Did you know your child is suing the federal government and all 50 states? It\’s true! Well, your child is named in lawsuits filed last year on behalf of young people and nature, now working their way through the courts. What are the kids suing for? What do they win if the judge rules in their favor?
A habitable planet. The kids win a plan for a habitable planet. A specific plan to reduce pollution enough that they can hope to avoid the absolute worst consequences of climate change for future generations. What a great idea, huh? But don\’t we already have a plan like that?
Well, no. Our leaders aren\’t even planning to make such a plan, much less close to achieving the necessary CO2 reductions in this decade. Some places like the City of Seattle have big, bold plans to get to carbon neutral by 2050 — pretty awesome! — but the crucial period is actually the next decade. At the rate we\’re going, by 2035 the damage will have been done, and will continue to unfold over centuries as the planet further warms itself. Which is why the children went to court. Our greenest plans have not kept up with the latest science, which shows that before this generation takes leadership, CO2 will pass dangerous limits. So now our kids need the courts to step in to protect them. We must force our leaders to create the plan that will meet nature\’s requirements.
Alec Loorz, the teenage plaintiff in the federal lawsuit and the founder of iMatteryouth.org and the iMatter March, recently received the inaugural Coretta Scott King A.N.G.E.L. Award (‘Advancing Nonviolence through Generations of Exceptional Leadership’) , and worked with the White House on a possible Presidential Climate Summit. Because of his leadership, we\’re marching on Saturday in Seattle.
So come downtown to Pike Place Market for the Seattle iMatter March on Saturday April 20th, 2013 at 11am ready to make noise, ready to stand up and be counted against coal trains, pipelines, and fossil fuel expansions that if not stopped, promise to detonate a carbon catastrophe that will continue heating the planet for the next century. On Saturday, the youngest generation, the one that will soon face the consequences of our inaction on climate, will rally and march for climate justice, led by our young people. They deserve a chance to speak, to be heard, and more importantly, to be protected.
Our planet requires and our children demand that we protect them now.
Besides it\’ll be a blast! Check out the art and fun on other posts for the event. Or visit the facebook event page to sign up now!
