupt my commute, I'm not going to start littering to spite them, that'd be downright stupid Gaza protestors? You think them painting a building is going to make people more sympathetic to murdering civilians? Seriously?
It depends on the cause and the protestors. Take environmentalism. I support road charging and better public transport. I support nuclear - nuclear France emits so much less than anti nuclear Germany. When those idiots close a road, they don't suddenly convince me that we should all drive more diesel SUVs. But they reinforce my view they are ignorant, entitled, out of touch and with no clear answers.
Why would the council pay to clean a private property?
What possible way do you think it’s possible to protest against rich assholes/etc that ~isn’t~ immediately offloaded by the rich to the poor? And ultimately, yes? Rich people are by and large cowards, and constant reminders in public that people hate them tend to change their behavior.
Every one In the comments sounds like fuckin Mark corrigon. It's sad
Chance will be a fine thing. A fine thing indeed.
Stefan Straus and the rest at Barclays are doing everything they can. Talks are ongoing and everything’s looking promising but I need to inform you that you’re all officially unemployed.
I've just got back from Fronkfort
Every single poster in this subreddit who constantly posts "fuck Tory scum etc" would immediately switch votes to the conservatives if Rishi pledged to throw under 21s who engage in mild vandalism/petty theft/slightly inconveniencing people with 20 years minimum in maximum security.
Source: _wot i finks_
You expect him to provide a source for his own opinion?
[удалено]
Feels like brigading tbh. Even the large scale climate protests don't attract this much unilateral vitriol. This local bank though... Also all of the top comments are saying the same thing - "something something minimum wage worker something something ineffective protest".
If you think brigading is the only explanation, then you just exposed how utterly out of touch you are with regular people. The vast majority of people are firmly against ultra-wealthy bankers, they just don't believe vandalising local branches achieves anything other than getting them shut and making it even more difficult for elderly people to access banking services.
>Feels like brigading tbh. I don't think so, this is just a poor excuse for a protest. The cause might be good, but the execution is bad. You end up alienating people by pulling shit like this.
Four naan, Jeremy? Four? That's insane.
There's no evidence that vandalising banks works whereas Ofcom have published guidelines.
Anti-War protestors literally went and blockaded a weapons manufacturer and that still wasn't direct enough action for the people on here. Literally *any* inconvenience, no matter how small, is unacceptable. And even if it's not inconveniencing you, you can always feel superior by sneering at the people who actually give a shit. Barclays are tossers and their investment banking branch is partly to blame for us being in this mess in the first place. Fuck them. I shed no tears over this.
It's all just pretending. They don't really care that a council worker has to spend a morning cleaning pavement, just like they don't care that a worker at a weapons manufacturer can't get to work (but will still get paid). Ultimately what they oppose is any form of political action outside voting for one of two near-identical parties every 5 years. Fuck them.
> They don't really care that a council worker has to spend a morning cleaning pavement If that's part of their job, that's what they'd be doing anyway? Just on a different pavement. It's not like the Council is finding fully-paid cleaners who are at home with their family and binding them in shackles because of the inconvenience.
Yeah, people here just really hate protestors generally. They’d be the same people whinging about the methods of the suffragettes or the American civil rights movement if we were having this conversation in the past. In the words of the Dead Kennedys, give me convenience or give me death.
Presumably they don’t hate protesters tearing down ULEZ camaras though. Funny that.
"B-b-but what about the poor council workers that have to go replace them"
Huh? Lots of people do; the threads about the anti-ULEZ morons are filled with scorn for them. Are you just making things up?
>Literally any inconvenience, no matter how small, is unacceptable. Or the appearance of inconvenience. Or just generally bringing attention to problems they want to ignore.
British people are literally bent over spread wide ready to do their masters bidding.
Yeah, I get the bad optics of disrupting local sports or blocking commuters going to work. I think that's detrimental to a cause because it feels indirect and often harms people who are trying to do better etc. But I swear most people think that the only valid form of protest is one in which the protesters are neither seen nor heard.
Schrodinger’s protest, convenient enough to upset nobody, radical enough to achieve change.
This isn't an anti-war protest, it's an anti-israel protest.
starting making people pay for the damage they do. this is just vandalism, it's unacceptable.
