19-Year-Old Indigenous Climate Activist Artemisa Xakriabá: "We Fight for Mother Earth"
by mail@democracynow.org (Democracy Now!) from Democracy Now! on (#4R027)
Friday's climate strike in New York City concluded with remarks from indigenous leaders, activists and organizers. Artemisa Xakriabi, a 19-year-old indigenous climate activist of the Xakriabi people, spoke about the increasing intensity of environmental destruction across Brazil and the interconnectedness of the fight for climate justice. "We fight for our Mother Earth because the fight for Mother Earth is the mother of all other fights," Xakriabi said. "We are fighting for your lives. We are fighting for our lives. We are fighting for our sacred territory. But we are being persecuted, threatened, murdered, only for protecting our own territories. We cannot accept one more drop of indigenous blood spilled."