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Climate Strike, Haitian Migrants, & a Slackline Walk

People Around the World Strike for Climate Action

Today, students and others are taking part in a global climate strike. Ahead of an important United Nations climate meeting in October, called COP26, the strikers are hoping to encourage government leaders to take action, rather than just talk about the crisis. 

Climate Strikes
     The climate strike movement grew out of protests by Swedish teen Greta Thunberg. In 2018, Ms. Thunberg began protesting outside of Sweden’s parliament over the country’s lack of action on climate change. Soon the movement spread internationally.

There is “No Planet B” banner in the Philippines
Today, students and others are taking part in a global climate strike. The strikers are hoping to encourage government leaders to take action, rather than just talk about the climate crisis. Above, a climate strike banner in the Philippines last September.
(Source: ©AC Dimatatac, 350.org, via Flickr.com.)

In 2019, there were several massive global climate strikes, involving as many as 4 million people. When the coronavirus  hit, the climate strike movement was forced to take its protests online.

Now that there are fewer lockdowns, and people are able to gather, young people are striking again to bring attention to the crisis. The movement has taken on even greater importance as scientists have reported on the growing threats of climate change and how quickly things are getting worse.

Ms. Thunberg says that despite the pandemic, “…the climate crisis has not disappeared – it’s the opposite. It’s even more urgent now than it was before.”

Screenshot of Greta Thunberg from a video where she and other climate activists speak out before an October climate meeting in Milan.
The climate strike movement grew out of protests by Swedish teen Greta Thunberg. Ms. Thunberg says the climate crisis is “…even more urgent now than it was before.” Above, a screenshot from a recent video by Ms. Thunberg and other climate strikers.
(Source: Greta Thunberg, screenshot via Twitter.)
 

United States Sends Thousands of Migrants Back to Haiti

The United States has begun flying thousands of Haitian migrants gathered on the Texas border back to Haiti. The program has upset many people for many reasons.

Haitian Migrants
     Haiti is a poor country that has struggled with political troubles, illness, earthquakes, and other disasters in recent years. Tens of thousands have left the island nation, making the risky trip to Central America and South America, in search of a better life. In recent months, many thousands of these migrants have headed north, to the US.

By last Sunday, as many as 14,000 migrants, mainly from Haiti, were gathered near a bridge in Del Rio, Texas.

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In recent months, many thousands of migrants have headed north, to the US. By last Sunday, as many as 14,000 migrants, mainly from Haiti, were gathered near a bridge in Del Rio, Texas. Above, migrants crossing the Rio Grande river into the US.

Now the US has begun flying the migrants back to Haiti, sending up to six flights a day. US President Joe Biden’s government is using a rule created under Ex-President Donald Trump. This rule allows the government to return people to their countries without offering them a chance to ask for asylum.

Many people are upset that the US is returning poor people to Haiti, where the situation is terrible. Haiti says it can’t take care of these people and has asked the US to stop sending them back.

People were even more shocked and upset when they saw US officers riding on horses, roughly trying to control the people crossing into the US.

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Many people are upset that the US is returning people to Haiti, where the situation is terrible. Haiti says it can’t take care of these people and has asked the US to stop sending them back. Above, Haitian migrants at the Port au Prince airport after being returned.

US Ambassador Daniel Foote, who represented the US in Haiti, has stepped down, saying he doesn’t believe the US should be sending the migrants back.

Some people are pressuring Mr. Biden to give the migrants asylum instead of sending them back. So far, the US is sticking with its plan.  

Man Walks From Eiffel Tower Across River on a Slackline

People visiting Paris’s Eiffel Tower last Saturday saw an unusual performance – a man high in the air, walking across the River Seine on a slackline. A slackline is a strong, flat strap stretched between two points, allowing talented athletes to walk across it. Unlike a tightrope, the line remains loose, or “slack”.

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People visiting the Eiffel Tower last Saturday saw an unusual performance – a man high in the air, walking across the River Seine on a slackline. Nathan Paulin started from the Eiffel Tower and walked 656 yards (600 meters) across the river to the Chaillot Theater.

Nathan Paulin, who’s from France, started from the Eiffel Tower and walked across the river to the Chaillot Theater. That’s a distance of about 656 yards (600 meters).

Walking barefoot about 76 yards (70 meters) off the ground, Mr. Paulin made the trip in about a half an hour. For safety, he was attached to the slackline by a short rope. When he was tired, Mr. Paulin rested briefly by sitting or lying down on the slackline.

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Walking barefoot about 76 yards (70 meters) off the ground, Mr. Paulin made the trip in about a half an hour. For safety, he was attached to the slackline by a short rope. When he was tired, Mr. Paulin rested briefly by sitting or lying down on the slackline.

Mr. Paulin, 27, has earned several world records. He set one in 2017 with a similar, but slightly longer slackline walk, also starting from the Eiffel Tower.


Did You Know…?
As a child, Mr. Paulin was scared of heights.

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