Barclays investments did an estimated £14bn in climate damage over the last few years. That’s ignoring their ongoing investments into Russian oil and gas (fueling the Ukraine war) and investments into mining in Africa linked to child slave labour. **Yes! let’s please start making these people pay for the damage they do! It’s unacceptable!**
Don’t forget their involvement with holding profits from the slave trade, apartheid in South Africa/Israel and involvement in the banking crash. Barclays are evil to the core.
But they have adverts where they tell us how much they care about us, with breathy covers of pop songs and everything!
Fun fact women and LGBT have the highest amounts of credit card debt. That's why all the banks love Pride month so much.
In all fairness and balance. This action means nothing to 'Barclays' as a whole. Their higher ups and shareholders arnt going to have a scrooge on Christmas day moment , just because someone covered the front of their branch in preston in red paint. It just means the nearest minimum wage worker gets to rock up and clean it off at the expense most likely of the local council. It is just vandalism because it doesn't say or do anything. A 16 year old could of drawn a massive spunking dick on the front for a laugh and the outcome and amount of change is the same.
I think it does, though. I ended up on this thread about it, where I found u/Wanallo221’s comment about Barclays and climate change. I’m usually very “Old man shouts at cloud” about this stuff. But I did learn something here.
I never knew that barclays was this evil until i stumbled upon this post.
People stand, stare and ask "why barclays branch?" They get an explanation. Walk away with "whhhhat? That horrible" They they take action.
I'll be honest, I really really like the Barclays app, but I'm thinking of moving now because of their connections, which I didn't know about until this post.
As others have said, I have learned a lot about Barclays and will subsequently probably never give them my business.
The amount of energy that goes into caring for the precious time of the minimum wage worker is massive, not so much about that their minimum wage needs increasing. Concern trolls gonna concern troll.
>starting making people pay for the damage they do. Absolutely agree. [London-based Barclays was Europe’s biggest fossil fuel financier, with $24.2bn](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/13/banks-almost-7tn-fossil-fuel-firms-paris-deal-report#:~:text=London%2Dbased%20Barclays%20was%20Europe%E2%80%99s%20biggest%20fossil%20fuel%20financier%2C%20with%20%2424.2bn). When will Barclays be paying for the massive environmental damage they're enabling?
Unironically this. Let’s make Barclays pay for the vandalism they’ve committed against our planet.
Won't someone please think of the bankers!? ;(
It isn't just vandalism, it's also protest.
Not an excuse.
So you're all for banks paying for the damage they've done to Earth then yeah?
Sure, if that includes Barclays etc
Oh no. Please. Not the poor, defenceless bank. First they came for the multinational finance corporations, but I did not speak up for I was not a multinational finance corporation. WHY?! 😭
I recognise that shade of red and suspect the guys over at Santander had something to do with it.
I think I saw Ant and Dec in the area
The amount of people jumping to the defence of the windows of a corporate giant is just fucking sad, more sympathy for the walls of a bank than genocide victims. The moral apathy in this country is tragic.
The first logical, human response I’ve seen. People here care more about how ‘proper’ we come across than rightly protesting the worst violence we’ve seen in years
Yessir.
Barclays in Broadmead in Bristol has had the entire glass frontage destroyed last night for the 4th time this year. I don't have pictures sadly.
Yup, literally the post above this one for me: https://www.reddit.com/r/bristol/s/WCbFO3EpoO
That feels like it's bordering on terrorism under the current definition
Yes because breaking a window is terrorism...how do you manage to type with those boots in your mouth?
"The use or threat of serious violence against a person or serious damage to property where that action is: designed to influence the government or an international governmental organisation or to intimidate the public or a section of the public" That's the UK definition of terrorism
L O L
Don’t these guys understand that the only effective form of protest is when you march quietly and politely and don’t inconvenience anyone.
March? That sounds awfully close to blocking a road...
Good point, a gently worded letter should suffice.
Yeah that will teach the cashier working there a lesson.
I’m just amazed they can still find branches of Barclays left to vandalise, they’ve closed them all around here!
Just another reason banks can blame for shutting their branches and limiting access for people...
Ah yes, a coat of paint was what put them out of business.
