A group of young local activists will be ‘dying’ on the steps of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) on Friday afternoon as part of a global climate change protest.
Manitoba Youth for Climate Action (MYCA) is staging the ‘die-in’ as a way to respond to the impending threat of climate change.
“All across Canada, we’ve coordinated across time zones for all youth to drop at the exact same time to protest the unjust deaths that have come of the climate crisis already… and the deaths that will come if we don’t take action,” MYCA’s Lena Andres told 680 CJOB.
“The climate crisis is going to be affecting my generation the most, and those who are older, the ones before us, have been the ones to cause major harm to the environment.
“They’ve had the right to a future, they’ve had the right to have a long healthy life. We’re just fighting for the exact same thing that they’ve had the privilege of receiving.”
Similar student strikes, initiated by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, have been held in a number of countries around the world.
Andres, a University of Winnipeg environmental studies student, said she’s encouraged by the level of interest in combating climate change that she’s seen from local youth.
“It’s really empowering and it makes me feel a lot of hope that these young kids already know so much about what’s happening and they can help,” she said.
“The immediate reaction from these young people is not to sit back and wait for the politicians to protect them, but it’s for the kids to rise up and protect themselves.”
Friday’s event begins at 1 p.m., and will include speeches, protest songs, and the moment when the youth will all ‘drop dead’ at 2 p.m.
A similar protest is planned for the following week at the Manitoba Legislature.
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