A blockade is an act or means of sealing off a place to prevent goods or people from entering or leaving. A blockade camp is a temporary camp site set up near the site of a proposed project or activity that people are trying to highlight, or an area people are aiming to protect. Camps and blockades are effective to halt imminent destruction or proposed projects.
There are often camps set up to try and stop forest destruction. There have been short term ones to gather people protesting coal seam gas works. Longer term blockades include one running for 500 days near a coal mine in NSW.
Many successful campaigns have based their direct action from blockade camps. This includes the wins against the Franklin Dam, Jabiluka uranium mine, and the proposed gas hub at James Price Point.
It can be a scary thing, heading to a blockade camp for the first time. Check out this sheet to get you started.