Adults: Support Youth Climate Activists in MOCO
Adults: Support Youth Climate Activists in MOCO
The Issue
On September 23, 2019, the United Nations will host a Climate Action Summit in New York City to follow up on actions from the 2015 Paris Climate Accords and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In accordance with UN Secretary-General’s key focus areas of local action and youth engagement, sixteen-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has called all concerned citizens of the planet to join local sections of an international climate strike on September 20, and a week of climate action in the following week. Already a regarded figure in the climate movement, Greta’s appeal for action has quickly garnered international mobilization.
The DC Climate Strike will take place on September 20 with participants from all over the DMV, and a group of 24-odd Montgomery County (MOCO) high schoolers are planning to meet with the Board of Education to demand specific local action on September 27.
The DC Climate Strike is led by youth, but all climate strikes that have occurred have shared a common goal: demonstrating to those who continue to kill the planet the sheer number of people who aren’t willing to continue “business as usual” as a result of the crisis facing us today. Therefore, it is important for everyone from all backgrounds to take part in the strike - including adults - to establish this sentiment.
However, the intersectionality of the climate crisis is recognized by youth organizing these strikes, and there are many people who cannot participate in one of these strikes. This could be for fear of ramifications from one’s employer or family for issues relating to one’s race, class, citizenship status or other factors.
As a parent, friend, or community member, I am signing this letter to show support for and solidarity with youth in their protest of government inaction.
This action is an invaluable experience for those organizing and participating in the strike. Maryland requires all graduating High School Seniors to pass one class in national, state, and local government. Civic learning, like all learning, should not only happen in the classroom. A 2010 paper in the Princeton journal The Future of Children cites high school civic engagement as not only helping to stabilize the future of democracies, but also serving as a key part of the transition from youth to adulthood, as it is then when youth begin to form their own opinions on complex issues and translate that into action.
It is also important to acknowledge the history of youth in activism. Students have been the driving force behind almost all large-scale movements, with hundreds of high schoolers in Birmingham, Alabama marching during the Children’s Crusade of 1963 and similar events occurring nationally in the wake of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida organized by teenage survivors. These events have resulted in serious national and state legal changes, as well as the mobilization of a generation, which have changed the way these issues are viewed dramatically.
Therefore, we ask that the MCPS administration and Board of Education:
1. Refrain from any disciplinary action against any students who participate in any legitimate climate strike activities during the week of Sept. 20-27
2. Designate September 20 as a no-test day to reinforce a stance of supporting such action
3. Allow students to share information about the climate strikes in school as appropriate
4. Meet respectfully with students when requested during this week of action and beyond to address the climate crisis within Montgomery County
5. Listen to the demands of the Student Member of the Board (SMOB) and follow up on past SMOB Ananya Tadikonda’s appeal for 5 excused absences for civic engagement
Follow us and join the movement!
Please email us saying what school you attend and whether you will help us get signatures this summer. If you are not a student, please tell us if your are a MOCO resident. Everyone is welcome to sign!
Email: moco.on.climate@gmail.com
Instagram: @moco.on.climate
Support the specific student demands: https://bit.ly/2LxW3SO
The Issue
On September 23, 2019, the United Nations will host a Climate Action Summit in New York City to follow up on actions from the 2015 Paris Climate Accords and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. In accordance with UN Secretary-General’s key focus areas of local action and youth engagement, sixteen-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg has called all concerned citizens of the planet to join local sections of an international climate strike on September 20, and a week of climate action in the following week. Already a regarded figure in the climate movement, Greta’s appeal for action has quickly garnered international mobilization.
The DC Climate Strike will take place on September 20 with participants from all over the DMV, and a group of 24-odd Montgomery County (MOCO) high schoolers are planning to meet with the Board of Education to demand specific local action on September 27.
The DC Climate Strike is led by youth, but all climate strikes that have occurred have shared a common goal: demonstrating to those who continue to kill the planet the sheer number of people who aren’t willing to continue “business as usual” as a result of the crisis facing us today. Therefore, it is important for everyone from all backgrounds to take part in the strike - including adults - to establish this sentiment.
However, the intersectionality of the climate crisis is recognized by youth organizing these strikes, and there are many people who cannot participate in one of these strikes. This could be for fear of ramifications from one’s employer or family for issues relating to one’s race, class, citizenship status or other factors.
As a parent, friend, or community member, I am signing this letter to show support for and solidarity with youth in their protest of government inaction.
This action is an invaluable experience for those organizing and participating in the strike. Maryland requires all graduating High School Seniors to pass one class in national, state, and local government. Civic learning, like all learning, should not only happen in the classroom. A 2010 paper in the Princeton journal The Future of Children cites high school civic engagement as not only helping to stabilize the future of democracies, but also serving as a key part of the transition from youth to adulthood, as it is then when youth begin to form their own opinions on complex issues and translate that into action.
It is also important to acknowledge the history of youth in activism. Students have been the driving force behind almost all large-scale movements, with hundreds of high schoolers in Birmingham, Alabama marching during the Children’s Crusade of 1963 and similar events occurring nationally in the wake of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida organized by teenage survivors. These events have resulted in serious national and state legal changes, as well as the mobilization of a generation, which have changed the way these issues are viewed dramatically.
Therefore, we ask that the MCPS administration and Board of Education:
1. Refrain from any disciplinary action against any students who participate in any legitimate climate strike activities during the week of Sept. 20-27
2. Designate September 20 as a no-test day to reinforce a stance of supporting such action
3. Allow students to share information about the climate strikes in school as appropriate
4. Meet respectfully with students when requested during this week of action and beyond to address the climate crisis within Montgomery County
5. Listen to the demands of the Student Member of the Board (SMOB) and follow up on past SMOB Ananya Tadikonda’s appeal for 5 excused absences for civic engagement
Follow us and join the movement!
Please email us saying what school you attend and whether you will help us get signatures this summer. If you are not a student, please tell us if your are a MOCO resident. Everyone is welcome to sign!
Email: moco.on.climate@gmail.com
Instagram: @moco.on.climate
Support the specific student demands: https://bit.ly/2LxW3SO
Petition Closed
Share this petition
The Decision Makers
Petition Updates
Share this petition
Petition created on July 15, 2019