Is teenage greta still the real deal? of curse she is
It’s a harsh life being a child activist. You spend your tender years being patronised by publicity seekers who want only to bask in your moment of glory.
And once you have the audacity to grow up, no one’s quite as interested as they were before.
There are rare exceptions to this rule, one being Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistan education campaigner and human rights advocate.
It’s nearly 10 years since she was the victim of a Taliban execution attempt as she travelled home from school. Now 24, with a Nobel Peace Prize and Oxford degree under her belt, she leads an international movement, commands global recognition and is considered a modern-day hero.
Her star remains in its ascendancy. It would be a mistake to underestimate the heights to which it could reach.
Is Greta Thunberg another exception? After the past few days, I really hope so. I count myself a convert to her cult.
Yes, her “blah, blah, blah” commentary can sound trite but it’s her refusal to be shouldered out of the spotlight or curry any favour that has won me over.
The serious schoolgirl who captured the world’s attention with sombre protests outside the Swedish parliament and tearful admonishments of UN leaders in New York is now an outspoken, cheeky, sometimes potty-mouthed school-leaver of nearly 19 who grabs the microphone when its shoved in her face and speaks off-the-cuff.
In the judgemental eyes of policy-makers, that makes her a bit less exceptional. Maybe that’s why she didn’t get an “official” invitation to address Cop26 delegates. They’ll crowd around the child activist to make themselves look caring and inclusive but they’re in less of a rush to hang out with a belligerent teenager, especially if that belligerent teenager is making some awkward demands.
They’d rather have Amazon founder Jeff Bezos fly in on his £ 48million private jet and lecture them on how he has a new perspective on atmospheric damage since his wee jolly boys’ trip into space earlier this year. How much energy was used to make that man’s brass neck?
Watching Greta leading climate change demonstrators in Glasgow last week – a diminutive, fragile-looking figure mobbed by hulking great “supporters” – I was struck by how much fun she seemed to be having.
Of course, there were plenty of pictures of her scowling face but there was also loads of footage of her grinning.
And any young woman who can be persuaded to lead a chorus of “You can shove your climate crisis up your a***” clearly knows how to have a laugh.
She could have passed the baton to the next child activist, then gone off to enjoy her life far from the duplicitous, self-serving politicians who stopped supporting her arguments when she stopped wearing cutesy pigtails.
Personally, I’m glad she didn’t ’cause I prefer this teenage Greta. She’s exactly the sweary, angry, caustic, irritatingly informed type to really get under the skin of decision-makers and engage with her peers.
She’s no longer the shy schoolgirl who seemed so uncomfortable with the attention thrust on her. She’s no longer being used.
Of course, her replacement is already being lined up. The latest child activist has been shoved on to the international stage.
Fifteen-year-old Vinisha Umashankar, from a small temple town in southern India, is a finalist in Prince William’s Earthshot Prize for inventing a solar-powered ironing cart to replace the traditional charcoal-powered version used by 10million street vendors.
She received a standing ovation at Cop26 after telling the audience of world leaders: “We will lead, even if you don’t. We will act, even if you delay. And we’ll build the future, even if you are still stuck in the past.”
The wonderful teenager spoke eloquently and politely, determined in her message but moderate in her language.
Her approach is clearly different to Greta’s but imagine if the two of
them got together to smash this shower of racketeers. They would truly be a force to be reckoned with.
Once Greta has taught Vinisha how to swear.