Not to rain on a parade, but there's a stark contrast between the way Greta Thunberg was received vs all the indigenous and black youth who've been frontline combatting climate change.
And yes, race DOES matter especially here, when racism, colonialism, imperialism and environmental racism are inextricable from climate change. When indigenous and black communities are the first and hardest hit, yet black and brown people are vilified for doing activist work.
(Not saying Greta hasn't been talked down to by politicians, she's undoubtedly faced so much sexism and ableism for being autistic)
Sorry not sorry, but I'm sick of listening to white liberals go all "Wow, this white child is single handedly leading the climate change fight!" when there have been black and brown activists fighting the fight for DECADES. Black and indigenous communities have cared, raised awareness and fought for their homelands for generations. I wish ya'll showed a quarter of this support for Little Miss Flint or Autumn Peltier or any of the black and indigenous youth combatting environmental issues. Black and indigenous youth's childhoods and futures have been denied or stolen since chattel slavery and colonialism (which had a devastating impact on the environment but none of you white environmentalists wanna address that because you'd have to acknowledge black and indigenous people as human beings and frankly, you don't include us in your ~activism~ 🤷🏽♂️)
Here are some Black & Brown Girls fighting against climate change:
