Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Young Protesters Around Globe Demand Climate Change Action
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
September 20, 2019

Share

BERLIN — From Canberra to Kabul and Cape Town to Berlin and across the globe, hundreds of thousands of young people took the streets Friday to demand that leaders tackle climate change in the run-up to a U.N. summit.
Many were children who skipped school to take part in the second “Global Climate Strike,” following a similar event in March that drew large crowds.

“Even though we ourselves aren’t sick, the planet which we live on is, and we are protesting and fighting for it.” — Siobhan Sutton, a 15-year-old student at Perth Modern School
Events kicked off in Australia, where protesters marched in 110 towns and cities, including Sydney and the national capital, Canberra. Demonstrators called for their country, the world’s largest exporter of coal and liquid natural gas, to take more drastic action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
“Even though we ourselves aren’t sick, the planet which we live on is, and we are protesting and fighting for it,” said Siobhan Sutton, a 15-year-old student at Perth Modern School.
Organizers estimate more than 300,000 protesters took to Australian streets in what would be the country’s biggest demonstration since the Iraq War in 2003.
The protests are partly inspired by the activism of Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg, who has staged weekly demonstrations under the heading “Fridays for Future” over the past year, calling on world leaders to step up their efforts against climate change. Thunberg is expected to speak at the U.N. Climate Action Summit on Monday.
People attending a "Fridays for Future" rally in Germany
People attend a ‘Fridays For Future’ rally in Frankfurt, Germany, Friday, Sept. 20, 2019. Protests of the ‘Fridays For Futurte’ movement against the increase of carbon dioxide emissions take place on Friday in cities around the globe. In the United States more than 800 events are planned Friday, while in Germany more than 400 rallies are expected. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Hundreds of Rallies Took Place Across Europe

Hundreds of rallies took place across Europe, including in the Czech Republic, Germany, Britain and Poland, which is still widely coal-reliant and where many middle schools gave students the day off to enable them to participate in the rallies in Warsaw and other cities.
In Berlin, police said more than 100,000 people gathered in front of the capital’s landmark Brandenburg Gate, not far from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s office where the Cabinet thrashed out the final details of a 54 billion euro ($60 billion) plan to curb Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions .
Thousands of schoolchildren and their adult supporters demonstrated in London outside the British Parliament to demand “climate justice” and stronger action to tackle global warming. Some held home-made placards with slogans including “Don’t be a fossil fool” and “Make our planet Greta again,” in a reference Thunberg.
The British government said it endorsed the protesters’ message, but didn’t condone skipping school — a stance that didn’t sit well with some of the young protesters.
“If politicians were taking the appropriate action we need and had been taking this action a long time ago when it was recognized the world was changing in a negative way, then I would not have to be skipping school,” said Jessica Ahmed, a 16-year-old London student.
In Helsinki, the Finnish capital, a man dressed as Santa Claus stood outside parliament holding a sign: “My house is on fire, my reindeer can’t swim.”
Smaller protests took place in Asia — including Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Hong Kong and India.
“We need to reclaim our constitutional right to clean air and water,” said Aman Sharma, a 16-year-old protester in India’s capital of New Delhi.

Photo of protestors in Paris
Youths gather at Nation square at the start of a climate demonstration Friday, Sept. 20, 2019 in Paris. In Canberra and Kabul, Cape Town and Berlin, and across the globe, hundreds of thousands of people took the streets Friday to demand that leaders tackle climate change in the run-up to a U.N. summit. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

Africa Is the Most Vulnerable Continent to Climate Change

In Tokyo, hundreds of students and environmental activists marched through the business and shopping district of Shibuya, chanting “Climate Justice!” while holding hand-painted placards made of cardboard with messages such as “Go Green,” ”Save the Earth,” and “the Earth is on fire.”

