Young march for the Greta good
25,000 at demo as activist slams COP26 ‘fantasy’
GRETA Thunberg led thousands of young protesters yesterday on a march to demand more climate action from politicians at COP26.
The activist joined a demonstration in Glasgow where some youngsters staged a “school strike”.
Thunberg, 18, told the crowd and trade unionists: “This is no longer a climate conference. This is now a global north greenwash festival.
“A festival of business as usual and blah blah blah. The voices of future generations are drowning in their greenwash and empty words.”
The Swede called for “immediate, drastic, annual emission cuts unlike anything the world has ever seen”.
She accused world leaders of wanting to “maintain business as usual”, adding: “The people in power can continue to live in their bubble filled with fantasies, like eternal growth on a finite planet and technological solutions that will suddenly appear out of nowhere and erase all of these crises just like that. “All this while the world is literally burning and people living on the front lines are bearing the brunt of the climate crisis.” An estimated 25,000 people took part in the demo, organised by Fridays for Future Scotland, as COP26 talks featured events highlighting the voice of young people and education.
But Downing Street said pupils missing school to attend amid the pandemic was “extremely disruptive” and Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi suggested fining them.
Charlie O’Rourke, 14, from Glasgow, skipped school to be there and urged world leaders: “Don’t just go for profit. Listen to what the planet needs.”
Mum Cairsty said she was there for her kids and “generations to come”.
Finlay Pringle, 14, who was joined by his father, said: “If there’s something you love and want to protect, you should do that, don’t think twice.”