Fridays for Future Shoe Strike

There are many problems going on around the world, one of them being climate change. In the past century, there has been a rise in emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere due to human activities. These large amounts of greenhouse gases are dangerously affecting ecosystems and human health. Many activists, like Greta Thunberg, are trying to fight climate change. Greta Thunberg founded an organization, Fridays for Future to battle climate change through student strikes. Rae Bear, 12, and her friend Melika Morshed, 12, decided to take part in this movement and bring awareness to San Marino. “Especially with the recent fires, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to help raise awareness in our community since we are dealing with the effects of climate change in our own backyards. We really just wanted to help raise awareness and to get people serious about climate change. We wanted to bring the community together through this call to action and give people an opportunity to play their part. It was also to put pressure on the our school district and city to help implement change,” Bear said. They held the shoe strike on Friday September 25 in front of city hall. “City hall is right on the front of Huntington Drive so it was the perfect place where people could see. Also, city hall is representative of our push towards local officials to implement change in their policies,” Bear said. Participants dropped off a pair of shoes or a poster in representation of themselves as part of the event. The shoes and posters used in the event were saved and will be reused for future strikes. Arranging these types of events takes some effort. “It was actually not that complicated to set it up. We had to register the event with Friday for Future through this website https://fridaysforfuture.org/action-map/register-report-strikes/ and then we made a Facebook page and fliers. The hardest part was getting the word out to as many people as possible. We contacted people through Facebook, Instagram, and emails,” Bear said. There will be future shoe strikes held in San Marino, so be sure to look out for them!