addressed in the campaign?" we are awarding $100,000 in total cash prizes, including a $5,000 grand prize. >> be passionate about what you are discussing to express your view no matter how large or --ll youth and the audience you think the audience will be to receive it. in the greatest country of the history of the earth your view matters. >> for more information, go to our website. studentcam.org. youth activists held a rally in washington and elsewhere around the country calling on elected representatives in the nations capital and around the world to take action to address climate change and to advocate for a shared human right to clean air and clean water. this is about two hours and 20 minutes.

>> hello! [applause] outk you so much for coming to strike with us for the climate. [applause] ready? are we ready? >> hey, everybody. let's get started.

let's do this. >> we are your emcees for today's strike! >> my name is nadia, i'm 17 years old, i'm from baltimore, maryland. i am a founder of zero hour as well is the art director of zero hour. >> round of applause for nadia! [cheers and applause] hello, everyone, my name is ethan wright i'm the advocacy director of zero hour, i'm so glad all of you are here. we'll be striking and having great speeches and performances. thank you again. can i get a round of applause soto? -- too? thank you. [applause] >> first we wanted to start with an acknowledgment, we're going to introduce -- come on up here. [cheers and applause]

>> hello, everyone! how we all feeling today? [cheers and applause] it's a beautiful day to be alive here on mother earth, isn't it? my name is jessie and i'm a proud member of the indian nation. [cheers and applause] we are the indigenous people of maryland. our traditional territory follows the potomac river all the way down to the chesapeake bay. [cheers and applause] >> i want everyone to take a moment and feel the ground beneath your feet. remember the steps that you took to get here.

the land you are standing upon is native land. [cheers and applause] >> every square inch of the americas is native land. land that was painfully ripped way and stolen from indigenous people. obviously, all of us are here because we care about the environment. that's why we're striking, but half of us don't understand the land we are trying to protect. and the waters we are trying to protect. before we can do anything, we need to understand where it comes from. how it has changed. what caused it to change. what caused the beautiful ecosystem of d.c. to be destroyed. what caused the roads to be paved over with asphalt.

the sidewalks with concrete. what caused the capitol to be built. the answer is colonization. the genocide of indigenous people. the enslavement of africans. some may say that this doesn't matter, that it happened a long time ago. that it doesn't affect us today. [booing] but it affects communities of color every single day. [cheers and applause] today across our nation and here in d.c., it is still brown and black communities that have the least amount of access to clean water and healthy green spaces. [applause] despite the fact that it was colonizers who forced development and mass consumption upon them.

it is still marginalized and low-income communities that are hit the hardest by hurricanes, and the hardest by doubt, and floods, and climate catastrophes despite the fact that they contribute the least to climate change. [cheers and applause] we need to have the voices represented in every -- in every single conversation we have about environment. every single dialogue. every single workshop. because this is not just an environmental issue. this is a race issue. this is a -- this is an immigration issue. this is a feminist issue. and we can't solve anything until we understand the connections between these issues. this building behind me, built

on the backs of our ancestors, now has the power to make real change. it is one of the strongest institutions and most powerful institutions in the world. so congress, i ask you, are you going to sit here and watch our are you going to let your most vulnerable constituents suffer at the hands of climate catastrophes. 15 years from now, will you be able to look us young people in the eyes and tell us you did everything you could to save our future? we the youth say you are not doing enough. [cheers and applause]

we the youth demand action now. thank you so much for having me today, for giving me the platform to speak, to represent voices that don't get represented enough. [cheers and applause] i'm going to go ahead and turn to my sebastian and zaire please give them a warm welcome. [cheers and applause]

[music] [chanting]

[playing music]

[applause] >> [speaking foreign language] hello, everyone.

i come from the standing rock nation in north dakota. [cheers and applause] i would like to be able to address the fact that we are privileged in being here. there are millions and millions of people just like us who will never have -- who have never had the right to be able to stand here with us. who are those people whose voices have never been heard? who are the governments who are oppressing them? we need to be the ones to stand in for those who can't be here with us. we need to add knowledge -- we need to acknowledge their suffering by being the ones to stand up and say that we need clean air, and we need clean water! there is no reason that one human being should be suffering on this planet. there is no need. [cheers and applause]

the earth gives us abundance in every single area of our lives. everything we've ever needed. why is it that humans have forgotten how to live with that? why is it that we have forgotten how to provide for ourselves? there are indigenous blueprints, indigenous ways of being, indigenous knowledge. this is what we should be looking at when we are talking about solutions to the climate crisis. [cheers and applause] because every time that we think about what happens if we don't do anything, there are indigenous peoples who have been asking that same question for millenia. i'm 16 years old. i've been fighting for this since i was 9.

tell me. tell me why a 9-year-old would have to be talking to congress people about her own future? tell me why there are children who have to stand up for themselves? where are our parents? where are our grandparents? [cheers and applause] it was not our job to be here today. it was the people in congress and it was the president. it was the people who tried so hard to get to this land, it was the people who massacred millions. you wanted it so bad, what is stopping you from fighting for it now? [cheers and applause] i have fought every day -- thought every day about what the future looks like for a daughter, what does it look like for our children? why are there only a few clean

rivers in this country? what happened to our ancestors? they have been fighting for this before we could even conceive what the climate crisis was? what does it mean that we don't honor that now? we as indigenous people, if there's one thing we can get across to all of you, it's that what it means to be human, is to be able to be part of the earth. it means listening to the inherent imbalances and -- balances and cycles and laws that the earth has already provided. it's our job to listen. it is our only job. thank you for all that you have done. thank you for showing up today. but we need to do more. there is so much left to do. often when we talk about climate change, we don't talk about system change. climate change is an intersectional issue.

[cheers and applause] you can lower all the carbon emissions you want but if you are not respecting women, if you are not respecting people of color, what is the solution? we -- solution? we as the human population need to be the change because i will not sit and worry about a future that i might not have. [cheers and applause] remember who you are. remember that you are always going to be a part of the very ground that you stand on. there is no us without her. thank you. >> [speaking foreign language]

hello, everyone, good day. my lakota name is lightwoman. in english, i nina. ami am 20 years old and i come from minneapolis, minnesota, the land of over 10,000 beautiful lakes. the land where wild rice grows on the water. where it has always been lakota land and ojibwe land. i want you all to take a moment and look us in the eyes, all of you congresspeople who are listening, all of you people who are able to create change, look us in our eyes and tell us that you're going to do something. [cheers and applause] you're going to do something for your future grandchildren, those who are unborn. think about all of those people.

think about the beautiful nations that will come. in minnesota, they're trying to build a pipeline. the pipeline proposed by the corporation. myself, along with other young people, the youth climate interveners said in the courts that we will not accept this pipeline to destroy the only thing we've ever known. [cheers and applause] while being here in d.c. for the past week, we have told the congresspeople that we want them to sit and listen to us. that you have had your time to talk and now it is our time. it is our time to talk. you've had your entire lives to do something about it and it has not been enough. so when we demand climate change, it's nothing to be debated about.

like one of our relatives that came from the amazon, the place where things are happening right now that we could not even imagine to our communities, how much more indigenous blood is going to be shed in the name of climate change. and we are here to say not one more drop. [cheers and applause] for all of you young people out there who are listening, have listened, for the years to come, i want you to understand your power, understand how strong you are. and never let anyone take that away from you because you are beautiful and you are strong. and your great great grandchildren deserve a place to stay. a place to live. a place that's as beautiful as where we stand right now. for the spirits that plague --

the bad spirits that plague these people here. you need to understand the type of destruction that's happened within our communities. we need to address the doctrine of discovery and the papal bulls that were the basis and foundation of the country. we need to address those things. i urge each and every one of you to go back to your communities and educate yourself about these things. understand that i don't wish for tribal sovereignty, i wish for human sovereignty. i want to live on this land like my ancestors did and i want to guarantee the same for my future grandchildren. that's why i fight, that's why i'm here, that's why i'm psyched. [cheers and applause] back! land back!

