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The Injustice No One Talks About Enough
One of the YCJ Young Advisor's shares an impactful blog about the injustices that aren't spoken about enough, and the unfair impact of conflict zones and climate change on those who do not even contribute— children.
My world is normal. It is all about school, homework, sports, and trying to figure out how to be a good person. However, there is another world I cannot ignore, a world I discovered when I became a climate justice activist. I used to think climate change was just about weird weather and polar bears, but I learned it is really about fairness. It is the biggest injustice the world has ever seen, and the people paying the highest price are children. Children who had nothing to do with it. When we talk about climate justice, we have to talk about all the children who are suffering in every conflict zone around the world.
When I watch the news with my dad, the images I see are heartbreaking. While I am thinking about what I will have for lunch, there are children in war-torn places who have nothing at all. Famine is being used as a weapon of war, and it is a crime against humanity. Eating is a basic human right, yet it is being denied to millions of children. I try to imagine what it would be like to be hungry all the time, not knowing if you will even make it to tomorrow. It makes my heart ache.
War does not just steal food, but it steals children’s futures, too. Whole schools are being destroyed, teachers are being killed, and millions of kids cannot go to school anymore. UNICEF reports that in some regions, almost all schools have been damaged or destroyed, leaving countless children without the chance to learn. This is more than a tragedy. School is not just a place to study; it is where you feel safe, where you can play, and where you can dream. It is where you build your future. Without school, you are trapped in the past.
Children in conflict zones are also suffering from the impacts of climate change. Their lives are caught between fighting and extreme weather. They are twice as vulnerable as anyone else. They have to deal with drought, heatwaves, and floods on top of the violence around them. UN reports say that over 30% of the world’s population, about 2.5 billion people, live in places where climate change hits the hardest. We are all in the same boat, but some of us have life jackets and others do not.
I, like you, have been lucky. We should not feel guilty, but we must feel responsible. We, children of the world, need to stand up and make our voices heard. We have to say loudly that war, famine, and climate change are all connected, and children should not be made to suffer because of them. It is not logical that kids are starving while others waste food. It is not normal that children cannot go to school while we complain about our homework. We must stand together. Every small thing you do, every voice you add, counts. Share the stories of children in conflict zones. Ask your parents, your teachers, and other adults to do something. Demand justice, compassion, and help.
We cannot truly understand the suffering of these children, but we can try to feel a small part of it. I want to challenge you to fast for just one day. Skip a meal, or even all of them, just for a day. Think about what it would be like if you had no choice. Let that hunger be a reminder of what millions of children in conflict zones feel every single day. Let it be a call to action. Let it inspire you to do more, to speak louder, and to demand that this injustice ends.
Written by Guardian of Change.