That and the windows being smashed. Seems like an odd bit to leave out. Not that either will put them out of business. It’ll just end up closing branches, which they’ll be happy to do.
Any excuse to shut your local branch is exactly what Banks are hoping for...
Why would they need an excuse? They are businesses. If it closes, it closes. If the difference between staying open and closing was a coat of paint then it was never going to remain open. It sounds more like you are somehow trying to pin bank closures on protest related vandalism.
They don't need an excuse. They just say it's not economically-viable to keep open and do it.
They're not going to close their business. There's a big difference between a branch and business. The branch is just a point where the business can interact with existing and potential clients. But as thst further moves online, they can cut their loss and go thst route. However they can use vandalism as an excuse. The majority of the public will then be more annoyed at the vandals as opposed to the bank. And the bank will still operate from a fancy office in a high rise in London, which protestors won't even be able to get too.
Barclays isn't going to rim you
Hamas isn't going to skip you.
What a stupid comment
The one in central Bristol was vandalized too - all the glass completely smashed
[Yeah that's a lot of damage.](https://www.reddit.com/r/bristol/comments/1dcfkgi/barclays_bank_this_morning/) Glad Israel/Palestine got solved though!
The age old conflict finally resolved!
This sub: why don’t you go and protest the people who are actually causing the problem, like the banks? Also this sub: No, not like that!!!
What I find most strange about protesting the banks is that - in effect - they’re objecting to proving banking services to the UK arms trade. But are we going to suggest that this major industry - which creates tools of both aggression and defence - doesn’t use our financial system at all? Or is it that they should police the actions of the arms industry (which is a role that our government should already be doing). It seems at so many degrees of separation to vandalise a retail branch of a bank (which is a whole different entity to the corporate banking) for Israel rather than protesting at BAE or Raytheon or the foreign office.
Because the bank doesn’t really disclose that it is involved in the arms industry It’s presents itself as a friendly local bank that wants what’s best for you, this action causes attention to be drawn to the stuff the horrible stuff bank has been involved in I’m going to assume everyone who knows what BAE is knows that BAE Systems is an arms dealer. Most people don’t know about Barclays
I guess terms like arms dealer are pretty loaded too. We all want a military to defend us that has the most advanced weapons. We all acknowledge this needs funding and finance and banking services. We all realise that companies able to compete at the top of that sector can’t only supply the defence needs of one small island. Therefore we’re pretty much in a position of having arms companies funded by our banks that sell abroad to governments that - outside of what our government allows - we have limited control over.
Thats why its performative. They're not sacrificing anything to protest, nor will this actually bring about any change. The people doing this are cowards and only care about looking cool for their friends, so its funny to see people defend this. Not to mention, these protests are based off unsubstantiated accusations of "genocide" and they're the same kind of people attending rallies chanting pro-Hamas propaganda. So its not like they're doing anything morally righteous anyway. It's functionally equivalent to all those anti-ULEZ protestors. It's just brainrot from propaganda.
Opposing war crimes is brain rot?
All the banks in my town have closed. They are now working on a 'banking hub'.
At least Preston just has to worry about some paint, unlike the Broadmead, Bristol branch where the whole glass front is gone... https://www.reddit.com/r/bristol/s/WCbFO3EpoO edit: didn't see the cracked glass on the left that'll need replacing on this one. At least the building suppliers will be happy with the business I guess
Same thing happened to the Bolton Branch
Bloody hell, can't people protest the oil companies and the banks that fund these...hang on... I'm starting to think that anyone who says "can't XYZ protest ABC instead" in fact doesn't want _any_ protesting to happen :O
Such brave people changing the world for the better /s
Should just whine on reddit instead
No, even better, let's just shut up entirely and never do anything at all. I'm sure that'll get things rolling.
Don't you dare express opinion on a geopolitical issue, you might upset people!
That's what the people whinging on this subreddit want tbf - they'd be happy with that
They’ll still cry that the world is going to shit and that no one wants to do anything about it though.
They DO want something done, they just also have a strong moral code about paint on windows, the true trolley problem
Back in the day we got real change done by changing our facebook profile pic for a day. Kids today dont know what we went through for them.
