Kids around the world plan to skip school tomorrow (at least temporarily), and it's not your usual teen rebellion—it's about global warming.
Tomorrow, March 15, 2019, thousands of school-aged children are taking to the streets to demand action from elected officials on climate change. Thanks to the #FridaysForFuture movement, aspiring Greta Thunbergs can participate in an organized Youth Climate Strike (which, might we add, was founded by a group of children ages 12–17!) to raise awareness for global warming. The event could be one of the biggest environmental protests in history.
Though the key points of each strike vary slightly across the world, here in the US, the Youth Climate Strike website outlines the following objectives for the protest:
- Green New Deal
- Halt to fossil fuel infrastructure projects
- Environmental decisions led with scientific research
- A National Emergency declaration for climate change
- Widespread public education on climate change
- Preserving public land and wildlife
- Protecting our water supply
The current strikes listed in NYC for the Youth Climate Strike website are as follows:
Students for a Future Climate Strike at New York City Hall
NYC Climate Strike at Columbus Circle
New York Youth Climate Strike (46th and First Ave; W 3rd St between Bleecker and E 4th St)
See a full list of active youth strikes in NYC and elsewhere around the world here. If you would like to learn more about students' rights during the walkout, or to have a deeper conversation with your child about school walkouts, see ACLU's helpful breakdown. We love you, New York!