[chanting] [speaking foreign language] >> my name is jennifer. i'm from south dakota. the black hills. i am 23 years old. i've lived here a long time. this is the very first time i came to washington, d.c. -- the very first time i came to washington, d.c. for a march i was 18 years old. what we did that day, what young people can do, it shows you what young people can do, we can take to the streets. we can storm the congresspeople, we can storm the white house we can can hold them accountable because we have the power. we are the people. we are the future of this nation.

the future is in our hands, and the future is coming. the future is rising. we will rise with it. we will raise our voices. we will hold them accountable, because this is our land, this is our home. this land does not belong to us. it belongs to our children. our children's children. and long, long after us, we were not the first ones to come here. mlk, rosa parks. we're not the first ones to fight for freedom, to fight for the right to be a human beings. we're not the first ones an we -- and we will not be the last ones. [cheers and applause] i want to tell the president, and the congresspeople, we will keep coming. my children will keep coming. we'll keep coming like the storm that never ends until they do something. i look at all of you, all these beautiful people, beautiful people of color, not white, not black, not brown, all the colors

in between, the most beautiful people that come from beautiful lands. we are all indigenous. we all come from somewhere. we all have homes that we fight for. we all have families that are suffering. we are here for them. we are here for the voiceless. we are here for the people that are being raped and murdered. we are here. we are here for brazil. i stand as a woman of color, as an indigenous woman, i fight for for myure, i fight children, i do not have children yet but as a young person wanting to fight for my future that these people got to enjoy years before us. do we not get to have a good future? [cheers and applause] i say how dare they? how dare they tell us that we

don't deserve a good future, that we don't deserve clean water? how dare they? when we unite it ghives us a reason, a banner to stand behind. through the pain, through the fear, through the anger, we stand behind this manner -- banner and it gives us power. it makes them scared. [cheers and applause] when we stand together as one people from different lands, different philosophies. when you look around and see someone to your right, to the left, you don't know that person but right now, that is your brother. that is your sister. standing on the front lines with you, fighting this fight. demanding change. fighting the fight for climate change. the front line is not washington, d.c. it stretches from palestine to

brazil, to sweden. spreads -- stretches across this world, and this world needs to be ready. i feel nothing but love, i feel nothing but power and i tell them, you should be scared. you should be scared. i look at you in your eyes. i see nothing but power. nothing but the future. i want to -- when we were running for the pipeline, we ran to washington, d.c. the youngest was 3 years old,

the oldest 51. we had this chant. let's do this chant with me, let's bring the spirits here. they will follow you home and they will protect you. we stand. >> we stand. >> for our brothers. >> for our brothers. >> for our sisters. >> for our sisters. >> we stand. >> we stand. >> for water. >> for water. >> for life. >> for life. >> we stand. >> we stan. >> for all the nations. >> for all the nations. >> we stand. >> we stand. >> for our brothers. >> for our brothers. >> for our sisters. >> for our sisters. >> we stand. >> we stand. >> for the waters. >> for water. >> for life. >> for life. [cheers and applause]

>> give it up for them one more time [cheers and applause] >> hello, everyone. before we get to the next speaker i want to bring up something that sadly happened last night. there was a shooting in columbia heights. i would love to have a moment of silence for all those affected. i also just want to bring the attention to how the climate stands in solidarity with the gun violence movement. [cheers and applause] >> we acknowledge the intersections between the climate crisis and the gun violence movement. >> yeah.

if we could have a moment of silence for a little bit for all those who lost their lived and have been affected. >> thank you. so now we want to acknowledge the demand. we are all here, but what are we demanding? what are we demanding from corporations and elected officials? a bunch of youth climate organizations got together in

iowa work no wi-fi and no cell service and made these demands together. we're going to tell you what we're demanding. >> our five demands to the people, the elected officials and the corporate greedy fossil fuel industry. we, one, demand a green new deal. [cheers and applause] second, we demand respect of indigenous rights and treaties. [cheers and applause] three, we are going to fight big agriculture and move to a more sustainable agricultural system. [cheers and applause] we are going to protect biodiversity. [cheers and applause] and lastly, environmental justice for all. no matter your race, religion, place of origin.

[cheers and applause] now we are going to invite our first elected official to speak. i would love to bring to the stage representative jim mcgovern from massachusetts. thank you so much. >> hello, everybody, i'm congressman jim mcgovern from massachusetts. [cheers and applause] i am here because i proudly stand with all of you and the millions and millions of other people all around the world who are striking today. [cheers and applause] i don't need to tell you how dire things are right now. we're running out of time. we're running out of time to save our planet. and you are all doing the right thing by being out here today. [cheers and applause] but let me tell you what is not right. it is not right that you have to be out here in the first place. it is not right that you have to sacrifice your education because

the so-called adult here's in washington don't take the climate crisis seriously. [cheers and applause] and it is not right that mitch mcconnell and donald trump lie to the american people about this emergency every single day. [cheers and applause] so i'm asking today are you ready to fight back? [cheers and applause] are you ready to save our planet? [cheers and applause] i know you are and i am too. but you know, the polluters, they don't want us here today. they do not want you here today. they don't want your voices to be heard. they have got super p.a.c.s, lobbyist, they've got some members of congress convinced there's no emergency and others who will do anything they say for a campaign contribution. [booing] but you have one thing they cannot buy and that is a movement.

and that movement is already producing real change. change that's going to sweep all the climate change deniers right out of congress. [cheers and applause] change that's going to sweep the denier in chief right out of the white house. [cheers and applause] change that's going to sweep the dirty fossil fuel money right out of washington. [cheers and applause] that movement won't stop until we have a country that's not afraid to face this emergency. with creativity and courage. it won't stop until we have a country that understands we ought to be building windmills instead of warheads. [cheers and applause] and we won't stop until we make the green new deal a reality. [cheers and applause] look, change won't happen by itself. it takes hard work and dedication and guts. but you've got to show up and

cause trouble. good trouble like my friend john lewis likes to say. [cheers and applause] you've heard a lot about the future today but if work ahead ever feels too big, if it ever feels like there's no way we can rise to face the challenges before us, i suggest you look at the past. you can't take no for an answer. don't give in. don't give up. keep fighting until the people that weren't there show the same kind of courage as the people who are standing out here today. i'm so proud to be with you. thank you. [applause]

>> green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! >> next we have an amazing musician coming up, her name is caroline rose. we'll have her introduce herself. >> hey, everybody. i was supposed to perform a song turns out we have the wrong permit or something. classic. so, what i'd like to do instead is i'll play -- i'll have them play the song while i'm walking off. i want to sum up what the song is about. it's called "money," an apt title.

you're going to put me on the spot now. clearly i'm not a politician, i don't really know what i'm doing. all right. [singing] we did it for the money we did it for the money they did it for the money they did it for the money they did it for the money

they didn't do it for the boys didn't do it for the girls didn't do it for the mothers didn't do it for the daughters didn't do it for me didn't do it for you didn't do it for the weak didn't do it for the -- they did it for the money they did it for the money what did they do it for the money they did it for the money thank you so much. my name is caroline. there's a fundamental problem with our relationship with money in this country. money is stitched into the fabric, the foundation of our society. i do think it's important to have events like this and stand up to power. we live in a society where money

is power. and it dictates everything we do. when you stand out here, you're standing up to money and power. thank you so much for being here. i really appreciate it. >> give it up one more time for caroline rose. [cheers and applause] ok. so we're going to be a little interactive now with the audience. i want all this side to yell for me. [yelling] come on. [cheering] >> ditto. >> [indiscernible] -- i think this side can do better. this side can definitely do better. [cheering and yelling] >> ok.

