Members of the It Takes Roots Delegation. (Photo: Our Power Campaign/Twitter)
Dec 09, 2015
As politicians, diplomats, and corporate representatives gathered in Paris Wednesday in the second week of United Nations-brokered COP21 climate talks, grassroots groups from the frontlines of environmental destruction set their sights on a different audience: people imprisoned at a migrant detention center nearby.
Bearing a message of solidarity, and denunciation of xenophobia and racism, Indigenous, migrant, and black communities from the Americas joined with migrant and refugee justice groups from France to rally at the facility--near the Hippodrome de Vincennes in the east of Paris--singing, drumming, and chanting within earshot of those locked up.
"We are here to show that when the Northern countries do all they can to raise physical and mental border[s], we the people from all over the world--from Jackson, Mississippi to Fresnes in Ile-de-France--we stand for climate and social justice and against xenophobia, Islamophobia and negrophobia," declared Almamy Kanoute, a French grassroots activist, in a statement released Wednesday.
\u201c"We are united" - Our delegation marched with refugees at Paris detention centre this morning #samecausesamefight\u201d— Indigenous Environmental Network (@Indigenous Environmental Network) 1449668799
The demonstration stems from an international civil society push at COP21 to expose the links between racism, global inequality, war, and climate change--and highlight the critical role that the people most impacted must play in creating a better world.
What's more, Wednesday's rally comes at a time when European and U.S. governments are further restricting their borders and criminalizing people fleeing war and poverty while, at the same time, driving the militarism and climate change that many argue is fueling this displacement.
A report released by Oxfam International earlier this month found that, while the richest people and countries are disproportionately responsible for global carbon emissions, the poor--particularly in the Global South--bear the brunt of the resulting droughts, mega-storms, and rising seas.
\u201cWorld March of Women at #MigrantJustice protest #COP21 #ittakesroots\u201d— Zebra (@Zebra) 1449658229
"While the U.S., Europe and the Global North have been the largest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, the Global South had been bearing the brunt of the impact," said Cindy Wiesner of the U.S.-based Grassroots Global Justice Alliance on Wednesday. "Rising food scarcity, drought and floods are driving global conflicts, war, and climate migration from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East."
"The global community has a human rights responsibility to refugees fleeing violence and fleeing for their lives," Wiesner added.
Kali Akuno from the Mississippi-based group Cooperation Jackson connected the plight of those being detained to movements for racial justice in the United States.
"We know state repression, vigilante violence, and xenophobia all too well," said Akuno. "In many of our communities extrajudicial killings at the hands of the state is a daily occurrence. We reject Islamophobia and Afro or Negrophobia rising across Europe and North America, as well as the scapegoating of migrants and refugees, being spread by right wing demagogues and their liberal enablers."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
As politicians, diplomats, and corporate representatives gathered in Paris Wednesday in the second week of United Nations-brokered COP21 climate talks, grassroots groups from the frontlines of environmental destruction set their sights on a different audience: people imprisoned at a migrant detention center nearby.
Bearing a message of solidarity, and denunciation of xenophobia and racism, Indigenous, migrant, and black communities from the Americas joined with migrant and refugee justice groups from France to rally at the facility--near the Hippodrome de Vincennes in the east of Paris--singing, drumming, and chanting within earshot of those locked up.
"We are here to show that when the Northern countries do all they can to raise physical and mental border[s], we the people from all over the world--from Jackson, Mississippi to Fresnes in Ile-de-France--we stand for climate and social justice and against xenophobia, Islamophobia and negrophobia," declared Almamy Kanoute, a French grassroots activist, in a statement released Wednesday.
\u201c"We are united" - Our delegation marched with refugees at Paris detention centre this morning #samecausesamefight\u201d— Indigenous Environmental Network (@Indigenous Environmental Network) 1449668799
The demonstration stems from an international civil society push at COP21 to expose the links between racism, global inequality, war, and climate change--and highlight the critical role that the people most impacted must play in creating a better world.
What's more, Wednesday's rally comes at a time when European and U.S. governments are further restricting their borders and criminalizing people fleeing war and poverty while, at the same time, driving the militarism and climate change that many argue is fueling this displacement.
