Climate protest could influence parliament vote
BERLIN — Protesters — many of them too young to vote — took to the streets Friday across the European Union to demand tougher action against global warming as the 28-nation bloc elects a new parliament.
Concerns about climate change have prompted mass protests across Europe for the past year. For the first time, the issue is expected to have a significant impact on this week’s elections for the European Parliament that began Thursday and ends Sunday for the EU’s 751-seat assembly. The vote is expected to boost the influence of parties that have a strong environmental message.
A recent opinion poll in Germany showed that climate change has overtaken immigration as the issue voters in the EU’s most populous nation are most concerned about. Elsewhere across the EU, climate change also features prominently among the top issues — along with immigration and the economy.
From Portugal to Finland, from Italy to Britain, students on Friday followed the call of Swedish teenage activist Greta Thunberg to stage “school strikes” against climate change.
Thunberg, 16, inspired a “Fridays for Future” school strikes movement in her native Sweden that’s spread across Europe, bringing tens of thousands to the streets demanding faster action on climate change. She was recently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
In Berlin, thousands of mostly young people rallied in front of the German capital’s landmark Brandenburg Gate waving banners with slogans such as “There is no planet B” or “Plant trees, save the bees, clean the seas.”
Clara Kirchhoff said although she’s not yet allowed to vote, she’s been pressing family members and older friends to consider the world’s long-term future when they go to the polls Sunday.
“I think, particularly at the European level, it’s an important issue to create a level playing field, because there’s no point in Germany doing a lot for the climate and others not pulling their weight,” the 17-yearold said.
Parvati Smolka, 14, said she and her fellow students felt an obligation to attend the Berlin rally on behalf of future generations. “We’ve got a chance to go on the streets here and make our voice heard,” she said.
A few thousands of people, mostly high school and university students, marched Friday in the streets of Paris in a joyful atmosphere to demand action against climate change. Some sang “One, two, three degrees, that’s a crime against humanity” and waved posters reading “No nature, no future.”