we're going to be introducing our next speaker who is another representative from california. nanette, can you please come up. are you ready for some change? [cheers and applause] i am too. my friends, this is the moment right here, right now. the alarm bells have been sounding for an entire generation. but this is the moment for you to be heard! [cheers and applause] you're being heard across the city, across this nation, and across the entire planet, which is literally dying to be heard and it's beautiful to look at and see our climate youth making the change and causing this movement to move forward. are you ready? [cheers and applause] and we're sending the message that we're doing this in an

urgent way. and we want climate action when? >> now! >> now, we don't lack the science to know the climate crisis is here. nor do we lack the brain power to heal our wounded planet from generations of abuse and neglect. but what we do lack is the will to act on it. you're all going to change that, right? [cheers and applause] and that's why having your voices here today is so critical and so important. because, like those in power who refuse to act quickly enough or boldly enough, like those in an industry who place profits over the environment and over public health. so i want to be here with you to know that we are going to continue to call out loud, rally and show up until our voices are

heard. is that right? [cheers and applause] well, don't stop and keep it going and i will do the same in the united states congress. thank you for showing your power in numbers, your power in voice, and to our climate youth, let's do this! [cheers and applause] >> give it up one more time. there we go. come on. [cheers and applause] >> so next up we have some amazing youth activists. they're suing the federal government. [cheers and applause] we have kelsey juliana and levi, jacob, avery and jerome will be joining as well.

[cheers and applause] >> thank you so much for coming out today. a lot of gratitude from the bottom of our hearts. we are the youth who are suing the u.s. government. our government. [cheers and applause] because we believe that we have a constitutional right to a climate capable of sustaining human life. and the courts are agreeing with us. [cheers and applause] our government is paying $20 billion every year to fossil fuel companies and permitting pipelines like the pipeline in north dakota and a project in my hometown of oregon. me and my family farm. if our government continues to promote dark money and fossil fuels over our lives, we won't have an economy to grow up in. we won't be able to grow our crops. we won't be able to raise our children in a safe community. and we won't be able to have clean water and a livable climate.

[applause] listen to the science and protect life. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> we are on a timeline! this is a fight for our lives, for our security, for all future generations to come. [cheers and applause] they want us to just sit quiet? >> no! >> they want us to just sit and live for a future that may not exist? we are here because our generation has put us in an unstable place. and you know what, i'm sick of hearing about their actions, i'm sick of their apologies, i'm sick of their shame and i'm sick of the future that they put on us. [cheers and applause] i'm sick of it and so are all of you. and we are not here to talk

about our sacrifices and our doom and gloom and nonexistence. we are here to create! [cheers and applause] we are creating this movement every day because every day's inaction drives more action for us! [cheers and applause] >> who here is -- [indiscernible] -- sorry. i couldn't hear that. [cheers and applause] that's just a little bit better. let's hear it! [cheers and applause] all right. who here is not excited to hear that we might not have a future?

i couldn't hear that. yeah. all right. everybody, let's go and let's -- we're never going to give up until we get climate action. [cheers and applause] what do we want? >> climate action! >> when do we want it? >> now! >> what do we want? >> climate action. >> when do we want it? >> now! >> thank you. [cheers and applause] >> my name is jerome foster ii. thank you. but what i want everyone to do who is standing here in the front of the capitol, i want to you look left, i want you to look right. i want all of you to understand that we are all united in this crisis. [cheers and applause] all of the activists that have spoken here and will continue to

speak are fighting for all of us. we're fighting for our children, we're fighting for our sisters and brothers, wear fighting for your mother and father. we are fighting for every single person who has died because of the climate crisis. [applause] we are the victims of an entire climate crisis that has destroyed and decimated entire communities, entire peoples. but politicians don't understand that. as millions of young people strike all around the world, the politicians are acting as if they care that i act as if they care about our future but we need real action to follow this all around the world we're seeing natural disasters affecting billions of people. people around the world are dying but we're acting as if we dent care.

we're acting as if nothing is going to work. so we have to actually make sure we have legislation that will help the climate crisis. we have to make sure we're holding elected officials accountable. we have to hold corporations accountable. before you leave today i want every single person here to call their member of congress. i want every single person here to talk about the clay mat -- climate crisis. i want this to be the number one issue in the 2020 debate. right now, every single politician is quaking in fare because we're showing them what action looks like, we're showing them what the people look like. we are showing them what democracy looks like. [cheers and applause] >> show me what -- i say she me what democracy looks like, you say this is what democracy looks like. show me what democracy looks like! >> this is what democracy looks like! >> show me what democracy looks like! >> this is what democracy looks

like! >> show me what democracy looks like! >> this is what democracy looks like! >> i want you to remember the faces here, i want you to understand that everyone here, everyone here is part of the movement. everyone here in this audience, everyone here as organizers, are part of this movement and we will act as such. you cannot just go back to your job, you cannot just go back to your schools. you must join this earth, you must be here every sing friday, you must be part of the revolution because this is a time for change. give it up again for all these people suing the federal government. [cheers and applause]

>> we wanted to quickly acknowledge all the organizers that worked hours and hours tirelessly. they're all sitting back here, we want to thank the organizers activism is about organizing. a huge round of applause for all the people who put this together. [cheers and applause] next we want to introduce one of our organizers who worked on finance and recruitment, an amazing young individual from earth uprising, wendy! >> ok, got it. hello, everyone. [cheers and applause] it is so amazing to see all of you here today and to be here with all of you. every time i walk the streets of d.c. or chant the chant it make

my heart so full of pride and hope. it is and always will be the honor of my life to strike with each and every one of you today. ok. [cheers and applause] my name is wendy, i'm 17 years old, i a native american climate activist. i'd like to acknowledge my privilege and my background because my story is vastly different than the ones you've heard today or will hear later on. indigenous people and frontline communities are and will continue to be most affected by the climate crisis. many are fighting for their lives and rights today and they have been for centuries.

so we recognize this an amplify their voices and they work. -- their work. [applause] while we strike in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, we also know that the climate crisis is different from any problem that humanity has ever faced before because we know it affects everyone. and everyone has a climate story, whether you know yours yet or not. my parents are chinese immigrants and they sacrificed everything to come to america so my sisters and i could have a higher education and better life than they did. [cheers and applause] my sisters and i understood this and we've always wanted to do well in school to make sure their sacrifices are worthwhile . my education and my future has become my end goal. as it should. because i'm 17 and i shouldn't just be a full-time student. college applications should be

the only thing i'm worried about. but in october of 2018, the they released their report telling the government they have 12 years left to act on the climate crisis or face devastating problems. i remember reading the report and feeling very small. by the year 2030 i will be 29 years old which isn't enough time for me to become the first asian american supreme court justice or become a retired history teacher. that's why i'm here today -- and many of you are too. but we shouldn't be. youth climate activists shouldn't exist. greta thunberg should not be the figure she is. but we are. when young people act and come together our voices are loud and our actions are powerful. we know when we strike we win so

today we strike because today we win. today -- [cheers and applause] >> hey, everybody, i don't know if y'all heard but representative alexandria ocasio cortez is here. >> not right now. not right now. she's coming later. she's doing some congressional stuff. but she'll be here later to speak to us. ilhan omar will also be come, ayanna pressley. >> ok now our next speaker is a d.c. local who has been working and organizing youth far long -- for a long time. i'd love to bring to the stage brent yearwood.