“We want to do our part. We as the youth of our country know the problem of climate change. We know war can kill a group of people. … The problem in Afghanistan is our leaders are fighting for power but the real power is in nature.” Fardeen Barakzai, one of the organizers and head of the local climate activist group, Oxygen
Smaller rallies were held in more than a dozen cities around Japan, including Kyoto, the nation’s ancient capital that hosted the 1997 climate conference.
In a quiet protest in Seoul, about two dozen environmental activists flashed Morse code messages on LED flashlights, calling for action to rescue the earth.
And in the Afghan capital, Kabul, an armored personnel carrier was deployed to protect about 100 young people as they marched, led by a group of several young women carrying a banner emblazoned with “Fridays for Future.”
Fardeen Barakzai, one of the organizers and head of the local climate activist group, Oxygen, said “we want to do our part. We as the youth of our country know the problem of climate change. We know war can kill a group of people. … The problem in Afghanistan is our leaders are fighting for power but the real power is in nature.”
Rallies were also held in Johannesburg and the South African capital, Pretoria, as well as Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, where some young protesters wore hats and outfits made from plastic bottles to emphasize the dangers of plastic waste, a major threat to cities and oceans.
Climate change “is worse than homework,” one sign proclaimed.
Africa is the most vulnerable continent to climate change and the least equipped to deal with it, experts have said. Governments have pleaded for more support from the international community.
More rallies were planned later Friday in the United States, where organizers say more than 800 events were expected.

DON'T MISS

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

DON'T MISS

Fate of Clovis Trustee Race Still Up in the Air. So Are Clovis, Sanger School Bond Measures.

DON'T MISS

Richardson Widens Lead Over Bonakdar in Nail-Biting Race for Fresno City Council

DON'T MISS

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

DON'T MISS

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

DON'T MISS

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

DON'T MISS

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

DON'T MISS

Economists Warn of Inflation and Debt Risks in Trump’s Second Term Plans

DON'T MISS

How Many Smoke Shops Is Too Many? Fresno Plan Would Allow Only 49

UP NEXT

US Says It Will Not Limit Israel Arms Transfers After Some Improvements in Flow of Aid to Gaza

UP NEXT

Travel in the West Bank Is a Tale of Two Journeys

UP NEXT

Chris Wallace Is Leaving CNN, Eager to Explore New Media Landscape

UP NEXT

Aid Groups Say Israel Misses US Deadline to Boost Humanitarian Aid Entering Gaza

UP NEXT

US Regulators Investigating Whether Engines on 1.4 Million Hondas Might Fail

UP NEXT

Israeli Strikes Kill Dozens in Lebanon and Isolated Northern Gaza While Netanyahu and Trump Speak

UP NEXT

When to Catch the Last Supermoon of the Year

UP NEXT

Mattel Says It ‘Deeply’ Regrets Misprint on ‘Wicked’ Dolls Packaging That Links to Porn Site

UP NEXT

Trump to Target Iran’s Oil Trade in Renewed ‘Maximum Pressure’ Campaign

UP NEXT

4B Movement: After the Election, a Call for Women to Swear Off Men

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

10 hours ago

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

11 hours ago

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

11 hours ago

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

11 hours ago

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

11 hours ago

Economists Warn of Inflation and Debt Risks in Trump’s Second Term Plans

11 hours ago

How Many Smoke Shops Is Too Many? Fresno Plan Would Allow Only 49

11 hours ago

US Says It Will Not Limit Israel Arms Transfers After Some Improvements in Flow of Aid to Gaza

11 hours ago

Who With Valley Ties Could Land Spots in the Trump Administration?

12 hours ago

Tulare Gang Member Gets Life Without Parole for 2022 Murders

14 hours ago

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday said Elon Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will lead a new “D...

10 hours ago

10 hours ago

Trump Says Musk, Vivek Will Form Outside Group to Advise White House on Government Efficiency

10 hours ago

Fate of Clovis Trustee Race Still Up in the Air. So Are Clovis, Sanger School Bond Measures.

10 hours ago

Richardson Widens Lead Over Bonakdar in Nail-Biting Race for Fresno City Council

10 hours ago

What to Know About John Ratcliffe, Trump’s Pick for CIA Director

11 hours ago

Here Are the People Trump Has Picked for Key Positions So Far

11 hours ago

Waymo’s Robotaxis Now Open to Anyone Who Wants a Driverless Ride in Los Angeles

A Fresno County man has been indicted on mail fraud charges for allegedly submitting over $300,000 in falsified disability claims using stolen identities. (GV Wire File)
11 hours ago

Fresno County Man Accused of Filing Fake Disability Claims in $300K Fraud Scheme

Pete Hegseth walks to an elevator for a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York, Dec. 15, 2016. (AP File)
11 hours ago

Trump Nominates Fox News Host Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary

Search

Send this to a friend