Activism for Decolonial Ecology on Youtube: Digital Social Networks As Media Support for Collective Action

The use of chlordecone – a carcinogenic product – in (colonial) plantations in the French Antilles continues to have multifaceted consequences on the daily lives of (Afro-descendant) populations on these islands. Indeed, according to several recently published studies, 40% of the land in Guadeloupe and Martinique is contaminated by chlordecone; the water there will remain contaminated for another 700 years; more than 90% of the local population is contaminated by chlordecone (Anses, 2018). On the African continent, the effects of the climate and environmental crisis are now documented (Daré & Ba, 2023). The extractivist economy is destroying biodiversity and has had a dramatic impact on the lives of populations for decades (Karmakar, 2023; Bassey, 2023b; Roshan, 2024). The Democratic Republic of Congo is today one of its symbols (Baloji, 2021). The Antilles and Africa have in common the fact of being former slave colonies and the relations that Western states and multinational companies maintain with these territories are part of the perspective of the relations of racial domination established since the period of slavery and colonization (Crosby, 2004; Ferdinand, 2019). The problem of environmental justice arises in these territories, linked in particular to access to water (Daré and Ba, 2023). Extractive industries promote racial and gender inequalities there (Deldrève, 2023).

For about ten years, activist associations and collectives have been mobilizing in Africa and the Caribbean against what are now established as “environmental injustices” (Whyte, 2016; Camacho, 1998; Morena, 2023). In the context of the demonstrations, they denounce “environmental racism” (Bullard, 1993; Keucheyan, 2018). They fight for a “decolonial ecology” (Ferdinand, 2019). This communication attempts to report on these mobilizations. In addition to street demonstrations, we want to show how social media (in this case YouTube) contribute to the structuring of the struggles and the visibility of this cause.