[su_carousel source=”media: 40166,40167,40168,40169,40170,40171″ limit=”100″ link=”lightbox” width=”800″ height=”540″ responsive=”no” items=”1″]

Ariana Arana Bermudez

Ariana Arana Bermudez is a 15-year-old sophomore at St. Ignatius College Preparatory. She is Nicaraguan-American who was born and raised in the Mission District.

On March 15, students from around the world went on strike in order to demand their representative officials take immediate action to address climate change. Bay Area students participated by rallying at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s San Francisco office, and marching to Senator Dianne Feinstein’s San Francisco office, ending their rally at Union Square.

Some of those same students were recently seen, in a now viral video from Feb. 22, meeting up with Feinstein, and boldly demanding that she support the “New Green Deal” bill sponsored by House Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The New Green Deal calls for the U.S. to switch from fossil fuel to 100 percent renewable energy, along with many other ideas to prevent the catastrophic consequences of climate change.

“It is so important that we, the youth, continue to fight for this cause,” said Hanna Estrada, one of the youth organizers for the event. “We must keep this momentum and not let this become last week’s news.It is so important that we continue taking action that brings awareness to this issue and call on our government to act. Through social media, planning strikes, marches, or rallies, writing to our representatives, and creating art we will make a change that will benefit many generations to come.”

The children who participated in this rally are part of a youth campaign named “Youth v. Apocalypse.” This group is dedicated to finding ways to prevent the apocalypse that will inevitably occur if we continue to let climate change affect our ecosystems. As these incredibly brave children demanded change from Feinstein, she did not respond in a very positive manner.

Instead of listening to the students, she reminded them that she has “been doing this for 30 years. I know what I’m doing. You come in here and it has to be my way or the highway. I don’t respond to that,” she said.

This was a very low blow not only for the children, but for all of us who love and support Feinstein. For young women all through the bay area, Dianne Feinstein and Nancy Pelosi are people we were taught to look up to. We have seen them as an example of strong, independent women, who are fighting for the causes we believe in, and to see Feinstein dismiss the calls of those who need her was something we all were not expecting.

This was especially discouraging when she said: “That resolution will not pass the Senate, and you can take that back to whoever sent you here and tell them … I’ve been in the Senate for over a quarter of a century and I know what can pass and I know what can’t pass.”

Her words encourage the dangerous mentality that when something seems to be too hard it’s better to not try at all, which is not an example we should be setting for our younger generations.

However, the children were not easily discouraged. They continued to ask for Feinstein’s support. A child in the viral video can be heard reminding her that “the government is supposed to be for the people, by the people.”

“There are so many awesome ways to join the fight for a better and cleaner planet. The first step is educating yourself and your friends on the issue,” Estrada said. “The second may be joining a environmental activist group in your school or community. If there is no environmental activist group available to you, then it is up to you to start one. Remember that you have the power to be a leader in your school or community. You have a voice, now it’s time to use it. You could start a club, a letter writing campaign to your representatives, or even a newspaper. Whatever way you use your voice, whether that’s through art or a climate strike, know that you are apart of a great and much needed change.”

As a part of the younger generation, it is very obvious to me that our potential to work for change is often underestimated. The children who stood up for the future of our world have proved everyone wrong. This movement was both planned and executed by the children, which shows an impressive amount of initiative and courage. We should be both impressed at how these kids were able to make their voice heard, and embarrassed with the example given to us to follow.

When a 16-year-old student pointed out that Feinstein’s power is given to her by voters, Feinstein was quick to talk about the fact that  the teenager did not vote her into office since she is still not of voting age. Our world is constantly adapting, and especially in a world highly influenced by social media, our representatives should be adapting along with us.

This video will be on the internet forever, allowing us to never forget. While it is true that we were not able to vote Feinstein into power during the most recent election; we along with all the children who watched the recent viral video are the voters of the future, and we will not forget.