Ahead of UNGA, thousands march against fossil fuels in NYC, cheered on by AOC from Biden's party

Just ahead of the United Nations General Assembly, thousands of climate activists marched on the streets of the host city of New York on Sunday (September 17) with an appeal against“fossil fuels”, as Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told the crowdthat the movement needs to become “too big and too radical to ignore”.

Amid cheers from the crowd, the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden was criticised by progressives from his own party for approval offossil fuel projects, the latest being the sanctioning of the controversial Willow project in Alaska.

“We are all here for one reason: to end fossil fuels around the planet,” said Ocasio-Cortez, while speaking at a rally at the end of the march when the protesters reached close to the UN headquarters, where world leaders are set to meet for UNGA this week.

“And the way we create urgency is to have people around the world in the streets,” she added.

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“The United States continues to be approving a record number of fossil fuel leases and we must send a message, right here today,” the minister said, further stating that despite record profits the support extended to the fossil fuel industry was “starting to buckle and crack.”

She stated that climate action needs a democratic restructuring of the country's economy. “What we’re not gonna do is go from oil barons to solar barons,” she stated.

Biggest climate march held in the US in last five years

The organisers estimated that around 50,000 and 75,000 people participated in the march in Manhattan and stated that it is likely to become the biggest climate march held in the US in the past five years.

“This is an incredible moment,” stated Jean Su of the Center for Biological Diversity, who worked towards organising the mobilisation.

“Tens of thousands of people are marching in the streets of New York because they want climate action, and they understand Biden’s expansion of fossil fuels is squandering our last chance to avoid climate catastrophe,” he added.

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She stated that the action has become the climate protest in the country since the start of the pandemic. “This also shows the tremendous grit and fight of the people, especially youth and communities living at the frontlines of fossil fuel violence, to fight back and demand change for the future they have every right to lead,” she stated.

The march was held ahead of a meeting of the world leaders in the UN general assembly this week and a UN climate ambition summit on Wednesday, which was described by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a “no-nonsense” conferenceaimed at highlighting new climate commitments.

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