[cheers and applause] >> how y'all doing out there? [cheers and applause] so, i just want to say this real quick, first, i want to lift up -- i just want to thank these amazing organizers and leaders. they are young, i didn't say youth leaders because these are the ones who should be leading the climate movement. and so first we lift up, i am based in d.c. with the hip-hop caucus -- [cheers and applause] originally from louisiana. [cheers and applause] i actually kind of love that you get more love for the caucus than louisiana.

i kind of love that a lot. but one of the things that is so important in this process, i want to lift up those right now. there are floods in houston, the people in the bahamas, this is the anniversary of puerto rico. people are still dealing with superstorm sandy, hurricanes irma, maria, wildfires in california, wildfires in the arctic, still those suffering in florida. we're going to give them some love. i just want to say two things. i want you to help me with something. the first thing, this is just the beginning. for the folks in zero hour, come on, zero hour. [cheers and applause] my amazing friend nadia and the whole crew and everybody else.

[cheers and applause] i've been here. i want to say two things. one, your the david that will beat the goliath. [cheers and applause] you are the david that will beat the goliath. you will beat industry. secondly to that, never forget. never forget this. organized people beats organized money every single time. [cheers and applause] and my last thing, some of you might know this, some of you may not. i used to be a u.s. air force officer. i was protesting the war in iraq and -- [cheers and applause]

and i was beaten, literally, by police right around the corner here. don't do that. that happened. it was what it was. but this is the point. since that time i've had a really bad leg. and i don't move that much. but i want to take from you your youthful energy to jump. i can't jump. so on this place, nadia, and natalie, where i was beaten, i want to jump with y'all. can i jump with y'all? so y'all can stand up. come on. stand up. come on, on stage up here. >> not everyone, not everyone. >> i might need some help.

don't fall off the stage. >> just some. >> the way it goes is this. i'm going to -- when i say jump -- you say strike. i say climate, you say strike. i say climate, you stay cey say strike. and then we start jumping. we're going to jump, climate strike, climate, strike, climate strike. y'all got that? are you ready? >> climate! >> strike! >> that's not good enough. they got to hear you inside. >> climate! >> strike! >> little better. >> climate! >> strike! >> climate! >> strike clam >> climate! >> strike! >> climate! >> strike! >> climate! >> strike! >> climate strike! climate strike. climate strike. >> can't hear you.

>> come on. >> climate strike! climate scrike! climate strike! climate strike! climate strike! climate strike! climate scrike! climate strike! [cheers and applause] >> thank you again for hyping us up. give him a round of applause. one more, come on. [cheers and applause] >> get up here. >> you don't have to sit down. >> some of us have asthma. >> so.

pretty much a tradition to figure out who the better m.c. is. so we're going to do a little scream contest. we'll start with nadia. if you think nadia is the better m.c., give her some love! [cheers and applause] >> ok, now me. [cheers and applause] >> i think that's a pretty clear win for nadia. we'll try one more time for me. ok? one more time. [cheers and applause] >> ok the next person we're going to introduce is near an d dear to both of our hearts. she's -- >> the policy director of 350.org. >> we'd like to welcome to the stage natalie mebane. get your butt up here, natalie.

>> thank you so much. thank you so much. how are you? you guys don't even know how blessed you were just now to see reverend yearwood speak. 12 years ago in 2007, i'm going to date myself, i was a youth climate activist just like you. ok. [cheers and applause] >> and i went to this conference, power shift network conference. power shift 2007 if anybody was out here. and i walk into the room. first person on stage is this man on stage. reverend yearwood. she's just standing on the stage going, fight the power! and the crowd, thousands of youth, about 6,000 of them stood back and said the same thing, fight the power. did that for like five minutes straight. i didn't know what i walked into. i had no idea what i was doing. i was ok, i found this place. i'm going to join now. so since that moment, november

2007, i credit reverend yearwood for recruiting me to the movement and making me know that climate activism was something i was going to do for the rest of my life. it is an honor to get to speak right after him. i'm the policy director at 350.org. we are one of the people who formed the adult strike coalition to help put on strikes across the country and the world. thousands and thousands of strikes happening around the world. and we're glad you guys came. we're here, we're talking about climate what we want to do here, the people in this building, one thing that's really special about your generation. [cheers and applause] >> one great thing is that you guys are at that age where you're about to be able to vote. [cheers and applause] now some of you have seen some members of congress on stage, there's more to come.

obviously they got there because people voted. all right? 2020. is upon us. and to vote, you have to register to vote. all right? so all of you here, i want to know, if you are old enough to vote in the next election, raise your hand. that's a lot of people. that's a lot of people. this is just one strike happening across the u.s. and across the world. ok? so my one request for all of you, and your friends, you know what you can do on fridays? register your friends to vote. now y'all talk about friday for future, i love that vote for your future. vote for your future. vote for your future on friday. register your friends to vote on fridays. use that opportunity when you're striking and you're striking for the climate, to get new voters on the rolls to have some

control over who enters this building next year. thank you all so much. thank you for striking with us. [cheers and applause] >> we las vegas you. >> so this week greta thunberg was here in d.c. [cheers and applause] we got to see her hang out with her a little bit, see her testimony. super powerful. something she really emphasized was unite behind the science. unite behind the science. we wanted to bring up brenda, who is a climate scientist. she's going to be talking a little bit about the science behind the climate crisis. [cheers and applause] >> thank you. >> thank you all. it is so inspiring to see so many of you here today in front of the capitol! [cheers and applause] so i'm a climate scientist a concerned scientist, i was one

of the many authors of the national climate assessment and i brought my friend here, marcy rodman who is fighting for inclusion of all human history in the intergovernmental panel on climate change. [cheers and applause] so, first of all, thank you for the space you all have created and generously invited me, a little bit older, to be here. i honor that. thank you so much. [cheers and applause] so you all know that climate change is real. it is us. and we have to do something about it. [cheers and applause] so many of you have been creating this movement for far longer than have been -- people in washington, d.c., in communities around the world and

recently greta thunberg with has been studying the science. she went before this hallowed halls and said don't listen to me, listen to the science, i am submitting for my testimony the special report on 1.5 degrees which says we are running out of time. [cheers and applause] so i just want to thank all of the adults, i am here standing with you. science as your back. and all the adult allies are here to stand with you. you are the leaders, tell us what to do, we are following you! [cheers and applause] >> thank you. thank you, thank you. ok. a lot of move, going up and down the stage, good workout. all right, we're going to announce our next performance.

>> we have another singer-song writer, claudia sachs, she's going to perform for us. >> all right, go ahead. >> my name is claudia sachs i'm 16 years old from richmond, virginia. [cheers and applause] and i will be chanting as they told me to do the climate anthem i composed, future of humanity. since i'm not performing this, it's very important that you guys know the words to the chorus. i need you to yell this back at me. we have to fight. >> we have to fight. >> we have to fight. >> we have to fight. >> to save our earth. >> so save our earth. >> we have to fight. >> we have to fight. >> so we can be. >> so we can be. >> the future of humanity. >> the future of humanity. >> the beaches of miami

will be gone by 2060 the canals of venice, italy will be beneath the sea the likes of new york city will be a distant memory the beauty of our coral reef will be covered in debris we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight to save our earth we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight to we can be the future of humanity the california forests will be ash before we know it the ice from the arctic will flood your streets and markets

the summer days you used to love will be 100 and above the plastic that you always used has become turtle food we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight to save our earth we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight so we can be the the future of humanity we stand here to strike to change the course of history and save humanity i can't hear you we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight

to save our earth we have to fight we have to fight so we can be the future of humanity one more time we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight to save our earth we have to fight we have to fight we have to fight so we can be the future of humanity the future of humanity thank you, guys. >> thank you. [cheers and applause] >> as we all know this is a global climate strike. we have strikes going on all over the world. thousands in the united states.

