Dear Editor,
As I sit here and watch with dismay as the Amazon burns, and reflect on some of the other horrifying news of this time – Greenland lost 12.5 billion tonnes of ice in one day; micro-plastics discovered in “extreme” concentrations in the North Atlantic; nuclear monitoring stations went mysteriously quiet after the Russian missile facility explosion – I wonder, how did we get here and where is the urgency of our response?
There is little doubt that the news media has played a role in our diversion. No longer able to rely on annual subscriptions to fund their work, they resort to clickbait headlines that bring in ad revenue. That’s why the international mass media spent more time in one week covering the royal baby than it did in all of 2018 on climate change and all the other millions of babies that died from starvation and diseases during this decade.
But algorithms don’t lie – we’re taking in what they’re feeding us, and that is on us. So here we are, distracted by fashion trends, offers to shop online, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, videos and tweets. We were lulled into complacency while the Amazon was being clear-cut, while the gulf between rich and poor widens by the day, and as the world slowly tilts toward tyranny and the annihilation being committed against innocent people in different parts of the world, the most recent being in Kashmir.
We are facing a moment in time where we need a coordinated global effort to address a number of urgent issues. Yet the superpower of South America seems no longer interested or capable of playing a leadership role and the United Nations without America’s active participation is impotent.
But while governments around the world have ceded moral authority and leadership, it doesn’t mean we should give up hope. Ordinary citizens still have a voice, especially in the age of social media. Look no further than Greta Thunberg, Malala Yousafzai, Abby Martin, Rewan Al-Haddad of Avaaz and the kids from Parkland – all have demonstrated the tremendous power of the individual.
In recent days, I have seen a chorus of voices speak out against the destructive policies that are partially responsible for the fires consuming the Amazon. These voices, if loud enough, do have an impact on policymakers. Politicians will react to outrage by their constituents. We need a similar chorus of voices to speak out against other dangers we are facing, including climate change, inequality, unnecessary wars, etc. Activists in all these areas need to harness the growing disillusionment within their communities and organise targeted campaigns, much like the Inter-national Crisis Group, did with the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. The bells rang extremely loud enough that it forced policymakers to mobilise and helped prevent an even greater crisis.
It’s time we all start actively engaging in our future, as complacency comes at a cost none of us can afford. The ordinary indigenous Amazon Indians have raised their swords, bows and arrows, ready to defend the rainforest and their homeland with their last drop of blood.
I petition, the world is in crisis, don’t be a passive onlooker for the inferno that persist will consume the lives of millions of wildlife in the Amazon and cause humongous destruction to our ecosystem and life on Planet Earth.
Yours faithfully,
Nazar Mohamed