A report released by Oxfam International earlier this month found that, while the richest people and countries are disproportionately responsible for global carbon emissions, the poor--particularly in the Global South--bear the brunt of the resulting droughts, mega-storms, and rising seas.
\u201cWorld March of Women at #MigrantJustice protest #COP21 #ittakesroots\u201d— Zebra (@Zebra) 1449658229
"While the U.S., Europe and the Global North have been the largest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, the Global South had been bearing the brunt of the impact," said Cindy Wiesner of the U.S.-based Grassroots Global Justice Alliance on Wednesday. "Rising food scarcity, drought and floods are driving global conflicts, war, and climate migration from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East."
"The global community has a human rights responsibility to refugees fleeing violence and fleeing for their lives," Wiesner added.
Kali Akuno from the Mississippi-based group Cooperation Jackson connected the plight of those being detained to movements for racial justice in the United States.
"We know state repression, vigilante violence, and xenophobia all too well," said Akuno. "In many of our communities extrajudicial killings at the hands of the state is a daily occurrence. We reject Islamophobia and Afro or Negrophobia rising across Europe and North America, as well as the scapegoating of migrants and refugees, being spread by right wing demagogues and their liberal enablers."
Sarah Lazare
Sarah Lazare is web editor at In These Times. She is a former Staff Writer at Common Dreams. She comes from a background in independent journalism for publications including The Intercept, The Nation, and Tom Dispatch.
As politicians, diplomats, and corporate representatives gathered in Paris Wednesday in the second week of United Nations-brokered COP21 climate talks, grassroots groups from the frontlines of environmental destruction set their sights on a different audience: people imprisoned at a migrant detention center nearby.
Bearing a message of solidarity, and denunciation of xenophobia and racism, Indigenous, migrant, and black communities from the Americas joined with migrant and refugee justice groups from France to rally at the facility--near the Hippodrome de Vincennes in the east of Paris--singing, drumming, and chanting within earshot of those locked up.
"We are here to show that when the Northern countries do all they can to raise physical and mental border[s], we the people from all over the world--from Jackson, Mississippi to Fresnes in Ile-de-France--we stand for climate and social justice and against xenophobia, Islamophobia and negrophobia," declared Almamy Kanoute, a French grassroots activist, in a statement released Wednesday.
\u201c"We are united" - Our delegation marched with refugees at Paris detention centre this morning #samecausesamefight\u201d— Indigenous Environmental Network (@Indigenous Environmental Network) 1449668799
The demonstration stems from an international civil society push at COP21 to expose the links between racism, global inequality, war, and climate change--and highlight the critical role that the people most impacted must play in creating a better world.
What's more, Wednesday's rally comes at a time when European and U.S. governments are further restricting their borders and criminalizing people fleeing war and poverty while, at the same time, driving the militarism and climate change that many argue is fueling this displacement.
A report released by Oxfam International earlier this month found that, while the richest people and countries are disproportionately responsible for global carbon emissions, the poor--particularly in the Global South--bear the brunt of the resulting droughts, mega-storms, and rising seas.
\u201cWorld March of Women at #MigrantJustice protest #COP21 #ittakesroots\u201d— Zebra (@Zebra) 1449658229
"While the U.S., Europe and the Global North have been the largest emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, the Global South had been bearing the brunt of the impact," said Cindy Wiesner of the U.S.-based Grassroots Global Justice Alliance on Wednesday. "Rising food scarcity, drought and floods are driving global conflicts, war, and climate migration from Africa, Asia, and the Middle East."
"The global community has a human rights responsibility to refugees fleeing violence and fleeing for their lives," Wiesner added.
Kali Akuno from the Mississippi-based group Cooperation Jackson connected the plight of those being detained to movements for racial justice in the United States.
"We know state repression, vigilante violence, and xenophobia all too well," said Akuno. "In many of our communities extrajudicial killings at the hands of the state is a daily occurrence. We reject Islamophobia and Afro or Negrophobia rising across Europe and North America, as well as the scapegoating of migrants and refugees, being spread by right wing demagogues and their liberal enablers."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.