When you set out to protest in a way that might actually land you behind bars for intentional damage of private property, it would be ideal if you got the job done right before you faced the consequences. A couple of protesters from Just Stop Oil failed to do that, and they're now being roasted for it.
Pop star Taylor Swift is now on the European leg of her massively successful Eras tour, and the controversy around the carbon footprint of her private jet travels continues. It's not the carbon footprint of the tour that's coming under fire, but rather Swift's choice to travel between stops onboard her private jet – a choice eco-activists believe unnecessary and shameful.
This isn't the first time that Swift comes under fire for her love of traveling by private jet. In fact, as universally adored as she seems to be for anything related to her music and other artistic endeavors, she can't seem to win with environmental activists, who keep pointing out her excessive, usually unnecessary travels by private jet.
Until just recently, Swift owned two private jets, but she's since downgraded to just one, a 2009 Dassault Falcon 7X she's been using for the Eras tour and private business. The smaller Dassault Falcon 900 was sold quietly, though the decision probably had nothing to do with public pressure on her.
Photo: Just Stop Oil
Anyone with some free time and a good Internet connection can find out stuff about Swift's remaining plane, down to registration number and past and current owners, recent flight data, time spent in the air, and even the amount of CO2 released with each flight.
This makes the recent blunder all the more hilarious: Just Stop Oil tried to protest against Swift's private jet use by targeting her aircraft at a private airport and spray painting it orange, but they messed up when they got the wrong plane.
Taylor lands in London, Just Stop Oil takes aim
On Friday (June 21), Swift will be performing at London's Wembley Stadium, so she arrived in the British capital a day earlier to rest and prepare. Just Stop Oil, a group of activists campaigning to ban all fossil fuels by 2030 and who often employ guerrilla tactics similar to Extinction Rebellion, decided now was the perfect moment to make a statement.
Photo: Just Stop Oil
So, they set out to locate Swift's jet, break into the airport, and spray paint the plane orange, certain that their gesture would get enough attention to get the conversion on the need to ban fossil fuels going. Previously, Just Stop Oil had warned the British government that they would be stepping up their protests if they didn't see positive action towards said ban – which is to say, that they'd escalate their protests and most definitely ruffle some feathers in the process.
Following reports that Swift's jet had landed at a private airfield at Stansted airport, the group dispatched two female activists to trespass and carry out the spray-painting protest. The two brought along modified fire extinguishers and their smartphones, documenting every step of the protest, from the moment they used an angle grinder to cut the fence to after they'd done vandalizing a pair of aircraft and sat down to address the public before police arrived.
Content filmed on the occasion went up on social media, with the caption "JUST STOP OIL PAINT PRIVATE JETS HOURS AFTER TAYLOR SWIFT'S LANDS." Other captions included references from Swift's songs and the statement that the group had targeted Swift's private jet.
Photo: Just Stop Oil
The two protesters also identified themselves on camera and spoke about their motivation for breaking the law. They cited a private jet's huge carbon footprint and socioeconomic inequalities and spoke of the world burning at a fast rate while billionaires were enjoying their life without a second thought for anyone else.
A huge misfire that casts Just Stop Oil in an even worse light
And here's where things get even more interesting: the protesters didn't even get the plane right. A spokesperson for the private airport tells the media that Swift's jet wasn't even there when the incident happened and assures customers that a breach like this one will be prevented in the future with heightened security.
“We are not anti protest but we will always take action where criminal acts take place,” the spokesperson says, adding that the two women were taken in custody on suspicion of criminal damage.
Photo: Just Stop Oil
Not only did they break the law, but they also failed to get the right plane in their targeted protest. As you can see in the video below, one of the jets they spray painted bears the N1875A tail number – which a simple Google search would have told them is for a 2016 Gulfstream G650ER registered to a US bank.
Taylor's current jet is registered as N621MM, while her previous one came with a more easily recognizable (and personalized) number, N898TS. Whether the two women knew this or failed to learn ahead of their protest isn't even relevant anymore. This apparent "don't let facts get in the way of a scandalous story" approach, as well as the group's recent vandalization of the iconic Stonehenge monument, which they also painted bright orange, isn't winning them any favors or new supporters online.
It's a known fact that drastic situations will generate equally drastic responses, so the pressing climate crisis might justify – at least in theory – overblown protests that seek the destruction of art works or personal property. That's why we've been seeing such protests a lot over the past few years.
Photo: Just Stop Oil
That said, there's a valuable lesson to be learned here: if you want the eyes of the world on you, it's best if you didn't come across as a fool for claiming you vandalized Swift's private jet in protest when you couldn't even find it where you thought it would be.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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