Greta Thunburg has been making waves on social media, in national headlines and during policy debates. But why her? She is not the first youth leader to join the fight for climate justice — but she is white. As a privileged white person growing up in a wealthy Manhattan bubble, my voice is almost always heard too, and when it isn’t, I am capable of fighting back to take up that space without genuine repercussions. People of color (POC) often do not have this same privilege and guarantee of safety, and yet, time and time again they have led the majority of direct action social movements historically (think Gandhi, MLK, Mandela, Rosa Parks, and so forth).
Climate change is unique in the sense that it affects every and all living beings, so white people have visibly joined the fight as well, not just as followers (like we have in civil rights movements of the past), but also as leaders. It seems that when white people are affected by an issue, we have no problem speaking up, but when the problem does not cause us any individual harm, we are much more likely to keep wearing our rose-colored glasses and profit off of the oppression, even if we do so unintentionally. Greta’s privilege cannot save her from the ultimate destruction of our world, so in the meantime, she is using this privilege to shed light on the issue and people are actually listening, because like it or not, she is more palatable to society than POC and indigenous folk who have been disregarded for generations.Like Greta, I must also use my privilege to draw attention to this pressing issue, but in doing so, I first must spotlight the words of those who are making a humungous impact and yet are silenced by the media and society as a whole. I believe that finding my voice as an eco-journalist and storyteller requires me to sometimes take the backseat and purposely act as a “platform for the passion of other people’s ideas”. Discussing intersectional and historical connections is and will continue to be my main focus/interest in this class — and that is exactly why Greta’s story is not the one I am discussing today. This post is not meant to negate the positive role that Greta has had on the movement, but rather it is meant to introduce us to the notion of inherent racism within the media by crediting young POC who have “paved the way for the climate movement to grow” in the first place.
VICE has dedicated a new column, Tipping Point, to addressing exactly that, and compiled a list of pertinent members of the intersectional climate justice movement under the age of 30. Each of these incredible young activists live on the frontlines of the movement and are disproportionately affected by environmental racism, more than Thunberg or any of the members of this class ever could be. They have been collectively traumatized by displacement as climate refugees, contracted physical illnesses due to their overly-polluted hometowns, and had corporations steal or contaminate their clean drinking water, and yet they keep fighting.As Amira Odeh Quiñones, regional organizer for 350.org and survivor of Hurricane Maria so astutely put it, “[frontline] communities should be in this conversation because whatever policy is decided will be key for us to be able to survive”. They also serve as a physical reminder to us all that climate change is not some abstract future consequence for later generations to deal with, rather it is “something that’s happening in peoples’ lives every single day”.
When the media highlights POC activists at the forefront of the movement, everyday readers are more able to recognize the true urgency of this fight, as “solutions have much more depth [when] Black and brown voices are centered”, says Feliquan Charlemagne, the national creative director of the U.S. Youth Climate Strike.
Besides, even if climate change was just a problem for the next generation or so, it does not negate anybody who is currently alive of our responsibility to protect the planet. Makaśa Looking Horse, an indigenous water activist taking on the corporate giant Nestlé in Canada, recognizes this point, as we all should, stating that it is her “inherent responsibility to [her] people to protect them and look out for the next seven generations”.
One thought on “Why Greta Thunberg is Probably the Only Youth Climate Activist You’ve Heard Of”
This is a good moment to refine the expectations of this ongoing assignment.
Moral authorities abound. Many climate and environmental issues are important and all vying for our attention. The idea with these exercises is not to be a platform for the passion of other people’s ideas. The goal is for you to find your voice and to communicate what is important to you with this reader and then verbally with your class cohort.
When you share your work in class, please confine yourself to letting the room know what your article’s source was, the title, author, a sentence or two (maximum) about the subject, and no more than one minute about why this topic is of personal interest to you.
Be prepared to answer a possible question from the room in as succinct a manner as possible.
Let me know when you have edited this post to include the reason why the issue matters to you.
As Amira Odeh Quiñones, regional organizer for 350.org and survivor of Hurricane Maria so astutely put it, “[frontline] communities should be in this conversation because whatever policy is decided will be key for us to be able to survive”. They also serve as a physical reminder to us all that climate change is not some abstract future consequence for later generations to deal with, rather it is “something that’s happening in peoples’ lives every single day”.
Hello Alice,
Another great post! Going forward I would like you to start embedding a video in each entry. Here’s the helper:
https://wp.nyu.edu/syllabus/embed-video-in-wp/
This is a good moment to refine the expectations of this ongoing assignment.
Moral authorities abound. Many climate and environmental issues are important and all vying for our attention. The idea with these exercises is not to be a platform for the passion of other people’s ideas. The goal is for you to find your voice and to communicate what is important to you with this reader and then verbally with your class cohort.
When you share your work in class, please confine yourself to letting the room know what your article’s source was, the title, author, a sentence or two (maximum) about the subject, and no more than one minute about why this topic is of personal interest to you.
Be prepared to answer a possible question from the room in as succinct a manner as possible.
Let me know when you have edited this post to include the reason why the issue matters to you.
Prof. Peter Terezakis
Prof. Peter Terezakis