“And we proudly stand up and tell you to ‘Keep it in the ground,” protesters sang out during a U.S.-sponsored event pushing fossil fuels at the UN climate summit in Bonn, Germany on Monday.(Photo: Twitter/@SustainUS)
Protesters interrupted an event sponsored by the U.S. climate delegation at the UN climate summit in Bonn, Germany on Monday with a repackaged version of the song “God Bless the U.S.A.” before staging a mass walkout.
Decried for its “absurd” attempt to push fossil fuels as a solution to the climate crisis, the event was one of only a few officially sponsored by the Trump administration’s team during the talks.
The scene was captured on video by Axios correspondent Amy Harder:
Protesters have been singing for few minutes, to the tune of “Proud to be an America.” At Trump’s event @COP23 #COP23 pic.twitter.com/QM9PkVhZoT
— Amy Harder (@AmyAHarder) November 13, 2017
So you claim to be an American
But we see right through your greed;
It’s killing across the world
for that coal money.
And we proudly stand up and tell you to
‘Keep it in the ground.’
The people of the world unite…
and we are here to say — [repeat]
Soon after the protest, the room was left nearly empty as many in attendance walked out:
Following lengthy protest, the room is now basically empty other than press and few White House guests in front row pic.twitter.com/aYuUKLk2XL
— Leo Hickman (@LeoHickman) November 13, 2017
John Fleming, a climate scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, was among those saying it was ridiculous for the Trump administration to be openly pushing coal and other dirty fuels at the conference.
“It’s patently absurd to suggest that coal has any role to play in solving the climate crisis,” Fleming said in a statement. “Coal reserves dwarf the remaining carbon budget for staying under 2 degrees Celsius, let alone 1.5 degrees. Further use of coal is a death sentence for the planet.”
He concluded, “At a time when renewable energy is becoming cheaper and even China and India are shifting more of their focus toward renewables, the panel’s rhetoric was baseless and destructive.”
