Youth Climate Strike

On Friday, March 15, 2019, in solidarity with the Global Youth Climate Strike happening worldwide, over 424 student strikes took place in at least 45 states across the United States.

The demands? That lawmakers take urgent and immediate legislative action to combat climate change. This generation – Gen Z – feels the urgency of the climate emergency in a way that previous generations have not; they know that we have just 11 years to avoid climate catastrophe.

This is why when the student leaders organizing the strike nationally reached out to Future Coalition for assistance, we didn’t hesitate. We immediately set about lining up resources and support to ensure that the voices of American kids were going to be heard loud and clear throughout this global day of action.

We worked very closely with the student strike leaders to ensure we utilized this day as an opportunity to galvanize youth activism in the US.

Youth Climate Strike | Nash County, NC

The strike organizers in Nash County, North Carolina planned a direct action to oppose the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a 600 mile long natural gas pipeline running between West Virginia and eastern North Carolina. The construction began in May 2018 and the mission of students in Nash County is to slow down and eventually stop its implementation.

Youth Climate Strike | Boston, MA

Organizers for Sunrise, one of Future Coalition’s member organizations, organized the strike in Boston, Massachusetts. They focused their rally and educational panel around the Green New Deal and how students around Massachusetts and the US can engage with the bill.

Youth Climate Strike | Los Angeles, CA

In Los Angeles, California, students gathered in the morning at City Hall to create signs, learn about organizations in California doing work to combat the climate change crisis, and hear from student organizers on the front lines. After, the students walked 1.3 miles through LA to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power headquarters, to hold a rally and demand their voices be heard.

Youth Climate Strike | New York City, NY

In New York City, Future Coalition organized a sit-in at the Koch Brothers offices to call them out for giving nearly $150 million to people and organizations promoting a climate change-denying narrative. Aside from this action, the majority of the messaging around the climate strike in the US was focused on elected officials and government leaders’ failure to address the climate crisis.

Youth Climate Strike | Raleigh, NC

Students in Raleigh, North Carolina planned a climate rally at the Halifax Mall which ended up being the largest event in North Carolina. Young people and adults joined together to speak about the urgency of the climate crisis, the impact it would have in North Carolina, and the action that must be taken to address the emergency.

Youth Climate Strike | San Francisco, CA

The organizers in San Francisco, California started off with a rally at Speaker Pelosi’s office where they called on her to raise the level of urgency the House is putting toward climate change. The students then marched to Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office where they held a larger rally to call her out for her treatment of youth climate activists and demand that she take time to truly listen to what her youth constituents are saying about the future of the country and world.

Youth Climate Strike | Gainesville, FL

The strikers in Gainesville, Florida chose to hold a rally at their city hall. Students of all ages gathered together to hear speakers and join their voices together to call for change.

Youth Climate Strike | Madison, WI

Madison, Wisconsin had one of the largest strikes in the country. Students all over the state were bussed in for a march from Madison East High School to the state capitol. Upon arriving to the capitol, students occupied the main building in order to send a message to elected officials that action must be taken by state and federal governments to protect against the worst effects of climate change.

Youth Climate Strike | Atlanta, GA

Young people in Atlanta, Georgia participated in a direct action on the day of the strike to plant trees in a local park. Rather than rallying or marching, students thought it would be more impactful to take purposeful steps to repair the environment.

Youth Climate Strike | Sacramento, CA

The students striking in Sacramento, California chose to use the day as an opportunity to lobby a local climate bill at the capitol. After talking with various elected officials, they reconvened outside the Capitol for a rally to further promote the bill and call upon students to continue to take action.

Youth Climate Strike | Vancouver, Canada

In Vancouver, Canada, 2,000 students flooded the streets for a march to the office of the Federal Department of Environment and Climate Change. There, the crowd delivered a message, by way of repeating lines from organizers, that outlined their demands for a climate-safe future. The proceeding rally featured announcements about the next actions of the climate strike movement. A MARCH ON affiliate in Canada was involved in providing support to the Vancouver strike, as well as the national organizers of the Canadian Youth Climate Strike.