Hundreds Of Young People Join Greta Thunberg In Climate Protest Outside UN

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Last edited Fri Aug 30, 2019, 08:50 PM - Edit history (3)

Source: The Guardian

Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg was joined by swelling and excited crowds of American teenagers at a protest outside the UN headquarters in New York on Friday, in a further blossoming of the youth environment movement given extra thrust by the Swede's transatlantic boat crossing.

Some US children said they were at their first ever climate demonstration; others said they had been passionate about the environment for a while but had been galvanized to act by Thunberg's rising profile. On Friday afternoon, Thunberg and two young activists were spontaneously invited inside the UN for a meeting with a senior leader, described as "very supportive".

Just two days after Thunberg disembarked from a yacht in New York, following two weeks on rough seas crossing from the UK, young protesters dominated the crowd of up to 1,000 outside the United Nations skyscraper in Manhattan.

They came together to demand politicians and older generations take urgent and comprehensive action to reverse the climate crisis...


Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/aug/30/greta-thunberg-un-climate-protest-new-york

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Children and young people gathered in a park in front of world flags outside the UN; they carried handmade placards with messages such as "United behind the science" and "Act now or we will". Thunberg sat in the middle of the rally which had a determined atmosphere. The youths gave spontaneous speeches or led chants of "System change, not climate change" and "Don't just watch us, join us".

Alexandria Villaseor, age 14 has been protesting at the UN every Friday since December and said she was inspired by Thunberg's school strike campaign. "Greta being here will really galvanise students just because of how much of an inspiration she is. Everyone who's been striking on Friday was really empowered by Greta and the action she was taking," she said.
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- "Open Letter From College Professors Urges Educators Worldwide to Cancel Class, Join Global Climate Strike," Common Dreams, 8/30/19. "We risk losing credibility with an entire generation of students if we cannot take action in support of the defining cause of their generation." Highlighting an open letter now co-signed by 175 teachers that urges educators around the world to cancel classes and join the global climate strike scheduled for Sept. 20, two of the original signatories published an op-ed in The Guardian Friday explaining why striking "in the name of climate justice is a resounding endorsement of learning."

In the op-ed, Jonathan Isham of Middlebury College and Lee Smithey of Swarthmore College acknowledge the lessons they have learned about the human-caused climate emergency from their own students, youth leaders like Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg, and the millions of people who have participated in Fridays for Future demonstrations across the globe.
"No educator is able to join Greta Thunberg as she continues her bold Atlantic crossing, but all of us can follow her lead," they write, referencing the 16-year-old's recent trip to the United States via an emissions-free vessel. "We risk losing credibility with an entire generation of students if we cannot take action in support of the defining cause of their generation.".. https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/08/30/open-letter-college-professors-urges-educators-worldwide-cancel-class-join-global





- Students take part in a climate rally in London, 2019.