After bombs and shots rang through Paris, the deaths of 130 people shook the world awake once again to the violence that has been gripping Syria and neighbouring countries, resulting in another rise of racist attacks here in Canada and abroad. As refugees seek sanctuary, the global community has responded to the attacks with fear, closing borders and committing hate crimes, supposing that refugees are somehow responsible for the state of violence from whence they flee.

Here in Canada, a mosque was lit on fire, a Muslim woman was attacked and called a terrorist, a student was spat on. These hate crimes are those that have hit the mainstream news, not those that have been quietly swept under the rug. Abroad, Belgium continues to have military roaming the streets and searching houses in a state of emergency.

The climate movement has had its eyes on Paris for months, in preparation for the United Nations global climate talks, and was planning the largest climate mobilization that the world has seen. Now, France has declared a state of emergency, which led to authorities ruling the planned Nov. 29 march in Paris “unauthorized.” Many who had planned on attending the UN talks, especially from the global south, will not be able to get visas. This means that the voices of those most affected by climate change are partially silenced, when this is the time that they most need to be heard.

In recent days I have been sleepless, wondering what interests are being served in these wars. Rereading Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine, I came upon these lines: “In moments of crisis, people are willing to hand over a great deal of power to anyone who claims to have a magic cure—whether the crisis is a financial meltdown or . . . a terrorist attack.”

The hundreds of thousands who planned to flood Paris streets to demand action on climate change that is threatening biodiversity and human life on this planet are now “unauthorized” because of the concern that they will not be safe. Organizers in Paris plan to leave empty shoes and art projects throughout the city, in a silent demonstration of the need for climate action and peace, asking communities around the world to march for those who have been silenced.

As we look into the future, climate experts tell us that the world will continue to become more destabilized, resulting in continued resource wars. There are numerous papers on the lack of water and the ways in which water distribution has fueled the war zone in Syria. Though water is far from being the largest contributing factor in this narrative, researchers have noted the ways in which climate change is a threat multiplier, and will continue to exacerbate problems and destabilize regions.

In the year 2013 alone, 22 million people were displaced, millions made permanent refugees due to natural hazards exacerbated by climate change. From drought to extreme storms, the global climate is reaching a tipping point that will ruin lives. The global 2 C limit of warming that has been discussed (and is currently far from actuality in negotiations) firmly ignores the island nations that will lose their communities to sea level rise beyond 1.5 C, and the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predictions set warming to reach 3.7 to 4.8 C, well past a livable climate.

As Canada takes a step forward with a new Liberal government, and a new climate policy from Alberta’s NDP premier, we will be marching to demand that this country uses its privilege to step up and into the clean energy age, for a peaceful future. It is morally imperative that we refuse the current dialogue of fear, and step into our power to create change. Millions of humans and billions of other life forms are relying upon us to change our ways and speak up about climate catastrophe. As Klein writes, “The only prospect that threatens the booming disaster economy on which so much wealth depends — from weapons to oil to engineering to surveillance to patented drugs — is the possibility of achieving some measure of climatic stability and geopolitical peace.”

Now is not the time to be silent. It is a crucial time to stand in solidarity with those most impacted by the choices that politicians make: the oppressed, including women, racialized peoples, those in impoverished countries. Join us on Nov. 29, as the global community demands peace and mobilizes for climate justice.