Furious Italian Drivers Drag Extinction Rebellion Protesters From Road

Footage has emerged of Extinction Rebellion protesters being dragged off a motorway by an enraged driver.

Filmed in Rome, the activists were demonstrating on the Raccordo motorway, which is one of the city’s busiest, and could be seen sitting in a line wearing high-vis jackets and holding signs. 

Getting out of his car, one furious driver started dragging activists – who kept their cool – to the side of the road while shouting. 

Roma, attivisti bloccano GRA in protesta contro gas e carbone, automobilisti inferociti tentano di rimuoverli #granderaccordoanulare #extinctionrebellion #localteam pic.twitter.com/hVmgdZihhV

— Local Team (@localteamtv) June 16, 2022

A build up of traffic had already formed and protestors moved back into the centre of the road each time they were dragged away, although traffic was occasionally able to sneak past them. 

While one man forcibly dragged Extinction Rebellion activists out of the road, others tore signs from their hands.

One man was seen being particularly heavy-handed with a young woman, and MailOnline reports that the protestors were part of a campaign called the Last Generation, which is an Extinction Rebellion off-shoot.

UNILAD has approached Extinction Rebellion and the Polizia di Stato for comment. 

Italian TV presenter Giulia Innocenzi shared separate footage of the incident on Twitter, which showed a woman quite literally being forced to move by an oncoming car.

Praising the protestor's composure, Innocenzi penned: “The coolness of this activist is impressive. 

Impressionante il sangue freddo di questa attivista. Con @UltimaGenerazi1 ha bloccato il Raccordo a Roma per chiedere azioni immediate contro il cambiamento climatico. Un’auto sta per schiacciarla e lei non si sposta. Azioni radicali per chiedere misure radicali. Bravi 👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/BJyU10aPvZ

— Giulia Innocenzi (@giuliainnocenzi) June 17, 2022

“With @UltimaGenerazi1 it blocked the connection in Rome to ask for immediate action against climate change. 

“A car is about to crush her and she does not move. Radical actions to ask for radical measures. Well done.”

Late last year, a group of 30 climate change activists were arrested following a similar demonstration on a major bridge in London. 

In November, protestors took over Lambeth Bridge and disrupted traffic for several hours in support of nine Insulate Britain activists who had been jailed days earlier. 

In the lead-up to the Lambeth Bridge protest, campaigners had faced arrest under Public Order Acts, something Extinction Rebellion said was ‘scary’.

The group released a statement at the time that read: “We are living through scary times. Experts are telling us that COP was a fatal failure and there’s no time to lose. 

“History tells us that civil disobedience is the key to driving urgent social change. And now the full force of the state and the judiciary is being wielded against us, to outlaw peaceful protest.”

It continued: “We are now banned from protesting in the streets. But these streets are ours, and we must not allow ourselves to be driven from them – not now, when we have everything to lose. 

“All roads are now historic sites of civil resistance. We are in resistance. And we call on everyone to join us.”

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