During ABC’s The View, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg urged her climate activists to abandon “legal methods” to achieve their climate goals.
During his appearance as a guest on the show’s Friday episode, Thunberg argued that if the people who have made great strides in social justice and civil rights throughout history only used the legal channels offered to them, “we wouldn’t be there.” where we are today.”
The activist argued that real climate action can only result from such radical measures.
GERMAN POLICE SURROUND AND WALK AGAINST THE CAMP OF ANTI-COAL PROTESTERS
Climate activist Greta Thunberg spoke to the co-hosts of The View on Friday. (Screenshot/ABC)
Co-host Sunny Hostin prompted Thunberg’s point by bringing up her recent arrest while protesting at the site of a German coal mine slated for major expansion.
German police arrested the 20-year-old in January for refusing to leave the small German town of Lützerath, which was planned to be bulldozed to make way for the mine’s expansion.
Photos show the young climate activist smiling as she is taken away by the German police.
Impressed by the display of activism, Hostin Thunberg asked: “Was this the first time you were arrested like this?
Thunberg acknowledged that it’s likely to happen again because “we’re going in the wrong direction on climate.” She said: “So if we continue like this, we’re probably going to see more and more people doing the same thing, and that includes me.”
GERMAN CLIMATE ACTIVISTS PROTEST AGAINST THE DESTRUCTION OF AN ABANDONED VILLAGE TO BE TURNED INTO A MINE
Police officers take Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg away from the edge of the Garzweiler II brown coal opencast mine during a protest by climate activists after the eviction of Luetzerath, Germany, Tuesday January 17, 2023. After the eviction of Lützerath ended on Sunday, opponents of coal continued their protests in several places in North Rhine-Westphalia on Tuesday. ((Federico Gambarini/dpa via AP))
She added: “I feel like in the future I want to be able to look back and say that during this time that we were witnessing an accelerating climate crisis, I did everything I could and in we were able to avoid the worst consequences of it.”
Thunberg pointed to historical movements that brought about societal change and urged modern activists to look to them as guides to activism, particularly in terms of how they pushed the boundaries.
She said: “If we want to see real change … if we look at history, if people who worked for social justice, for example, if they just used the legal methods, then we wouldn’t be where we are today like when it comes to race rights and women’s suffrage.”
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She then stressed that the climate crisis is as existential a threat as racism or other human rights issues warranting this type of response. She added, “So we have to think outside the box because this is an existential crisis.”
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg attends a climate change rally in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Friday, October 25, 2019. ((Melissa Renwick/The Canadian Press via AP))