As I clicked through the news this morning, I came across this picture — it was smuggled out of Pakistan, despite the threat of repression by a megalomaniacal leader backed by an army of thugs. The students holding up signs are from the Lahore University of Management Sciences. It made me think about the kinds of freedoms we are afforded here in the US that just don’t exist in so many places in the world. In Pakistan, students like these aren’t allowed to demonstrate in their communities or lobby their leaders (who are they going to convince when the president has effectively dissolved the government?) Those holding signs in the photo can’t even show their faces — they have to hide behind their messages.
Coming back from the 6000-student strong Powershift this weekend, and looking through photos and videos from Step It Up events around the country, I had the distinct feeling that we’re winning this fight. It sometimes seems like we’re invincible in the youth movement — nothing can stop us. And we are, in this country. We’re pushing for a wholesale revolution in how we consume energy and how our economy is structured–and our leaders are starting to say what we’re saying. Underneath all the politics and the science, it’s mostly a change in how we think and how we communicate what we’re thinking.
What struck me about this picture is that while we were partying on the west lawn of the Capitol last Monday, chanting “80 by 50″ with the highest ranking woman in government, these students were hiding behind even the simplest of messages. They were asking for the basic right to communicate, to have a voice.
If there’s anything we’ve learned from the last few months of hard work and victories on our campuses and in our communities, it’s that we can make a difference if we make our collective voice heard loud enough. Let’s make sure that as we build this movement over the next weeks, months and years, that everybody has a voice and that we don’t leave anybody behind (it’s the least we can do for those whose voices are stifled). Van Jones always says that “We don’t have any throw-away communities or throw-away children.” These students in Pakistan have proven that they won’t be part of a throw-away generation in their country, and we, the youth climate movement, stand in solidarity with them.
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Thank you Phil, for reminding us that we have incredible opportunities to shape our futures and that we owe it to those without our freedom to make the most of it. Although these students in Pakistan are not fighting global warming, they are calling for a future where they have the freedoms we take for granted. We are part of a global movement to build a sustainable, just and equitable future for all, including those who are not a part of the movement yet.
This was a beautiful post, Phil. Thank you for reminding us of the opportunities and freedoms we enjoy in this nation and the fact that many in the world do not.
As Juliana said, these Pakistani students are not fighting for global warming solutions. How could they be when simple freedoms like the right to assemble, communicate and rally are denied them? But the beauty of a movement that extends beyond simply saving the environment, or stopping global warming, but is instead truly committed to building a sustainable, just, and prosperous future for all is that such a movement can find clear solidarity with students in Pakistan, students in China, students in the Sudan, and anyone else fighting for a better future.
As the Cascade Climate Declaration, which both Juliana and I helped craft, states: “we find solidarity with all who have a stake in making a sustainable, just, and prosperous future a reality and find common cause with youth and impacted communities across the globe and with generations yet unborn.”
We stand with these brave young men and women in Pakistan. We are one!
By the way, you can read the Cascade Climate Declaration here.