>> give out up for that! [cheers and applause] >> we want to acknowledge the numbers popping up everywhere. so in france, 30,000 to 40,000 people. [cheers and applause] >> in germany alone, 1.4 million people. >> in australia, the first strike we were hearing about last night, 400,000 people. [cheers and applause] >> and brace yourselfs for the next one. >> can i get a drum roll for new york city! three million people! [cheers and applause] we are going to be too loud for them not to hear us. climate justice now! next on stage we are bringing up my little me ethan. >> come on!

>> hey, everyone. >> my name is ethan vandervere. i'm here representing the national choice for change. in the 1970's, scientists began to ring the alarm bells about climate change. now 40-plus years later, here we are. that's 40-plus years of inaction. the u.s. national academy of sciences said that, quote, the scientific understanding of climate change is sufficiently clear to justify taking steps to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. that statement was released in 2005. just two years before i was born. when i first learned about climate change, i felt a wave of emotions, fear, i was scared for

my future that was being taken right in front of my face. frustration, wondered why isn't any action being taken? i was furious. really furious. [cheers and applause] so i went into advocacy. i went to several organizations including the national children's campaign and climate action. those two organizations are sponsoring this event today. [cheers and applause] but time and time again i keep seeing how our decisionmakers aren't acting. why can't our leaders listen to us? why can't they choose democracy? why can't they do their job? [cheers and applause] speaking of their job, the definition of a representative is a person chosen to act or speak on behalf of a wider group.

so in the 116th congress, 9,621 pieces of legislation were introduced, only 203 had the word climate change in them, even though 70% of adults, 90% of kids believe that climate change is real and happening. that is not ok. [cheers and applause] when i was on the hill a senator's staffer fold me his boss would not vote to pass the green new deal because he thought it would hurt the economy even though 64% of his constituents think that environmental protection right now is more important than economic growth. that is not ok. [cheers and applause] it is not ok when a senator from oklahoma brings a snowball into the senate floor saying that climate change is false. [cheers and applause] while 62% of his constituents think climate change is real. this is what i call failure to

represent and it is happening in our decision making offices. so leaders, act on climate change, vote for the people or get voted out. [cheers and applause] >> vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! vote them out! >> next we have an amazing organizer for our strike, she's going to introduce herself. >> hello. ok. my name is kadija, i'm so glad to be here with you guys today. make some noise! [cheers and applause]

last year on december 17, 2018, there were two strikers in the u.s. one was dave in new york city and one was callie benson right here. [cheers and applause] and look at how big the movement is today. look how big it is just in d.c. [cheers and applause] but when we talk about climate change and talk about the climate crisis we cannot forget to involve people of color and marginalized communities in the conversation. because we are fighting for our future. but so many people today are fighting for their present. for their right to live today. tomorrow. the next month and the next year. we need to use the privelege of this movement and the privilege of the platform we have gained to elevate the voices of

marginalized communities across the world. [cheers and applause] and when we think about people who are affected by climate change, we don't like to think about people in our own backyard. in d.c., for example, all of our toxic waste and treasure travels -- trash travels across the anacostia river into land fills that are systematically placed in communities of color. it is not a coincidence that according to the e.p.a. black americans are three times more likely to die from air pollution than their white counterparts. it is not a coincidence. this is seen all around the country from flint, michigan, to the north dakota access pipeline, to south bronx. this is environmental racism and we must acknowledge the issue. [cheers and applause] we must acknowledge that we have to use this platform in order to address these issues. and fight for all humanity. we cannot just whitewash this

movement and address people who are not acting. this is not going to affect the future for all of us, it's affecting the presentfish so many right now. [cheers and applause] as we move on today, i hope we continue this momentum and we continue bringing voices of color and people on the frontlines into this conversation. because enough is enough and the people who have been fighting this fight for centuries are not getting the voices they deserve. they're being erased by people who worry about the future. while we worry about the future we have to worry about the present. this is not normal, environmental racism should not be a thing, systematic racism should not be a thing, we need to fight against it. because fighting for environmental justice is fighting for human rights. we need to fight for every

single human being on this planet no matter your age, no matter your race, no matter your gender or any other identity of yours. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> thank you, khadija! big round of applause! [cheers and applause] >> next up we have an amazing artist who organized a lot of artwork you see here today with me, all these amazing pickup trucks. of the executives. >> boo! >> we hate them. she is going to be speaking here. [cheers and applause] >> oh my gosh. my name is reina hatcher, i'm

only 16 years old. i am here to speak for the trees. and all other life on earth which cannot speak. we are killing our planet. not just for the human race but everything on earth. we are destroying habitats. poisoning water. polluting air we need to breathe. and ruining our chance of having a future. we are only one species who is going to be responsible for the destruction of millions of others. this is not our planet to take. as humans we seem to enjoy blaming others for our problems. but if everyone did the way we do here in the united states we would need five earths to provide enough for everyone. pollution is so bad that our geological record will be made up of plastic. we will go down in history as the plastic age.

the destruction we created is going to be our legacy. in the last 10 years alone, we have made more plastic than in the century before that. and plastic is only one part of human impact. i want you to take a breath. and one more please. plankton produces the oxygen you need for every other breath you take. because of climate change and ocean acidification, the plankton population is practically half the size it was 50 years ago. the future of not just my generation, or the next, or even the human species, but all life on earth is in our hands. [cheers and applause]

i am a coordinator of extinction rebelion youth. [cheers and applause] and we are fueled by love. love for our planet and all life on earth. we must disrupt the peace. we do not have time to be polite. this is a revolution. [cheers and applause] we must act now. [cheers and applause] the thing is, we are not only killing other life on earth, but ourselves. we live here too. around the world people are already suffering from the growing effects of climate change and it is only going to get worse. we are out of time right now. we need to unite. and fight for our planet together. before mother earth has to fight back herself. rebel!

or die! [cheers and applause] >> another round of applause for reina! next we are bringing up an amazing representative, representative raul grijalva. he testified at the first climate change hearing at the congress so we want to bring him up here. let's give him a round of applause, representative grijalva of arizona. [cheers and applause] >> i want to thank you. i want to thank everyone involved in organizing this strike. not only here but in my hometown of tucson and across this country. thank you very much. you know, climate change is making natural disasters more

frequent and more dangerous. the reminder for me was just a few days we went to visit puerto rico. 3.4 million american citizens live on that island and over 3,000 people were killed by that hurricane maria. you go back two years later and the discussion about how to recoverer, how to take care of the humanitarian needs, and to build resilience for the future for the island, is still a discussion that's ongoing two years later. that the urgency we see. and that's the urgency that more people should take time look at and understand. i want to say a little bit about the good opportunity i had to meet with some of the youth leaders and have a discussion. it wasn't a discussion. it was an opportunity to listen and to learn. one thing that came, he the lesson we all know is that time

is not on our side when it comes to the climate crisis as a need for systematic, strong, powerful and bold solutions. time is not on our side. as time passes, the climate crisis becomes worse and worse and worse. indigenous people, frontline communities, environmental justice are all essential to the solution that we need to come up with. if you listen, you listen, what you hear from young people and from all these communities, is protect all life, not just protect the profits. [cheers and applause] our actions must be bold. they must be urgent. the voices for change and for action on climate change are strong. they're multigenerational. and above all, young.

but let's be honest. when we talk about solutions, the risk and the consequences of doing nothing falls squarely on the young people of our country and this world and on the children of this country and this world. if we as elected officials do not do our part, we are reneging on a legacy and commitment that we have to each other. for our part, the choice is simple for the people in congress, for the building behind me where i work. it's real simple. use your power. use our power. to move solutions, to change direction, and to deal with climate change. [cheers and applause] we cannot afford to just -- to just sit around and protect our power. and do little or nothing. you know, i really believe that

everybody talks about the schedule issue, the climate change, the climate crisis. i agree but it can be a very important unifying issue where all of us regardless of zip code, regardless of color, regardless of origin, regardless of gender, come together to say, life is the most important item on the agenda. i want to thank you for the i want to thank you for the education. for the learning. and for the strength that you bring to this issue. this issue is important to the american people now because of the actions you've taken and others have taken in the last few years. congratulations for raising the bar and now congratulations for holding our feet to the fire as your representative to do something about it. thank you very much. cheers and applause]

>> thank you so much representative. i want to acknowledge that this is an intergenerational issue. thank you to all the adults who are standing bd and looking to youth for the answers because we are today, we are the present, we are tomorrow and we are the next generation that has to live through this crisis. so without further ado, we want to bring up to the stage john garamendi, a representative from california, to talk about the climate crisis. thank you. >> thank you! thank you! do you feel the energy of the sun? [cheers and applause] do you feel the energy of the wind? [cheers and applause] o you feel the energy that you possess? yes! are you ready to use that energy to change what is going on in this building?

