A Walk Around the Beacon
James Krysik photo exhibition in the gallery at The Beacon, 20 Kendrick Street.
I am walking up the stairs to the White Room on the top floor, looking at the photographs on the walls, black and white framed pictures of homeless people from our local area. There’s a picture of the street, an old lime-pointed brick wall, a man with crumpled fingers smoking, a woman with wild knotted hair, a close-up of a gypsy’s rings, another showing us his tattoo. As I move around the room, all James will tell me is that there’s a story – he tells me the stains on the photographs are the result of him having buried the negatives in the ground, sometimes for months, to achieve the effects of degradation – imperfection. I am searching for the story James is telling – I suspect he has many stories, stories from the streets, stories of despair, stories of hope – is it false hope or real hope? And what is the difference? Is a dead rat a good thing or a bad thing?
I am left with questions. James tells me he has been on the streets himself and all the time there’s temptation to go back, but now he stands by the pictures he’s taken; they tell their own story – not with words; every picture paints a thousand words – but what words? I am stuck for some. James doesn’t help me with my questions, even when I get to the last perplexing photo, I prompt James to explain why the iconic circle of the stars of the European Union? As I leave the exhibit, James asks me instead, what I think it means. It only draws forth more questions. I thank James for his wonderful exhibition: ‘Street Shaman’.
Speaking to James has reminded me of the story of the Beacon. We do not purport to have the answers: we don’t know what the future will look like. Do we want society to be moulded on models we are familiar and comfortable with? Our ethos, here at the Beacon, is to live as long as possible in the questions that concern us all, that concerns a wider society in general, that concern our children, both young and old – we leave it all as a question.
Everywhere you go in the Beacon, there are examples of some of the issues of the day, like the climate emergency and bio-diversity loss, Extinction Rebellion; like the rejected UN law of Ecocide, which would have stood alongside the law of Genocide: a crime against humanity – Ecocide is a crime against the Earth. The work of our dearly beloved Polly Higgins was to re-instate this law to its rightful place at the very heart of the United Nations constitution. Extinction Rebellion break the law – why? to make the law – what law? – the missing law of Ecocide. Our grandchildren will inherit our beautiful Mother Earth; our duty is to leave it in a better condition than when we found it in the expectation that they will do the same.
I ask you to educate yourselves about the Internet-of-Things. How does this fit into the the carbon neutral world we have been protesting for? Every text message, video stream, Facebook post, Google search, GPS search, online purchase (every online activity) engages an international network of cell sites and data storage centres that consume huge amounts of greenhouse gas-emitting electricity. Manufacturing billions of 5G devices: tablets, “smart” phones, “smart” “energy-saving” Internet-of-Things-connected refrigerators and “zero emissions” vehicles.These all require extraction of natural resources including coal, copper, quartz, coltan, cobalt, lithium, petroleum coke and fracked natural gas. Every device, appliance and infrastructure part depends on refineries, CO2-emitting power plants, nuclear plants, chemical plants, steel mills, metal smelters, wood chips (for smelters) and factories of all kinds. Each energy-guzzling, toxic-waste and greenhouse gas emitting operation depends on all the others. They interconnect by a network of power lines, natural gas pipelines, cargo ships, trains, trucks, shipping lanes, railways, highways, telecom access networks, data storage centres and thousands and thousands satellites to be launched into the ionosphere to beam 5G at the whole planet from space. It is one one gigantic global super factory.
Downloading a video uses more data and takes more energy than downloading a photo. Transmitting a picture takes more energy than text. Skyping uses more energy than plain talk. With the Internet-of-Things (machine-to-machine communication), the Internet grows exponentially and e-waste increases. I am as guilty as everyone else of doing these things, but at what cost? Do I really need to do all these things? I am prompted to start asking questions about all this and start acting immediately. If I’m not aware that I am part of the problem, I can’t be part of the solution.
But we can do something: we can wait before upgrading our devices. We can petition manufacturers to make repairable, upgradable, modular electronics. We can repeal legislation that removes local authority over telecom facilities and promotes 5G wireless “small” cell sites on utility poles. Rather than wireless, we can get fibre-optic, since wireless guzzling, toxic-waste and greenhouse-gas emitting tech uses 10 times as much energy as copper. We can consider mobility a luxury. On websites, we can minimise videos, pop-ups and slide shows, which use lots of energy and emit lots of C02. We can link or embed videos; not repost them. We can delay children’s use of electronics until they have mastered the 3 R’s on paper. We can sponsor fix-it clinics and internet cafes. We can redefine what media is essential and use much less of everything else. We can kick the habit and false dependence on all this technology and get back to basics. We can listen to live music, rather than everyone listen to the same pre-recorded pop. there’s an awful lot we can do. Let’s get going on it now while we still can!
As I walk into the shop, with the piano and the double bass, I am reminded about the Beacon “unplugged and connected” Fridays. Activism isn’t all protest. In the sixties, activism was hand in hand with the new music, singing and new thought paradigms: – the times they-are- a-changing – again; tomorrow (still) never knows! Today, we can do revolution all over again, but with new words – but what words? We are creating the Beacon as we go along – everyone who comes in through the door is our inspiration. The Beacon is evolving with the people who show up.
We have created a noticeboard with the events happening here and in the town. We have a library with books to borrow on poetry, fiction, art, music, reference, politics, History, economics, the environment, how to live, philosophy, religion, meditation, Nature and health and books for children. On the top landing you can learn about the Pollinator Hive – the Local Enterprise Forum, which we we will coordinate from here in conjunction with Transition Stroud. The shop has products for sale that make all this technology safe to use.
So far, our two upstairs meeting rooms have hosted the New CSA group, Landwise, Greenpeace, the Lantern Cooperative, Circle of Elders, a public transport group, Compassionate Stroud, XR Families, various XR preparation groups, banner-making, printing, clothes swaps and badge-making. There are regular sharing circles, heartfulness meditation sessions, singing, writing, well-being groups and the top floor was, of course, the famous sanctuary during October.
I am still learning how to make the Beacon as relevant for people as possible; but I tell myself there’s nothing it can be but it can learn how it can be in time.
Our team of volunteers are here to listen to your concerns; as more people come in, we can share with them what has been achieved so far in only 3 months. We don’t have the answers; we are here to listen carefully to what people say and to invite questions. We want to create a community of individuals who will become powerful by taking action together.
As a Member of the Beacon C.I.C, you will get a fortnightly newsletter and will have priority for booking our meeting rooms, workshops, exhibitions, art, music and film events.
By taking an active part in the Beacon, we will make a difference together. And just like James at his exhibition, we will not answer the questions until we’ve heard them all. Keep them coming.