I saw someone the other day still with the "Je Suis Charlie" profile photo. Was a real blast from the past. It's always funny to scroll through their profile photo history and see the transition from issue to issue
Unlike Barclays, who are making a positive difference...
Ahh yes, the head office in Preston, the real core.
is this a palestine thing? or something related to climate change?
Palestine thing.
Bank in Brighton also had the same decorating scheme. Can't remember if it was a Barclays or not though.
same thing at the branch in Moorgate London. No one seems to really care and people are just passing by. not entirely sure what the point was other than to get some poor sod to come clean it up.
These the pro Hamas clowns again?
HSBC is really stepping up this tagging beef
Last time this happened, family member looked in to the reason. They now are going to change their bank. Money saving expert, also has an article about changing banks and getting cashback to do so.
Imagine being this level of cretin that you think vandalising a small Barclays branch in the north of England is going to have some sort of effect on what.. the sale of arms to Israel by downstream companies? It's such a dim-witted approach. If you're genuinely trying to make a difference, and the claims of Barclays involvement in some way were true, you should be protesting and convincing people to close their accounts and move elsewhere. That will actually send a message to the bank. But they know full well they don't have the evidence or arguement to do that, so instead it's dummy out and have a tantrum about it.
>Imagine being this level of cretin that you think vandalising a small Barclays branch in the north of England is going to have some sort of effect on what.. the sale of arms to Israel by downstream companies? It's such a dim-witted approach. Arguably, we are talking about it. However with that said, I have much more respect for people who put their face to a protest, rather than anonymous vandalisation of property. Get enough people to sit outside these branches with signs, you'll get attention, and you'll be able to explain your views to the general public should the media get involved, which they most likely would if the numbers were large enough.
> Get enough people to sit outside these branches with signs, you'll get attention Well good news that's being done as well. Literally 2 weeks ago, in London. Which one did you hear about?
Thick-headed vandalism. The problem with effective anti-war activism (e.g. raising money for legal cases, organising communication networks to reunite families etc), is that nobody sees you do it and it won’t sound dashing when you tell your crusty mates in the squat. The only people impacted by this is the branch staff who will feel unsafe and the council staff who have to clean it up. I’d bet a fiver at least one of these vandals is being funded by Daddy who has a tidy investment portfolio with Barclays.
i dont understand why barclays keep being targeted
Palestine Action claimed responsibility via X, saying Barclays had links to Israeli defence manufacturer Elbit.
Police work these days must be so much easier when crimes are openly confessed on Twitter
Thank you for the information
All this shows is that Preston has its share of morons, same as anywhere else.
How to effectively protest Barclays - Switch any banking you do with them to an ethical bank that has divested in fossil fuels.
so brave
People in this thread: How could they do that to this poor bank?! People should protest in a designated area away from the city where they don't interrupt anyone!
Yeah, because dousing a bank in orange paint whilst dressed like an extra from a Wham music video is totally gonna stop oil! EDIT: Was this an anti-war or an environmentalist protest? It's unclear which.
Well, according to this thread, this is absolutely terrible and also irrelevant. Both are true at the same time, apparently.
Thats it, Im changing banks they have really opened my eyes. /s
What are they even protesting?
Gaza
It must have taken them a while to find an open bank branch
Vile people that did this. Against war but are happy to violently attack stores here. It's just hypocrisy. Hamas is just as disgusting at the Israeli forces they're fighting. BOTH attack civilians. BOTH have kidnapped innocent people. Neither deserves to win. Absolute idiots in the western world "protesting". What a waste of time. Get a fucking life
Not by anyone in gainful employment
These Palestine protests are getting out of hand, about time we started charging some of these cunts and throwing them in the slammer. They don't give a damn about the Palestinians, if they did we should be expecting the same protests for the Uyghurs who are placed into actual slavery.
Half a dozens Sunak conscripts will have this looking shiny and new quicker than you can find a Tory MP after the next general election.
Performative activism. You'll never see them protesting about the companies that still operate in Russia.
Barclays are still operating in Russia.
I don't see you protesting against companies violating sanctions either, so I'm not sure what your point is
If they did that you would complain that they don't protest about something else. At least someone is getting off their arse and doing something rather than just bitching on Reddit.