THUNDER BAY – A rally calling on federal election candidates to make climate action a critical issue was held at Thunder Bay city hall on Wednesday.
The local rally, part of a national day of action launched by 350 Canada, also called for a just transition for workers, for Indigenous peoples, and for communities living in the climate crisis.
"That also includes a full moratorium on any new fossil fuel development, so that’s fossil fuel projects, any type of extraction related to fossil fuels, oil, gas, and coal, and that’s very much related to what a just transition means," said rally co-organizer Shadiya Aidid.
"I think that climate isn’t very different from a lot of other issues. I think a lot of when it comes to racial justice, when it comes to tackling Islamophobia, a lot of it can be lip service. I think the only way that institutions and the government will listen is when people rise up, like they’re doing today, and demanding change."
Organizers also stressed the importance of climate action and climate justice issues in how they intersect with other issues that matter to people.
"As everybody has been saying, the pandemic has really highlighted a lot of gaps," said co-organizer Kelsey Agnew. "If people don’t have housing, how are they supposed to care about other issues and be involved? If people don’t have enough food to eat, how can we have engaged and healthy citizens come together to take action?"
"So, food security, housing, but then also transitioning to a green economy, and one that’s not just environmentally focused, but, also human rights focused, they can’t be separated. We can’t just pretend that we’re all going to buy electric vehicles, and that that’s going to solve our fossil fuel industry, if the batteries powering electric vehicles are a humans rights issue in places across the world."
