Hundreds flocked to downtown Atlanta to participate in the Youth Climate Strike on Friday, September 20th. Activists from Zero Hour Georgia and Atlanta for the Planet staged the event strategically at the beginning of the Global Climate Strikes, which are set to take place September 20-27. Youth organizers in Atlanta complemented the work of Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teenager and environmental activist who established the Fridays for Future school strike movement.
The day of the Atlanta Youth Climate Strike was sunny and sweaty with temperatures in the mid- to high-80s, warmer than usual for late September. The crowd included adults, young people, seniors, babies in slings, individuals with mobility difficulties both physical and invisible, abled bodies, folks from a multitude of racial identities, locals, passersby, and business people on their lunch break. Action began at noon, marching from Atlanta City Hall to the Georgia State Capitol and continued with a poster-making party at Liberty Plaza. At 2 p.m., a slate of speakers addressed the crowd from the stairs of the Capitol, and a Climate Crisis Panel Discussion at the Trinity United Methodist Church followed.
The sights, sounds, and energy of the young movement leaders brought an overwhelmingly positive response from the crowd at large and to myself personally. Chants lead by Rev. Gerald Durley, young activists, and participants included, “No more coal, no more oil, keep our carbon in the soil”, “The enemy is profit, together we will stop it”, and a call-and-response chant of “‘What do we want?’ CLIMATE JUSTICE! ‘When do we want it?’ NOW!"
Youth leaders and attendees shared their fears, the reasons they were participating, and their advice to the public for next steps in action. Signs on display at the event used messages that ranged from blunt (“You’ll die of old age, we’ll die of climate change”, “There is no planet B”, “Kill the humans, save the forest”) to optimistic (“If you don’t act like adults, we will”) to humorous ("If the Earth dies, there will be no dogs"). Some members of the climate strike wore costumes, others donned shirts with climate justice messages.
The Atlanta Youth Climate Strike called to action the politicians with the ability to make reform. Globally, communities are beginning to recognize the severity of the climate crisis as the physical signs are abundantly clear: extreme weather patterns, including hurricanes, forest fires becoming regular occurrences, rising temperatures causing glacial ice to melt at rapid rates and recurring flooding of coastal areas. Marginalized individuals endure these effects disproportionately, and the symptoms of the climate crisis also take a toll on our agricultural systems and fresh water supply. I encourage everyone with the means and the will to find the environmental cause dear to them and act upon it. Youth organizers from Atlanta believed in the power of collectivizing, and as a result were part of the largest international day of action. You too can make a difference.
— Jillian Eller
From the author: Hello to all! My name is Jillian Eller, and I am the newest staff member at the Sierra Club Georgia Chapter. Officially, my title is the Conservation Fellow, but what that entails is having fingers in many pots! I will be working with the Ready for 100 campaign primarily, but will be assisting the Beyond Coal Campaign as well as providing volunteer support and community outreach. My background is in environmental studies with a focus on urban issues. I recently graduated from Temple University in Philadelphia, and I am so excited to be working here in Atlanta with the Sierra Club!