AS the rain began to batter down and protesters clad in waterproofs started to make their way to join the climate march in Glasgow city centre, I heard one woman tell her child “some things are worth marching for”.
And that sentiment was clear throughout the day – there was an energy, a buzz in the air. People were demanding change on a scale governments aren’t quite ready for.
This march wasn’t just about the climate crisis and climate justice, activists were calling for social justice and a complete upheaval of the world systems that currently govern us.
It could have happened anywhere, but it was a beautiful sight to see in Glasgow. It is a city with revolution at its heart, after all.
Despite being drenched before we even set off from Queen’s Park in the Southside, the hundreds I joined to walk to George Square to meet the main march were in good spirits.
READ MORE: Marchers from around the globe join Glasgow marches to have their say
I saw galvanised young children grab the megaphone calling for “climate justice now”, and a young lad who defiantly held a sign which read “Boris Johnson is a jobby”.
The kids are most certainly alright.
By the time we made it to George Square, the party atmosphere was in full swing, with independence supporters blaring the Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond through a speaker, drawing in the crowd as we waited for the main march to arrive.
There was almost a moment of tension when three men carrying a banner which said “SNP: Killing Scotland” tried to disrupt the Yessers singing and dancing.
One had dressed as the grim reaper and wore a Nicola Sturgeon mask.
They were quickly given the boot and booed away. They barely lasted two minutes. They probably should have read the room.
There were Boris Johnson impersonators who jokingly claimed not to worry, he has it all in hand.
And it wasn’t just Glaswegians – one activist told me she had come from Loch Ard because she couldn’t bear to miss it, and the international presence brought by COP26 was felt vividly.
When the march did arrive, it was hard to believe the scale of it.
You couldn’t even see the end as a huge police line arrived outside of Queen Street station, with activists being led along by a van blaring reggae music.
READ MORE: COP26 RECAP: All the news as independence and climate protests take over Glasgow
Indigenous people led the march behind a tight line of police officers. They are at the forefront of the effects of climate change, so it was only right that they were given centre stage.
Extinction Rebellion’s Red Brigade made an appearance too, gliding out from the crowd in front of the police line. It was a strange experience to see them in person, somewhat otherworldly as they silently stepped out of the crowd.
I stopped at High Street and climbed on a wall to try to get a real sense of the scale of it.
It felt never-ending but it was a truly awesome sight to see.
Saltires and Yes banners flew among flags from all over the world, amid placards calling for justice and real systemic change.
Children and older people cheered and called for “people power”, while others whooped and danced their way to Glasgow Green.
By the time we had made it to the park in the East End of the city, you couldn’t see the end of the march ... it just kept going.
One woman, draped in a Saltire and Yes badges, told me it was
“brilliant” and there were “still miles to come” as we stood and watched thousands descend on the small stage set up in the back of a truck.
This has to be the biggest protest Glasgow has ever seen, and that’s saying something.
This was a historic moment and world leaders need to listen – things can’t just go back to the way they were.
The climate crisis permeates every issue that society is struggling with at the moment, and finally that fact seems to have punctured the public consciousness.
Seeing Yes supporters out in the droves confirmed what I’ve been thinking for a long time. These issues are one and the same.
READ MORE: Scottish independence activists hail 'fantastic' march across Glasgow
We can’t depend on Westminster to save us, it won’t be long after COP26 that they finally sign off on the controversial Cambo oil field off the coast of Shetland.
When indyref2 comes, and it will, we need to build on this energy. We need to listen to our young people who have taken to the streets over the past week to call out the hypocrisy of our world leaders, and work towards a future where social and climate justice are actually achieved.
The Tories aren’t going to do it, it’s up to us.
Our young people and our planet are depending on us, we can’t go back to business as usual.
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