Greta Thunberg on arrest during climate protest: Activists must go beyond 'legal methods'
During an appearance on ABC’s "The View," Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg urged her fellow climate change activists to step outside of "legal methods" to achieve their climate goals.
During ABC’s "The View," Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg urged her fellow climate change activists to step outside of "legal methods" to achieve their climate goals.
While appearing as a guest during the show's Friday episode, Thunberg argued that if the people of who made great strides in social justice and civil rights throughout history only stuck to using the legal channels they were offered, "we wouldn't be where we are today."
The activist advocated that real climate change action can only come from such radical action.
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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 that was slated for a major expansion.
German police detained the 20-year-old in January for refusing to leave the tiny German town of Luetzerath, which was scheduled to be bulldozed to make way for the mine expansion.
Photos show the young climate activist smiling as German police carried her offsite.
Impressed with the display of activism, Hostin asked Thunberg, "Was this the first time you’ve been apprehended like that? And given how passionate you are, is it safe to assume this won’t be the last?"
Thunberg admitted it will probably happen again as "we are moving in the wrong direction when it comes to the climate." She said, "So unfortunately, if we continue like now, we will probably see more and more people doing the same thing and me included."
Police officers take Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg away from the edge of the Garzweiler II opencast lignite mine during a protest action by climate activists after the clearance of Luetzerath, Germany, Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2023. After the eviction of Luetzerath ended on Sunday, coal opponents continued their protests on Tuesday at several locations in North Rhine-Westphalia. ((Federico Gambarini/dpa via AP))
She added, "I feel like I want to in the future be able to look back and say I did everything I could in this time where we were experiencing an accelerating climate crisis and where we still could avoid the worst consequences of it."
Thunberg pointed to historical movements that brought about societal change, urging modern activists to look to them as guides for activism, especially in the way they pushed the envelope.
She said, "If we want to see real changes… if we look through history, if people who were advocating for, for example, social justice, if they had only used the legal methods, then we wouldn’t be where we are today for example when it comes to racial rights, and women’s voting."
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She then stressed that the climate change crisis is as existential of a threat as racism or other human rights issues that warrant this type of response. She added, "So we need to think outside the box, because this is an existential crisis."
Swedish climate activist, Greta Thunberg, attends a climate rally, in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Friday, Oct. 25, 2019. ( (Melissa Renwick/The Canadian Press via AP))