The JSO protester that 'chased down' Mr Lavin (Image: Jules Lavin / Twitter)
A London commuter has claimed he was “chased down” by a “beyond insistent” Just Stop Oil eco-fanatic this morning as he tried to go to work, in a “confrontational” stand-off captured by the city worker on his phone.
Julian Lavin was trailed by a bearded Just Stop Oil activist, who was part of a 20-strong band of protesters blocking the busy Highbury Corner junction in North London this morning.
Speaking to Express.co.uk, Mr Lavin, who is in his mid-fifties, explained how the altercation unfolded after the orange-vested climate warriors held up the traffic: “I had to get off the bus and walk round them. They were blocking the pavement as well, handing out kind of like leaflets so I kind of had an exchange with one of them and then another kind of joined in.
“We had quite a detailed backwards and forwards and then I kind of walked off and he chased me down.”
The Highbury resident continued: “When he chased me down I thought ‘right ok let’s see what it’s all about’ so that’s when I got the phone out and decided to proposition him.
READ MORE Moment bearded Just Stop Oil fanatic offered 'one-way tickets' to China [WATCH]
“He was beyond insistent, it was kind of like something that I had to turn round and confront him [about].”
The proposition that Mr Lavin put to the long-haired environmentalist was that he would set up a crowdfunding campaign to finance one-way tickets for Just Stop Oil activists to go to China - the world’s largest polluter - so that they could protest against fossil fuel emissions there.
The city worker said to the activist in the video of the incident: “I’m going to start a crowdfunder for single one-way tickets to China to fly you guys out there, because you ain’t coming back, but the protest you would do would be so powerful, so impactful. You’d make such a difference.”
Earlier in the video, the unnamed sustainability zealot tried to tell Mr Lavin, after he blocked his commute and that of many others, that the climate crisis was a “we” problem and that he should also go to China.
Mr Lavin, understandably incredulous at the protester, responded: “No I’m not part of it, you’re the protester - you go there!”
Mr Lavin was 'confronted' by a JSO protester (Image: Julian Lavin)
Just Stop Oil have been blocking London's streets for months (Image: Getty)
The incident runs in contrast to Just Stop Oil’s policy of “non-violence”; every activist has to be trained how to avoid violence at all costs.
Speaking after the incident, Mr Lavin explained that he believed that climate change was an important issue and one that needed tackling. But he thought Just Stop Oil’s demonstrators were self-serving, egocentric and disinterested in doing something that would make a serious impact.
He said: “I understand that there’s an issue there, 100 percent, but I just think that their method of protesting is just puerile.
“Really all they’re doing is they’re just using the protest as some sort of internal affirmation of themselves.
“The only impact they’re making is at the dinner parties that they throw for each other where they can regale people with tales but it’s made zero impact… on climate change.”
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Protesters are set to continue marching until Saturday (Image: Getty)
He called on the activists to put their money where their mouth is and confront the planet’s most prolific polluters.
He said: “I just thought if you really want to make an impact, do something that’s going to attract a lot of media attention and be really impactful and f*** off to China.
“And then if somebody actually says ‘yes ok’ then one hundred percent we can get enough funds together to get a ticket for them to go out there. What would really impress me is if they actually did that.
“That’s standing up for something you believe [in], but slowing a traffic jam on a Tuesday morning in Islington just isn’t doing it.”
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Drivers have confronted Just Stop Oil (Image: Getty)
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He vowed to kickstart a crowdfunder to finance the tickets to China and said it was in the interests of the activists to take him up on his campaign.
“If it can happen, and I do want to do this [set up a crowdfunding campaign], what it will do is it will drive publicity for them so it’s a good thing for them if they engage with me.”
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