The youth of Virginia are ready to turn up. They are ready to bring it squarely to the jaw of the fossil fuel polluters. I know this because 350 students showed up in Fredericksburg, Virginia in February for Virginia Power Shift 2015. They chose to spend their Valentine’s Day weekend rallying for Global Divestment Day & building a loving movement, and that is why I know we will win.
Looking back just 10 short months ago, when Virginia Power Shift 2014 drew in about 150 attendees. Or a little farther back to Virginia Power Shift 2011, which played host to fairly similar numbers as 2014. While correlation may not be causation, I’m going to declare that the Virginia youth climate movement is growing. It is growing fast. And if I made my money by intentionally dumping greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere, I would be shifting uncomfortably in my seat right now.
Virginia Power Shift was kicked off by an action in tune with Global Divestment Day meant to elevate the noise of the Divest UMW’s (University of Mary Washington) divestment campaign one week before they met with their Board of Visitors. Over 200 students marched across the campus cheering “Hey BOV, Listen to me, We want to be – fossil free!” and “Show me what democracy looks like,” before lining up to take a few aerial shots.
Later that evening, students were invited to participate in an open mic event facilitated by Good Clear Sound, an award winning slam poetry group from Virginia Commonwealth University. I never knew it was possible to feel that intimately connected with a room full of hundreds of strangers. Originally slated to end at 10 pm, the event ran until 11 pm as the flood of students eager to share their stories never relented to dry up. They shared really personal and inspired stories touching on issues such as gender identity, racial discrimination, sexual orientation and how their lives have been shaped. Music was performed, poetry was read, and laughs were had. It undeniably helped shape the weekend from a convergence into a genuinely inclusive community.
Saturday kicked off with a convergence wide training on systems of power and anti-oppression. No small task when you’ve got a room filled with more than 300 students!
(Thanks to our awesome facilitators who willingly chose to develop and facilitate an anti-oppression training for 300 people!)
The rest of the day was a blur of workshops, trainings, and panels on topics from fighting fracking to Black Lives Matter organizing, from food justice to direct action training to queer organizing in the south. The halls were buzzing with new ideas, friendships, and energy.
Saturday evening capped off with two standing-ovation drawing keynotes from Elise Keaton and Reverend Lennox Yearwood. Elise Keaton lives in West Virginia and has spent her life fighting mountain top removal mining and new fracked gas pipeline expansions. Reverend Yearwood is the founder of the Hip Hop Caucus to engage hip hop’s political and social voice. I won’t capture a fraction of their eloquence, and I don’t intend to not do justice to their words by trying to reiterate their keynote addresses. I can tell you both of them left the crowd on their feet screaming for more. At the end of their talks students were hugging, jumping, and cheering. The room was electric, the energy was tangible, and the students were ready to forge the future right then and there.
Sunday, we dug in. We took the energy and the knowledge gained over the weekend and funneled it into a strategic plan for the year. The Virginia Student Environmental Coalition is ready to jump into the next level of its organizing capacity, and after what happened in Fredericksburg I don’t think anyone would doubt the likelihood of that happening. Dominion, we’re coming for you.
