Senate Democrats: Greta Thunberg has used her shameful adult superpower for the climate

This story is part of Cover the climate now, a global collaboration of more than 250 media to strengthen coverage of climate history.

---

Tuesday afternoon, in a packed Capitol Hill, Democratic senators marveled at a group of young climate activists, praising them. "We need your leadership. Young people are the military, "said Senator Ed Markey (D-MA), co-author of the Green New Deal resolution. "You put a spotlight on this issue like never before."

But Greta Thunberg, the most famous activist of all, had none.

"Keep your praise, please, we do not want it," said Thunberg, a 16-year-old Swede, who has become the most recognizable and influential face of youth movement for climate. "Do not invite us here to tell us how inspiring we are without doing anything about it. We do not want to be invited to this type of meeting because, frankly, they do not lead to anything. "

Thunberg, who is used to reprimanding adults in power because of their climate complacency, has learned that the frustration, impatience and fear of young people in the face of a catastrophic future was a powerful tool. . And she used it for Democratic members of the Senate Climate Change Task Force.

At one point, Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) told the assembled activists – who also included Friday's members for the future, Zero Hour and the American climate strike for youth – that They would soon be able to be candidates, concrete change. Once again, Thunberg was not impressed.

Eric Baradat / AFP / Getty Images

"We do not want to become politicians, we do not want to be candidates," she said. "We want you to unite behind science. I'm sorry, I know you're probably trying very hard, and this is not yours personally, but usually everyone. I know you're trying, but not loud enough. "

When asked what their timetable was for passing climate legislation, senators did not have many answers. Of course, as Markey told Thunberg and others, Democrats do not have much to say right now because they do not have a majority in the US Senate and do not control the White House. And President Donald Trump is a climate advocate trying to get the United States out of the Paris climate deal.

The meeting finally revealed a fascinating dynamic that is currently being played out in climate policy: with the hands tied by Republicans in power, adults are turning to young activists to create pressure. Meanwhile, young people are telling everyone in power that we need to do a lot more, at all levels of government.

Thunberg managed to put pressure on European politicians. Can she do the same thing here?

If the modus operandi of the youth climate movement puts extreme pressure on politicians, Greta Thunberg is the master.

The superpower of Thunberg seems to shame adults. The direct and harsh rhetoric of the teenage girl in the US Senate on Tuesday is similar to what she told European politicians. Thunberg, who works at Asperger, quietly exalts Europe's most powerful people, whether it's the British Parliament, the COP24 United Nations Conference on Climate Change or the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Mark Wilson / Getty Images

"Adults continue to say that we owe it to young people to give them hope. But I do not want your hope. I do not want you to be optimistic. I want you to panic, "Thunberg said in his January speech in Davos. "I want you to feel the fear that I feel every day. And then, I want you to act, I wanted you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if the house were on fire, because that is the case.

She has also achieved results in Europe, as David Wallace-Wells of New York Magazine writes:

In February, the President of the European Commission pledged to spend a quarter of the EU's total budget. budget on climate mitigation over seven years, following a meeting with her. And shortly after his visit to the UK Parliament, the conservative majority voted for the climate emergency declaration and promised to reduce its carbon emissions by 2050 (in the context of the Brexit long consumer drama) .

Thunberg is now trying to do the same thing in the United States, while the climate is complicated for the country. On the one hand, President Trump announced that he would pull the country out of the Paris climate agreement shortly after taking office, and his government undertook to replace the former president's Clean Power plan. Barack Obama by a plan that would lead to an increase in carbon emissions of the United States.

At the same time, young people are injecting more energy into the US climate movement (and beyond) than in recent decades. Sunrise activists exert further pressure on Democrats to adopt far-reaching legislation on climate change if they manage to bring the Senate and the White House back to 2020. This Friday, thousands of young people from around the world whole will leave their jobs and schools to attract attention on climate change, and call on politicians to take action.

Thunberg, who will lead the global climate strikes on Sept. 20-27, arrived in New York at the end of August after traveling the ocean. zero emission sailboat as a means of giving up air transport. She will visit Capitol Hill on Tuesday and Wednesday to meet with politicians, including Senate Leader Chuck Schumer, and deliver a speech to Congress on Wednesday.

She is joined by her American counterparts in activism for the youth climate. Groups like the Sunrise Movement are gaining importance and becoming a force to be reckoned with in American politics. Through demonstrations and direct actions, Sunrise tries to force the hand of American politicians on the climate. With Trump at the White House, they base their hopes on the presidential elections of 2020.

As Senator Ed Markey told Thunberg, congressional Democrats can not currently take meaningful action. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has vowed to oppose a Green New Deal, a resolution of principles to guide the United States towards carbon neutrality by 2030, making the country a world leader in renewable energies.

"We have to live with the fact that we lost the 2016 elections against Donald Trump, we do not control the US Senate," said Markey. "We have to overthrow the Senate, stay in the House and get rid of Donald Trump. In January 2021, you will see a cascade of laws.

If Thunberg's visit was an indication, the Democrats in Markey and the Senate will probably face intense interrogations from activists about the future of this law and whether they have a specific plan. to achieve this.