[cheers and applause] are you ready to use that energy to change what's going on in the white house? [cheers and applause] are you ready far green new deal? cheers and applause] are you ready to do the work that needs to be done to change what's going on in america? cheers and applause] then you must, you must never, ever give up, you must never, ever stop using your energy to save our planet. re you ready for that? [cheers and applause] are you ready to do the work in the precincts back home? [cheers and applause] are you registered? [cheers and applause] >> i heard a few noes. if you're not registered, you're not voting and you don't count. you have to got to use your energy to change the political climate in america.

are you ready for cha? [cheers and applause] quour gathered here, they're gathered in new york, perhaps a million, they're gathered in california, and all of us, young as you are, older as some others are, and some my age are ready for change. we need to do it together! the energy of the sun, the energy of the wind, the energy of the ocean, but most important, the energy of the youth. do it. make it happen. make it happen! cheers and applause] >> another round of applause. thank you so much. [cheers and applause] >> next we have another performer, a round of applause or alex! >> hello, everyone, my name is alex, i'm 16 years old, i'm a striker with fight ing for our uture. thank you guys for being here today. this is amazing. we are all here today because we are in a crisis. e are in a climate crisis.

and a report done by the ahn year ago stated that if we don't reduce global fossil fuel emissions by two degrees, before 2030, we are going to reach an irreversible climate catastrophe and it is my generation that's going to be affected the most and it is my generation that cannot even vote to fix it. but for these of you who can vote, i encourage you to think about the future of the earth. vote for the interests of our planet and our people before the interests of large corporations. [cheers and applause] if you're like me and can't vote yet, i encourage you to write a song, go to climate rallies on fridays, start a club or organization of your own after chool. he more we have these conversations the less complex it will seem and together we can become an insurmountable force of change. i wrote a song called "be the change."

unfortunately i can't perform it oday but i want to teach you a part of it so we can lift our choices together so that those men an women in the capitol with the power to create change can hear our call to action. [cheers and applause] so oim going to sing the chorus and i need you to repeat after me. what do you want to leave behind >> what do you want to leave behind what are we going to be remembered for at the end of our lives what are we going to be remembered for at the end of our lives we only have one world and the future is at stake

> we only have one world and the future is at stake >> but we have to make a change >> so we have to make a change >> that was beautiful. thank you. cheers and applause] continue to fight. if we are going to change anything we need to start by believing in change. by being here today you are there are starting to create it. thank you so much. cheers and applause] >> so next we have alyssa wiseman, one of the -- if you're interested in getting involved hit her up. big round of applause for lyssa.

>> hello, everyone! i want to thank each and every one of you for coming out today o fight for our futures. [cheers and applause] each and every voice is necessary to bring change. my name is alyssa wiseman, i am here as a concerned citizen. as a child, i should not have to worry about my future. but my future is in jeopardy. all of our futures are in jeopardy. your children's futures are in eopardy. we have only 11 years to rectify decades of damage that we have inflicted on our planet. and only 18 months until some amages are irreversible.

we no longer have the luxury of time. we do not have the luxury of gradual change. we are in the midst of a global emergency. and we must act fast if we want to survive. [cheers and applause] many areas of the world are on heir way to becoming uninhabitable. but most of those areas are not on u.s. soil. like most issues, the climate crisis will disproportionately affect the marginalized. the impoverished. and the voiceless. people all over the world who are already struggling to get by are now experiencing shortages of water, shortages of food for their children, and unbearable eat waves. i am here to speak for the people who will be affected by

he refugee crisis. i am here for the people who are going to lose their livelihoods due to the climate crisis. i am here for the people who are suffering and dying because of our country's decisions. it is time for us to fight back. we can no longer sit back and wait for policymakers to bring hange. to even acknowledge that change is needed. that's a cly -- that the climate risis is real. we must be the change. as a co-leader of zero hour d.c., i want to embolden the voices of children because we are the ones facing this new reality. the reality that our world is no onger safe for us.

if we want to survive, we must take action. i want our policymakers to see the faces of the people they are condemning to death. nd i want them to hear our cries. it is now -- it is now or never. thank you for your time. cheers and applause] >> next up we have a student from pakistan. >> hello, everybody! i am an exchange student from akistan.

[cheers and applause] i arrived here no longer than three weeks ago and i decided to come down here and say a few words to let you know about the extent of your influence across the world. cheers and applause] i come from a country that is one of those countries that has been impacted the most by limate change. in 2015, our largest city was struck by a heat wave with temperatures reaching as high as 120 degrees and took the lives of 2,000 people. nd yet we didn't have a single clue as to what was happening. or perhaps we did. our youth did. i was an environmental

management student before i came here. and i had millions of other students who were studying the same subject across the country. we knew what was happening. we understood the science. not that you need to study the subject in order to understand the science but the point is that we were studying the climate crisis and yet we never bothered to act. and yes, i use the word "we" because it includes me as well. i'm not going to lie and hide the fact that i didn't do nything as well. however, after coming here and witnessing the initiative that you all have taken to solve the climate crisis, my eyes have inally opened. [cheers and applause] but i'm not here to tell you that. i'm here to tell you that since the climate strikes last friday, ou have opened the eyes of millions of other young people living 7,000 miles away from you nd as i speak right now, -- as

i speak right now the pakistani youth is organizing the country's first major climate strike in 25 different ities. [cheers and applause] 'll be honest. i have witnessed a climate strike on the very first day of my arrival to the united states. i was a little intimidated but now i have realized that this is an emergency and it needs to be dealt with that way. so i assure you that when i go back home nine months from now, i will make sure that our voices demanding climate wrussties do ot weaken until they are heard. and why is that? why is that?

because as far as i know, the gases released from our factories and our engines and our cars do not need visas to cross borders. thank you. cheers and applause] >> thank you all so much for being here. my name is -- i'm national director of the campaign, i'm so grateful for everyone to be here. at the national children's campaign we make sure that every single elected official is fight -- fighting for the 74 million children living in this country. we deserve a choice voice and deserve to have people fighting for us. that's why i'm so pleased to introduce representative kathy castor, chair of the select committee on the climate crisis. cheers and applause]

and congressman jerry nadler from new york. [cheers and applause] and they're going to say a few words about what it means to have all of you here with us today. thank you. >> hey, climate strikers! you all are looking awesome. o i'm so proud of you, you are right in between the white house and the u.s. capitol. i would call this inaction alley. i'm tired of inaction, aren't you? [cheers and applause] over there in the white house, we have a president who has said that climate crisis is a hoax. he's rolling back clean energy standards, he's rolling back -- fuel economy, he wants to remove

the united states of america from our -- the landmark international climate accord that was forged in paris. [crowd boos] n the other side of inaction alley you've got the united states senate that is controlled by the g.o.p. [crowd boos] you know what g.o.p. stands for? grand oil party. but your generation is demanding that this congress take action. isn't that right? [cheers and applause] this week we had a historic hearing here on the house side where we had greta thunberg and other youth climate activists ome. [cheers and applause] you know what she told us? she said follow the science. [cheers and applause] it's not that difficult. ollow the science. so that's what this congress needs to do. t was the house of

epresentatives that took the first major step when it comes to climate action in a decade when a few months ago we passed my bill, the clay mat action now act, that simply says we're going to stay in the paris climate agreement. [cheers and applause] but that's not good enough is it? that's the bare minimum, isn't it so here's what we got to o. we are developing the climate action plan for the congress, we're going to roll it out in march of 2020, it's going to borrow from the green new deal, it's going to incorporate all of our ideas. we need your help. we need your help to move inaction alley into action alley.

