Khanyisa Melwa, Opinionista, Johannesburg, 30 September 2019<\/p>\n
There is a sense among many young people that although we acknowledge that the climate crisis is a serious matter, it remains largely a white and middle-class concern.<\/em><\/p>\n When I was 16, all of 10 years ago, not only was my political consciousness embryonic, but the idea of climate change was not competing for space in my mind. The contenders at the time were the prospect of not making it into the 3<\/span>rd<\/span><\/sup> team rugby squad for the weekend derby or the fear of bombing out at an audition.<\/span><\/p>\n These priorities \u2013 if I can even call them that \u2013 pale in comparison to what the likes of 16-year-old environmental activist, Greta Thunberg, deems important. And that is the fight to save the planet from ourselves, but more on that later.<\/p>\n I watched in awe as the Swedish teenager gave a sterling speech at the UN Climate Action Summit, addressing world leaders and asking them simply, \u201cHow dare you?\u201d. How dare you carry on with business as usual, when the planet is burning and we face imminent extinction as a species?<\/p>\n Thunberg\u2019s publicity has brought back into the spotlight a topic which lingers in our collective consciousness as South Africans, but just like my 16-year-old self, doesn\u2019t occupy a prominent position. Nor has this issue enjoyed the level of urgency which it requires by way of policy and legislation in South Africa.<\/p>\n As a student and young professional, I have certainly been guilty of putting climate change on the back burner, especially when it comes to political discussions among peers. It is very easy to do so, as I think there is a sense among young people (I don\u2019t speak on behalf of all young people) that although we heed that this is a serious matter, it remains largely a white and middle-class concern. This is said in a context within which white people never concern themselves about the socio-economic struggles of black people unless it adversely affects them financially or even socially. Even then, their sincerity is questionable. Anything they stand up for, naturally, is treated with little regard or suspicion by most black people.<\/p>\n This is compounded by the fact that there are other, more pressing, social ailments, to which we are devoting our energies. These include gender-based violence, femicide, poverty and unemployment, landlessness and an economy in tumult. Do you see? There, I did it again. I treated climate change like the unwanted stepchild, albeit probably the most dangerous of the ills mentioned.<\/p>\n