Why?

Why are kids striking, for a better future for us?

Why should we need to?

When it’s not our fault

When we go to school

We learn about the environment

And global warming

And how to stop it

But why?

You’re not out there in the streets

Trying and failing

To get someone

Anyone to listen to you

And do something

You’re at home warm and safe

Pretending that global warming isn’t your generations fault

That it’s ours or your ancestors

Anyone’s but yours

But it is your fault

So accept it

You say that we need to learn this

Because in 30 years or so you’ll be gone

So it’s up to us

And us kids need to save the planet

But why?

It wasn’t us who messed it all up

We are young and our eco footstep barely exists

Our parents make our big choices

We don’t choose what we buy

Or if we recycle it

That’s on you

You’ve been here for years

You’ve made your decisions

You’ve made ours for us too

You’ve lived your life

Not worried about the world that you live in

You lived freely knowing that you’d have a tomorrow

No one ever came to you to say

“Fix our problems or you’ll die”

You never thought about the impact of your actions

So why can’t we?

So why can’t we have our childhood

And not worry either?

Why can’t we be free from the fear

And go to sleep knowing that we’ll wake up tomorrow

With a world to live in?

If we wake up at all

50 years

That’s how long you’ve had

50 years

Scientists have long since outlined what you needed to do

50 years

That is how long 

You ignored the calling of the earth

13 years

That’s how long we’ve been here

13 years

And we’re actually trying to fix your mistakes

13 years

And we’re already out there striking for our future

13 years

And we’ve woken up to the calls of mother nature

Unlike you

You tell us to fix these mistakes

Before we pass into extinction

While you sit back pretending to care

But you don’t

You say that we need to take action to save the planet for our future

But why does it need saving in the first place?

Why?

You had the science and the solution

For decades and decades

But you were just too lazy to reach for it

And all these decades later we have to chase it down

Because your generation let it get away

We are the ones protesting

For a better future

We are trying to fix 

The mess of a future you left us

Why don’t we do a Greta?

Drop out of school

Just stop pretending that you care about our future

If you did you wouldn’t have let it get this far

We are young

And we are the ones out there

In the streets trying fruitlessly to get out of this mess

That you made

Maybe it should be us who are the political leaders

Swallow your dignity and get off your chair

And do something to help us instead of just pretending to care

You say

“Don’t strike, stay in school and keep learning

Because that’s the best way 

To help you save the future”

We say

“In what future?

The one that you ruined for us?

Thanks for the thought, but we’ll find our own one”

Because we are tired of your ‘attempts’

We’ve waited with our fingers crossed

That you’ll finally fix something

Anything

Why should it be us?

Us striking and protesting to fix the mess you made

You say that you are making steps in this mess

But you aren’t actually

Because steps leave footprints

After all this time you still believe that you did all you could

If you’re the adults, then why aren’t you taking actions

You may be the older ones

But we are the ones who are awake to the ruins of our future

So wake up

Wake up and come out the delusion that you love us

Love is helping us fabricate a future that we can live in

Love isn’t lying to us that you did all you could

You might believe your lies

And think that you did something for the greater good

And you’re half right

Because you did do something

You poisoned, polluted and stole our future

You ruined anything we could’ve held onto

Why?

Why are we scared to go to sleep?

It’s because we don’t know that we’ll wake up again

Why?

Why should we not fulfill our dreams?

Because we don’t want to bring a family into this world

Wake up from your delusion

Because you can’t truly love us

True love would be fighting alongside us

Even if you won’t be apart of the future with us

So if you all want to keep telling us to keep fighting

When you know that deep down that you aren’t fighting

Just know that when you’re gone and we’re alone here suffering from your mistakes

We aren’t going to miss you

Because why should we care about you

When you never cared about us?