Tomorrow it will be eleven years since the victory of the Northern Rivers over invasive gasfields at Bentley, west of Lismore.
Those who were there in 2014 will remember the wave of relief when everyone at Camp Liberty learned that the promised hundreds of riot police weren’t coming, and Metgasco was being referred to ICAC. The community had won.
V Day was the culmination of years of organising and protest across the Northern Rivers against CSG and other forms of unconventional gas development, and led to a complete victory a few months later, when the threat of gas – in this corner of Australia at least – was removed.
Sadly, this destructive industry continues elsewhere.
The latest incarnation of Lismore Council recently removed signs across the region acknowledging the democratic results of community surveys showing majority opposition to unconventional gas, showing that the threat is still alive.
Confusing Them With Our Joy
To mark the eleventh anniversary, and remind the Northern Rivers community of its historic achievement, Cloudcatcher Media have just released the cinema cut of their project covering the story of the blockades, from Glenugie to Bentley, called Confusing Them With Our Joy.
This film has previously been only available to Chuffed supporters, and tells the story with a mixture of music, interviews, art and comedy. Originally developed for an epic three screen multimedia style performance, this shorter version is designed to be seen on a single screen.
For those who can’t get enough CSG-fighting nostalgia, a large number of bonus films are also available to watch on Cloudcatcher Media’s Vimeo and YouTube channels. Crank up the volume!
You can watch the cinema cut of the film up to 4K quality on YouTube, below:
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
