Bay Area Youth Climate Protesters Brace for 4 More Years of Trump Resistance

Updated 3:21 p.m. Monday

Among dozens of teenagers who had taken over a corner of Mission Dolores Park on Monday morning, Aishani Garg, co-chair of the Bay Area Youth Climate Summit, painted sun rays on a mural that read, “Together we unite beyond Trump.”

The scene in San Francisco — where the teens painted posters, fastened colorful patches onto each others’ jackets and mingled in the sunshine — seemed far from President Trump’s Washington inaugural address, during which he promised to roll back the Green New Deal and other Biden administration climate policies.

But the 17-year-old Garg, who co-coordinated the Youth Climate Summit rally, said the demonstration was an act of resistance against the president, whose Inauguration Day coincided with Martin Luther King Jr. Day this year. The day felt “contradictory” to her and co-chair McKinley Greenberg, Garg said, but it also inspired them to foster a strong Bay Area youth community that can come together over the next four years.

“We kind of have to accept that Trump is president now, but we still have power in our own hands to create solidarity,” said Greenberg, 18. “You can already see it starting. Everyone’s meeting each other for the first time because this was all organized over Zoom, and it’s really cool to see everyone working together on some art.”

Roughly 75 teens traveled from all over the Bay Area to attend the rally, which featured youth poets, speakers and, of course, pizza. They chatted and exchanged phone numbers, connected over the other youth advocacy groups they were a part of, and marched around the park together, holding posters and chanting, “The people united will never be defeated.”

Zoe Seims, who also works with BAYCS, became involved with various local climate advocacy groups after a day many San Franciscans remember well — when the sky turned an ominous dark orange from wildfire smoke.

Seims, who was in eighth grade in September 2020, remembers that morning as a “wake-up call.”

“I felt like there were other people that were more knowledgeable and more motivated than I was that would contribute,” she told KQED. “I realized that after that day that I actually needed to be part of it, because if everyone has that mentality, then nothing’s going to happen.”

The November election left her fearful and frustrated, and made many youth activists feel somewhat hopeless, she said. Like most of the attendees at Monday’s event, Seims, 16, wasn’t eligible to vote in the last election.

She’s channeled her feelings into advocacy efforts, forming a club that teaches kids about carbon sequestration, the process of capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and joining the Say No to PFAS Movement, which advocates against the synthetic “forever chemicals” linked with severe health risks, and showing up to rallies like Monday’s.

“On day one, it does feel a little bit hopeless, but it’s also, I think [it’s] a time that could really bring out a lot of great movements, too,” she said.

Trump is expected to declare a “national energy emergency” on Monday that would reduce the red tape and regulations on U.S. energy companies. The move would repeal what his team has called the “electric vehicle mandate,” referring to policies President Biden passed promoting the transition from gas to electric cars. There is not currently any federal legislation that restricts gas-powered vehicles.

Like most Democrats and environmental activists, the young protesters expressed worry about Lee Zeldin, Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, who has been criticized for his ties to the U.S. oil industry and voting record rejecting most environmental legislation as a former member of Congress.

“It’s terrifying,” Garg said, considering the next four years. “We’re going to see a lot of the improvement and progress that we made during this past administration being rolled back, and it’s hard when you have so many people in power who are paid off or just don’t believe in the science that’s in front of you and don’t really pay attention to your futures.”

She hopes that in 2028, she’ll get to cast her first vote for a candidate that aligns with her climate values.

Jan. 20: A previous version of this story misattributed two quotes by Aishani Garg and McKinley Greenberg to the other. The story has been edited to correct the error.