Deleted posts and forgotten voices - How climbing has become a frontier of politics

An antifascist ascent

It is early in the morning on 31st January 2025. The new year has just rolled in, and Séb
Berthe has just rolled up to the top of the Dawn Wall. It is only the fourth time that such a
feat has been completed. But this ascent was unlike any of the three that came before it.
Sébastien Berthe is perhaps the best climber you haven’t heard of– unless of course you
have. His tick list includes Bon Voyage E12, Golden Gate 5.13a, the Nose and now the Dawn
Wall 5.14d. This latter route is undoubtably one of the hardest routes on earth. Séb is only
the fourth person to ever achieve the feat of freeclimbing it. This is a third of the amount of
people that have stood on the moon. What made Séb’s ascent so spectacular was that he
turned up the continent on a boat, trekked to Yosemite and climbed the route all for
ideological reasons.

This was not the first time that Séb had sailed to America. Indeed, looking through his
Instagram, you would think he was more of a pirate than a climber. Having taken several
similar trips previously, his journeys often focus around sailing and training simultaneously.
Séb’s writeup of his Dawn Wall climb reads more like a manifesto than a narrative, as he
states his goals clearly – this was never just about climbing for him.

Séb’s journey was unusual from the beginning, when he and six others set off from Gibraltar
in a yacht. They had “deliberately boycotted air travel 1 ” for “clear ecological and social
justice reasons 2 ”, and would end up sailing for fifty days before reaching America. The boat
they travelled on restricted their ability to prepare. A small training board – bearing the
words “Free Palestine” – was the main source of practice 3 . Once in America, public transport
was used to hop up the continent to the USA. Already Séb was making a statement through
his actions. He didn’t just want to climb the Dawn Wall. He wanted to send a message that
everyone could see.

Fourteen days later, Séb stood atop the Dawn Wall, bathed in a halo of sun, and revealed
what it had all been about. A banner with the words “EL CAP CLIMBERS AGAINST FASCISM”
was unveiled. For such a landmark ascent, Séb was choosing to use his moment of fame to
motivate genuine change. Later, an Instagram post about his trip elaborated on the goals of
his ascent. In this troubled world, he sought to inspire people to “organize, protest, [and]
resist”. “Being antifascist means rejecting all forms of oppression”, and this does not just
mean in the typical forms of oppression that we are used to in society – fascism has found
its way into “the privileged bubble of climbing” 4

Ethics and Politics

Séb’s ascent of the Dawn Wall was not the first time that climbing has been used for
political means. Alex Honnold and others have long been outspoken promotors of voting 5 .
Many prolific climbers also lobby their representatives, not only to increase access to nature
but for a variety of political ends. In this sense, climbing has become a political lobby in and
of itself. It is a sport with a rich history, and has now emerged from the limelight and can
use the global spotlight to promote global justice.

Ethics have played a central role in the history of climbing, especially in Britain. For decades,
people have debated over top-roping, bolting, gear placements etc. It might be easy to view
ethics today as a pedantic sidenote, but historically it was about preserving the culture of a
marginalised group of individuals. Climbers were seen as outcasts and nut jobs – possibly
because they were. But the early focus on ethics aimed to preserve the purity of nature and
the continuation of a new sport.

Perhaps Séb’s ascent is more about freedom than ethics, but it is important to see that
climbing has long been a political activity. The nature of early climbing often resulted in
young people being seen as radicals. It came at a time when many countercultural
movements were appearing around the Western world. Whilst climbing has often been a
physical symbol of defiance and freedom, it perhaps necessarily entails a metaphorical
component of freedom too. Governments frequently try to regulate and control how and
where climbing takes place 6 . The power that they exert here is necessarily political.
What makes Séb’s climb unique politically is the intentionality of his dedication. To use his
minute in the spotlight to direct public attention towards the fight against fascism illustrates
how climbers have become celebrities in the world of social media. We live in “the
privileged bubble of climbing”, and are so obsessed by this silly sport that we are often
complicit in the suffering of global populations 7 . After all, “Silence is complicity, resistance is
a duty” 8 .

Climbers are celebrities

It is hard to say how or why someone becomes a celebrity, and it is not my intention to lay
out any universal criteria here. All that should be said for now is that we live in a world
where people are held up as examples of excellence, and the world of climbing is in no way
different.

Alex Honnold is probably the most famous climber at the moment, rising to fame for his
dramatic free solo of El Capitan. What Honnold has done since is far less publicised, but far
more important.

A long-time activist, Honnold fights for justice both within the climbing community and
outside of it. He is an active member of the Access Fund 9 , an American organisation that is
trying to protect the sport. He is also a keen climate activist, swapping car for bike on his
most recent expedition. This saw him travel across the US with fellow climber and
environmentalist Tommy Caldwell, stopping along the way to climb and eventually ending in
Alaska.

The fact that mainstream ‘celebrity’ climbers are willing to stand on these platforms tells us
not only that there are individuals that are willing to pursue change but that there is an
audience that is equally receptive to it. Even if this new wave of political climbing is all for
publicity, Honnold and Berthe are committed to making change, both personally and
culturally.

Your duty to your audience

As Sébastien said in his Instagram write-up, “Silence is complicity, resistance is a duty”. Does
this mean that those with the ability to make change have a responsibility to make it?
I would like to suggest that this is the case. In a world where injustice exists, we have a
responsibility to try to do something about it. Whilst it is not always easy, those who are
more able to act have more of a responsibility to do so. Celebrities in general have a captive
audience, and should use it to challenge authorities that are failing people. Whether you’re
Sébastien Berthe calling out fascism globally, or Alex Honnold defending individual crag
access, there is always something that can be improved.

However, advocacy is not always easy. Tommy Caldwell has experienced flak online for
expressing his opinions. In a series of Instagram posts, Caldwell praised members of the US
military for their work in security peace. Such a post from someone who has “little
understanding of geo-politics 10 ” was always due to create controversy. Whilst Caldwell is
perhaps not formally politically educated, he exists in the world as much as anyone else, and
has both a right and a responsibility to speak out on issues as he pleases.

The internet has given those with a right to free speech the idea that other people have a
responsibility to listen to them. Caldwell has his opinions, the nuance of which was lost on
those who seemed to respond most vocally. Even if you disagree with the cause that
someone speaks up about, you should applaud them for speaking up for injustice at all.
What should I do?

Whilst it might be tempting to suggest that climbers are doing enough to rectify injustices,
we should never switch off from them. There will always be something worth fighting for,
and we should all take responsibility.

As a climber, there are many organisations we should support to protect the sport and the
landscape. Almost every nation has a body that fights for access to crags. These
organisations often serve a broader environmental role, and go some way to mitigating the
impact that climbing has on nature. Joining these organisations is a good way to start, and
volunteering or participating in their communities is even better.
Beyond this, we should be inspired by climbers like Sébastien Berthe. He is not a household
name, but still uses what publicity he can get for a broad purpose. We could all learn from
this, both in climbing and in every day life, and continue to fight for what we believe