A Bushfire Victim Has Dumped What’s Left Of Their Home Outside Parliament
"Morrison, your climate crisis destroyed my home".
A woman who lost her home to bushfires has thrown a massive “fuck you” at Scott Morrison by dumping the burnt remains of her house in front of Parliament.
And she’s making sure the politicians walking past know exactly how she feels, by spray painting “Morrison, your climate crisis destroyed my home” on a piece of corrugated iron in bright red letters.
Melinda Plesman criticised both sides of government but told the ABC she was particularly furious at the way Scott Morrison has handled the disaster, especially his offer of “thoughts and prayers“.
“I lost my house, I lost my way of life — my whole community has — and while that was happening, the PM said that he didn’t want us to talk about climate change, that this wasn’t the time,” she said.
Bushfire survivors join a Greenpeace protest outside Parliament House in Canberra #auspol @SBSNews pic.twitter.com/j5BHGNTLVS
— Brett Mason (@BrettMasonNews) December 1, 2019
“We weren’t allowed to mention climate change and then [Mr Morrison] said that he was praying for us.
“I got really upset and really angry because I just felt that we needed a hell of a lot more than that.
“I don’t want prayers, I don’t want glib comments about the cricket. I want something to be done and I want it to be done now.”
What was a legend! Real person, showing life reality to the Princesses on top of the hill. Can’t, “Thoughts and prayers” away this scene.
— Jan Wyatt (@Harried66) December 2, 2019
Not listening… pic.twitter.com/Vo4zHUbwd4
— LGBTI Rights (@RightsLGBTI) December 2, 2019
AUSTRALIA IS WAKING UP!
This is Cause & Effect.
Every day @ScottMorrisonMP lets slip by without acting on Climate Change will bring more destruction, more loss of life and more damage to the economy.#auspol— Harvey Mushman (@GreenCap13) December 1, 2019
Looks like the deniers have pulled their heads out of the sand long enough to keep lying about climate change.
— Jane Rayner (@janer98) December 2, 2019
Melinda’s home is one of 673 to be destroyed in the fires this year. For 38 years she shared it with her partner Dean Kennedy in Nymboida, a rural area south of Grafton in New South Wales.
Melinda dragged the charred remains of her home more than 900km to Canberra as part of a Greenpeace protest calling for climate action.
People have been loudly calling for the government to listen to experts, including scientists and former fire chiefs, who say the severe fires spreading across Australia’s east coast are linked to climate change
Morrison dodged questions for days, then finally responded by arguing Australia was actually “overachieving” on climate change.
Today, Melinda and Dean represent the brave survivors who have lost everything, and send a clear message to @ScottMorrisonMP that like those facing a terrifying bushfire, there is nowhere for him to hide. #bushfires #ClimateEmergency pic.twitter.com/mzs5B7HYi5
— Greenpeace Aus Pac (@GreenpeaceAP) December 1, 2019
Melinda said she wanted the government to set a price on carbon, phase out native forest logging, shift Australia towards renewables and stop mining coal.
Emergency services have faced more than 7000 fires so far this year.