As 30,000 rally in Paris on the final day of climate talks at the United Nations conference on climate change, nearly 200 rally in Seattle, slogging through downtown streets chanting for immediate action in the fight against climate change. Demonstrators gathered at Westlake Park for a short rally before marching down Pine to 1st Ave. then through the Pike Place Market before ending at Victor Steinbruck Park with another short rally.

As those marching in Seattle, Paris, and around the world demanded solutions to climate change, representatives from 195 countries joined together in Paris agreeing to a historic climate accord with ambitious goals of reducing carbon emissions and ways to attain them. President Obama remarked in his speech”Full implementation of this agreement will help delay or avoid some of the worst consequences of climate change…moreover this agreement sends a powerful signal that world is firmly committed to a low carbon future, and that has the potential to unleash investment and innovation in clean energy at a scale we have never seen before … This agreement represents the best chance we’ve had to save the one planet that we’ve got.”

Not all scientist and environmentalists are happy with the decisions saying they are not enough and that fossil fuel companies have been slowing down the process and blocking solutions. Activist Zarna Joshi, one of the speakers at the post march rally, responded “200 world leaders have come together and in essence, they have failed us, as they have failed us for the past 21 years. They have failed us because the global South is facing the most devastating impacts of climate change. They have failed us because racial injustice still prevails in our world. They have failed us because women and women of color still face the violence of patriarchy around the world. They have failed us because the system of capitalism continues to oppress people around the world. They have failed us because the indigenous people around the world are continuing to be oppressed despite the fact that they are leading this movement…what we have come her today to say is that we are standing with the protesters in Paris, we are standing with indigenous people. We are standing with women of color. We are standing with Black Lives Matter. We are standing for racial justice. We are standing for social justice. We are standing for climate justice around the world. This is the cause of our lives. This is not a joke. This is not a drill. We are not practicing. This is for real. Right here today, we are the red line.”

From the Facebook event page…”Nature doesn’t compromise, but negotiators in Paris will. In Seattle and around the world, we have to commit to defending the lines that cannot be crossed if we hope for a stable climate. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we’ve already begun. But we need to deepen our commitment: we can’t let Washington state turn into the world’s dirty energy transport depot.

At 12:12 on 12/12, we’ll make noise to show that our voices are united as we fight for a just and living planet. Then we’ll head to Victor Steinbrueck Park for a pledge of resistance (and red scarves to remind us of what we need to do). Join us!

Schedule
11:30am: Gather at Westlake Park (401 Pine St.)
11:45am: Program begins
12:12pm: Climate Scream
12:15pm: March to Victor Steinbrueck Park

Speakers
Seattle City Councilmember Mike O’Brien, Zarna Joshi from Rising Tide Seattle & Women of Color Speakout, and youths Aji Piper and Ayanna Fuentes.

Our emcee is Hodan Hossan from Got Green? and Laurie Torres is our chant-leader!

Bring noisemakers, pots and pans, airhorns, instruments — be prepared to make some noise.

Wear RED.

Co-hosted by 350 Seattle, GotGreen?, Rising Tide Seattle, Greenpeace USA, Sierra Club – Washington State Chapter, ShellNo Action Council, Divest UW, Earthcare Not Warfare, Buddhist Peace Fellowship-Seattle & the PSARA Environmental Committee

#D12 #climategames #noneshallpass #1o5C”

Video from speaker Zarna Joshi – Red Line Pledge Of Resistance