It’s hard to believe that it’s been over 6 months since the People’s Climate March, and marching in New York City with friends and family from Seattle, New York and everywhere in between for one of the most moving experiences of our lifetime ... two billion human steps in the right direction, to be exact.
The big white rock, the symbol of my commitment to Mother Earth that I received at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine after the march, sits on my living room mantlepiece. I look at it every day as a reminder of how much has happened in the last 6 months and how much more needs to happen for climate action in our lifetime.
In New York last September, one of the people marching with Climate Solutions was our friend Isamu Sims. Isamu and his family used to live in Seattle and now live in New York City. We didn’t realize at the time that the moment of silence he describes below, or the march as a whole, meant so much to him; so we wanted to share his wonderful writing with the Climate Solutions community.
— Savitha Reddy Pathi, Climate Solutions
The People’s Climate March
A gigantic ball as big as three elephants rolled right past me. I couldn’t believe my eyes! The ball was huge! It was the biggest ball I’d ever seen. I turned to see where it was going and watched it bounce over a crowd of thousands of people. I looked the other way and saw people as far as my eyes could see.
On September 21, 2014, my sister, my mom, her friend, Savitha, and I went on the New York City People’s Climate March. We marched with some old friends who came all the way from Seattle. We carried a sign that showed the Statue of Liberty under water, which a woman who we met on the train gave to us. I pictured that if we didn’t take care of our planet the Statue of Liberty would sink. We would no longer have a Statue of Liberty! I would never be able to see it again. The first time I saw the Statue of Liberty was on a trip to Ellis Island when I was in third grade. I tried to imagine how my ancestors felt when they arrived and how hard of a journey it must have been. Without it, an important reminder would be lost and I couldn’t stand to think about it.
There were tons of people at the March, over 400,000. The streets were crowded with people. We could hardly budge. I was worried that I would get separated from my family. On a typical school day, I get off the subway at West 86th Street and Central Park West. The street is full of cars honking their horns. On this day, the street was full of life. Colorful signs, banners, kites, a giant eagle’s nest, people dressed like polar bears and butterflies were everywhere. I felt hopeful. As I stood in the street, waiting for the March to begin, I heard birds chirping. It was like they were singing a song. I could taste the fresh air.
Suddenly, there was a moment of silence to honor people already suffering from climate change. Right after, everyone started shouting as loud as they could. I shouted, my mom shouted, just about everyone shouted. It was so loud that my ears could’ve popped off. We were shouting to sound a climate alarm and hoping it would be so loud no one could ignore us.
We walked from 86th to 45th Street. It was a long walk! Once we got to 45th, my legs were aching. I almost fell down. I was so tired.
“Mom, when can we go home?”
“In 15 minutes.”
“But, Mom, that’s a long time, can’t we go home now?”
“I know you want to go home, but look who it is! More Seattle friends! Let’s talk to them for a few minutes.” Then I saw one of my good friends walking up. Thomas used to be my mom’s friend but now he’s my friend. I play ball with him whenever I’m in Seattle. He’s really fun! Fifteen minutes went by very quickly. After that, our friends helped us carry my sister’s stroller down a few stairs to the train. We waited for about ten minutes and then hopped on the train and went home.
As I sat on the subway, my feet trembling on the floor, I thought about the Statue of Liberty and how much it means to me. I was proud to have marched and hope the People’s Climate March would help save the world.