so like greta thunberg said, she said and i look down here to the lincoln memorial and she said that this time, and this place, reminds her of what dr. martin luther king and our colleague john lewis had to say when they marched for justice. decades ago. it was a youth movement. just like this is today. cheers and applause] you know, a lot of people say that you give them hope and that's great and all. but what you are doing, you're actually giving us a job to do. and that job is bold climate action. this congress this president, to all of the policymakers here in washington, this generation is rising to the challenge of the limate crisis. we need to rise with them. cheers and applause] >> green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! green new deal! reen new deal!

>> thank you all so much. [crowd chanting green new deal] >> thank you all very much. ongressman jerry nadler. mr. nadler: thank you very much. we talk about a climate crisis and indeed it is a climate crisis. the people have no idea how reat a crisis it is or how pressing it is. people think well, the sea levels are rising. it will cost us $100 billion to relocate, few million people will drown in bangladesh and india. but it's much, much worse. much, much worse. have a 13 month old granddaughter and i look at her, i get terrified because i don't know if human life will survive 0 years. we may face the climate scientists tell us that we may face the mass distinction in the

history of the globe. if the oceans acidify which they are beginning to do, it will destroy the entire food chain and all that will be left will be bacteria and maybe some plants. and none of us, none of our children, no mammals, no animals except ameba. this is what the scientists tell us we face in the next 50 years. we have to stop this. the green new deal, absolutely. e have to do that. [cheers and applause] mr. nadler: i'm glad to see all of you here today because we have to start the pressure campaign to get rid of those in the senate and the ignoramus in hief in the white house.

donald trump says he knows better than all the scientists. he knows better than all the scientists, his gut tells him etter. but what if he's wrong? is he willing to gamble all of human life on his gut instincts? the answer is yes, he is and that's why among other reasons we have to change who's there in the white house and we have to make sure that people feel the immediasy of this crisis which is approach us much more rapidly nd more worse. e are facing a crisis. if we had a world war, god forbid. he country would mobilize.

the country must mobilize and the world must mobilize. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> thank you [crowd chanting nti-trump] >> we are grateful for congressman nadler and congresswoman castor and all the other members of congress who joined us today. we had many more who wanted to be here and because of their schedule, we couldn't get everyone. we hope more will be arriving. we send a huge thank you for eing with the youth today. [cheers and applause] >> next up, i would like to introduce a very special man, reynaldo pierce son.

on august 6, he started marching in atlanta, georgia, and he walked from atlanta to ashington d.c. and now 49 days later, he is here, he is ready, he is with the youth and he is with the movement and ready to work with us. thank you. cheers and applause] and the one thing we do right was the way we started the fight ut your eyes on the prize hold

on hold on hold on, keep your eyes on the prize hold on > that's one of the rallying freedom songs of the civil rights movement. cheers and applause] >> and you know there have been many parallels drawn between the civil rights movement that formed our organizing today for better or worse, but there is one major distinction i have to make. they were organizing under a moral urgency. but today, for the first time, we are organizing not just with a moral urgency, but with an existantial. o that's why among other

reasons i have decided to dial 911 on american democracy. cheers and applause] >> dial 911 on political corruption before it kills us. [cheers and applause] >> that's why i started on tuesday, august 6, in atlanta, georgia, because that was the 54th anniversary of the voting rights act. ut it's important to note in 2013, the supreme court gutted the voting rights act.

which makes our generation the first generation to witness america become less emocratic. so that's why i have walked now from 1.5 million steps, over 700 miles because no matter -- [cheers and applause] >> my ankles and my body are very fired. i have quite the tan line as you can see. it's important, why? because no democratic struggles in american history from the american revolution to the civil rights movement to -- no democratic struggle in american history has been won without the weapons that dr. king called the sword that heals, nonviolent, direct action. [cheers and applause] >> and more to the point, there is something called this

declaration of independence where we see it talks about right after that famous line in ursuit of happiness, any point where our safety or happiness is compromised by those in power who get their power from the onsent of the governed, then we, the people, have the power to abolish or alter. [cheers and applause] >> so i've got to say as i walked the backcountry roads through georgia, south carolina, north carolina, virginia, there were a few things that challenged my hope. i note the rich irony of dialing 911 on our broken and corrupt democracy but more times, dialing 911 -- indiscernible]

>> but when i heard about this climate strike, when i heard about p how generations and illenials were coming together to strike across the world, it gave me so much pep in my step and boosted my spirit and i decided that i would have to add a few miles to my journey every day. cheers and applause] >> they call our generation lazy nd entitled. but i walked 700 miles and you guys are striking right now. it just came out recently that it was our generation for the first time outnumbered every voter. so we are here to remind those in power, those in power that

the power of the people always, always, always outpowers the people in power. [cheers and applause] > and i'm here to remind you hat yes, this is an emergency, but no matter what the issue is, no matter what treatment is, it cannot be addressed until we address the pre-existing conditions of our broken and corrupt democracy. that's why tomorrow at 2:00 p.m., i will be sitting with others sitting on the steps on he other side of this capitol, sitting in civil rights movement style until washington heeds this emergency to protect our right to vote, to make our

elections secure and competitive -- [cheers and applause] >> and to end political corruption. [cheers and applause] >> i don't have to tell you that lobbyists of the fossil fuel industry, have spent $1 billion since 2015 to block climate ction. to the point that even now you have young republicans who are pushing their leaders that we are sick and tired of republicans spent on climate hange. no matter what your issue, no matter what, we can't face this threat until we fix this

democracy, that is to say all of hese issues assume we have a fully functional democracy ntact to address this. so i leave you with this, if you meet me tomorrow at 1 p.m. on the other side of these steps tomorrow, we will make history for the largest action this century. [cheers and applause] nd with that, i leave you with this quote, the world is equally balanced between good and vil. your next act will tip the scales. thank you. [cheers and applause] >> thank you for that.

>> i thank all of you for coming out. the climate crisis is a personal issue. there are names behind each disaster, there are names behind each death and behind each climate policies and put your signs up and chanting out the names why. i'm striking for my mom, nadia, aurie. everyone put your signs up. why are you striking? hy are you striking? scream at the top of your lungs? why are you striking? climate justice now! i don't hear you guys. louder! i want you to all acknowledge hat this is history.

this will be in the books. this is a pivotal moment in the limate moment. introduce our next speaker -- >> sophia -- indiscernible] >> i would like to apologize. there has been a lot of screaming these past few weeks. my voice is a little hoarse. i'm speaking for my life. i'm a coordinator. and i would like to send my love to the future strikers around the world who planned with us and built a movement with s.

today is the day that we make history and today is the day we take back our futures. cheers and applause] >> i'm looking out over this amazing crowd, i was freaking out. i'm so, so thankful that i'm standing in solidarity with so many people who understand the severity of this crisis and understand there are lives hanging in the balance and we have no more time. this is the moment our future will be decided. this is the moment we as a country and world can choose to sit back and see the climate crisis reach a breaking point or we can jump into action. we can claim that the lives lost, we can claim that those lives are in danger or we can choose to stand up for our futures and stand with those on the front lines of the climate crisis. we can fight back with everything that we have. for too long, the people fighting this crisis have been ignored.

