“This is all wrong. I shouldn’t be standing here. I should be back in school on the other side of the ocean. Yet you all come to me for hope? How dare you! You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words.”
When these words are spoken by 16-year old Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, it sent another of her ripple to the world leaders attending the United Nations Climate Action Summit Monday, challenging them for not doing enough to address climate change.
It’s surprising we can use 16-year old and environment activist together. We think 16 year olds are more interested in K-Pop and crushes. But not this Greta.
Greta has shown how one act of protest she started by her lonesome, a climate school strike, has inspired millions of youth from Germany to New York to march with her to call out leaders to act against pollution and resource plunder that endanger the climate.
Her brave act reminds me of a film we watched in high school called Silent Voice. The story was of an American boy disturbed after watching a documentary on the US and USSR nuclear arms race. He decides to stop playing baseball, where he is the star pitcher. Soon, professional athletes took notice, and joined him in sitting out their games, and made the world leaders notice.
Never have I thought this could happen in real life. But Greta has made it happened.
She has opened our eyes and made us look at the power of activism. She has shown us where true power comes from. Not from big words, not from witty social media posts. But from a collective action to change the world.
Her words at the Climate Summit was the most powerful she made. It was pointed and emotional. I must add that she has Asperger’s Syndrome, a neurotypical condition where she has difficulty expressing emotion. But this girl on a tear was on the verge of tears, because why does a girl have to grow fast to make the older ones awake?
There is an irony between Greta and our country, as people in social media like singer Bituin Escalante point out. What if Greta is an activist or a Lumad student fighting to defend her school and land? Can we embrace her cause and at the same time support a president who villainizes indigenous peoples and environment activists? Or do we call her brainwashed?
That’s the irony of our leaders, and one senator, who paints activism as a nemesis of the nation. They say activism is ruining the future of youth. But they don’t blame the culture of hazing in the Philippine Military Academy which has killed one cadet, and sent two others bruised in the hospital. Who is wasting the youth’s future, and our tax money?
Greta has these words for us all if we want things to change: “Activism works. See you in the streets.”
Never has this been spoken with hope and power like she has.