but now, together, we finally have a voice and we cannot let his moment go. today we have proven our government may be powerful but the real power in this country lies in the hands of the people. we are the ones with the power and we are the ones in the streets and we are the ones making change. [cheers and applause] >> many of our world leaders think we need to find a middle road between middle rights and padding the pockets of the rivileged few. they think they can buy their time and sell their futures to the fossil fuel companies. but the millions of people marching around the world today. hey know better.

the people standing here today, e know better. we know that the change that we need cannot be found within the confines of our broken bias system. we need change and beyond party or party lines or policy and legislation, we need change that will shape the very foundations of our society. this change will be unsubble, aybe even scary, but this is he kind of change our only option and this is why we are here today and we take action every single friday. why do we take to the streets and why we have come back here today, why we will keep coming back until we are not ignored any longer. this is the kind of change that can't happen in just one fight. we need you to join us every single friday. [cheers and applause] >> we need you to join us whether it be striking from

school or in school or silent striking or yelling in the streets. we need you. we look and business as usual is death sentence and lives will be ruined. we are striking for our lives and we will not be stopped. [cheers and applause] >> everyone who is interested about all the specific things, there is a vote that is happening right now and hopefully it's time works out, they will be coming but it's because votes have been. it was supposed to end at 11:00. >> we apologize that happening. next we have two sisters, they are part of our organizing group. we have eleanor and rosey.

>> hi, i'm rosey, i'm 11 years old. we are here because our trying to save our planet. greta inspired us. fires and droughts fueled by climate changes are killing people all over the globe. we are choking our children and mass extinction is well under way and the government does nothing. our schools don't teach us and our parents are silent. e only have 11 years left to avoid a climate catastrophe. we need to have zero carbon emissions by 200 when i'm 1.

i'm asking you to do three things. first start planning for the future at your school. it's more than a walkout but a teach-in. this is what you say to your friends might be the only thing they know about climate hange. climate activates need to support other social usiness. the fight for justice is your fight, too. cheers and applause] >> kids rally for gun safety or lgbtq rights or living wages, get your butt out there and support them. and they will support you, too. the november 2020 election is coming and we need to. find a candidate who is on limate change and go

door-to-door and make sure your older siblings vote. whose side are they on. if you fight for the children by demanding that slimet change to get us to zero carbon emissions by 200 and fight for the children by getting involved, we will save the world. cheers and applause] >> not to my sister eleanor. >> i'm 15 years old. you know? the fact that we have to be out here doing what our parents and our politicians should have done 0 years ago. shame on them that the government allows dirty energy companies to profit on our future. shame on them that our future holds millions of climate feff few geese.

shame on them. i have a message for our parents and po politicians. you can't ignore this crisis. you owe us a moral debt. get out here and stand with us as we fight to get our futures back. [cheers and applause] >> we are striking for climate, for jobs and for justice. kids from stockholm sweden, to seoul, south korea are leading strikes to call for climate action. we are demanding generational justice by rejecting business as usual. we need to pass a green new deal. millions of good paying in union jobs building energy efficient schools. [cheers and applause] >> this is anti-racist policies and restore justice in ethnic communities. and we are going to need enough th >> those organizations, we are we are demanding generational justice by rejecting business as usual. we need to pass a green new deal. millions of good paying in union jobs building energy efficient schools. cheers and applause]

>> this is also a fight for justice because we stand in solidarity with the black and brown communities who are disproportionately affected by the climate and embrace anti-racist policies and restore justice in ethnic communities. and we are going to need enough courage to speak truth to power, enough solidarity to win every strike and vote to keep us going. this is an uprising. >> we wanted to both make an announcement on behalf of the international youth indenenous council and the national children's campaign, on behalf of those organizations. the politicians, baby boomers,

all of these people -- we refuse to take that and refuse to be the last generation. we are not generation z. we are generation g.n.d., green ew deal. e refuse to be the -- shoot, give me a secretary. we refuse to be the last generation to thrive. we are going to give it to the generations to come -- oh, gosh, i'm done. thank you guys, i'm done. i'm done. 'm done. >> those organizations, we are generation g.n.d. we are announcing the era of the green new deal, on behalf of organizations.

we want to focus on elements of the green new deal framework respecting indeng ownous lands nd renewable energy, environmental justice and protection of biodiversity and sustainable agriculture. cheers and applause] so thank you all for listening to us. our next speaker is coordinating. over there, you see a giant parachute. no future, no action. o action, no future. >> hi, everyone, i'm harry rubenstein and i'm speaking on behalf of the mother earth project. we have been providing all the parachutes that you are seeing today. we started the project in 2015 and did over 2,000 parachutes round the globe.

as you can see, parachutes to me decorate their parachute with artwork and individual concerns about the climate crisis. looking at the parachutes is ike reading a story. looking at the parachutes is learning about the devastation about deforestation in zimbabwe and rising waters of the marshall and the defined lings salmon population in oregon and dwindling population in african countries. we are here among environmental activists. we are a powerful group demanding changes in our government which is reluctant to listen to the science of the united nations scientific report.

when you hold these parachutes today, think of the hope of one person from nigeria who says thank you for hearing from victims of giving us a voice. thank you mother earth project. when you hold these parachutes today, think of action who want to use parachutes to spread environmental action across countries. when you hold these parachutes today, think of kathy from canada who laid out in front of the canadian parliament. when the government recently passed carbon pricing legislation holding polluters responsible for their actions. today, we are galvanizing and helping to create the largest family in the world. ere amongst you are parachutes that speak from all corners of he globe and plead with you to

take action both individually and collectively and ask you to open your eyes and see the beauty of their artwork and beauty of mother earth. thank you. [cheers and applause] > no future, no action, no future, no action. we're going to end with a chant. ready? >> yeah. >> >> no future, no action, no future, no action. no future. no action. no action. no future. no action. no future. no action. no future. no action. no action. no future. no action.

no future. no action. no action. no future. no action. no future. no action. no future. >> what do you want? [crowd chanting] [crowd chanting] >> take your trash and all your signs. take your trash and your signs. >> please take a parachute and take it over to the corner. thank you so much.

[captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2019] captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. isit ncicap.org >> please pick up trash and take all your signs. we don't want to leave a mess.

>> c-span is back in des moines, iowa for the polk county annual steak fry beginning at 2:00 p.m. eastern where 17 presidential candidates will take the stage

for speeches. watch on c-span.org or listen live using the c-span radio app. >> the late koke roberts is remembered at a funeral mass at the cathedral of st. matthew the apostle in washington, d.c. watch live on c-span. online at c span.org or listen live on the free c-span radio app. this weekend on american history tv, today at 6:00 p.m. eastern mingus, vil war, scott talks about the importance of the cumberland valley rail record. and later a discussion on playwright august wilson. >> the things that are motivating him is his desire to move black team from the margins to the center and say, what's

true about us, what matters to us, what's happening in our lives? >> and sunday at 4:00 p.m. eastern on "reel america." he 1919 silent army film about a transcontinental trek from washington, d.c. to san francisco. and at 8:00 on the presidency, herbert hoover and his relief work. >> hoover and his team built the c.r.b. into a remarkable organization. it had its own flag. it had its own fleet. it negotiated treaties with some of the warring european powers. it's leaders hoover enjoyed some diplomatic freedom. probably the only american citizen permit today do so during the entire war. >> explore our nation's past every weekend on c-span 3.

defess secretary esp ebbs r briefed reporter onts sending u.s. military sup port to saudi arabia. the deployment was in responses to last week's attacks on the saudi oil facilities. this is 10 minutes. o discuss options. unleashing regime costs. iran