Thousands 'March for Science' on Earth Day with the smartest and funniest protest signs

Bearing protest signs and many wearing lab coats, thousands of scientists from around the US began gathering here to express their objections to the cutbacks in scientific research proposed by President Donald Trump. Trump’s budget for Nasa curtailed the role of the space agency in climate science . The protest on Saturday, dubbed the March for Science and coinciding with Earth Day, was held in more than 600 cities around the world, but all eyes are on Washington, where the organisers hoped to attract as many as 75,000 people, Efe news reported.

The first scientists started arriving around 8:00 AM (local time) at the Washington Monument, looking toward the South Lawn of the White House, from where the protest was to set out at 2:00 PM down the National Mall and wind up in the streets around Congress. While hundreds of people were lining up to join the march, dozens of volunteers were handing out signs with the official slogan of the protest: “Science, not Silence”.

At least this one is funny. #MarchForScience pic.twitter.com/h0kJBVALty

— Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) April 23, 2017

The march saw participation from scientists, but also people from all educational background who supported the role that science plays in daily life. The signs used by the protesters referenced recent developments, trends and news stories. The questions over the effectiveness of vaccinations, denial that humans have contributed to the changes in the climate of the planet, the idea that the Earth is in fact flat, and the re-branding of fake news as “alternative facts” were all protested with hilarious placards.

Some of the signs used the language likely to be used by Trump himself. The jargon from various specialised pursuits escaped from obscure scientific journals and occupied the signs of the protests. The language conventionally used for exploring statements of logic, writing code for computer programs, equations and notations used in chemistry, were all seen side by side.

Beaker, a lab assistant from The Muppets Show was adopted as a mascot or icon for the march. The marchers have described the movement as a “resistance”, to fight an increasing trend of depending on opinions and feelings instead of scientific evidence when evaluating new information. The marchers wanted to make sure that the state integrates a scientific approach in the governance, and was a protest against the government making moral and political decisions on behalf of the population.

Climate science was one of the main point of contention, as the policies taken by Trump so far are likely to adversely affect the planet. One of the slogans commonly used in the march was “There is no Planet B.” The slogan indicates that all humans have only one planet to live on at present, and that the decisions taken by those in power affects everyone on the planet. The marchers protested against Trump plans to use “clean coal” as an alternative source of energy, which he presented while signing an executive order that rolled back regulations introduced by the Obama Government to encourage responsible use of energy, and restrict the contribution of human activities to global warming.

The organisers had insisted that the march should not be an anti-Trump event but rather a reminder of the important role science should play in society and in the political debate so that those in power can take sensible decisions based on “facts” and not “alternative facts”.

Marchers held signs with slogans that read — “Science should be shared not censored”, “Rise up before the waters do”, “Dinosaurs didn’t believe in climate change either”, “stop the war on facts”, “Denial is not a policy”, and “we’re not just resistors, we are transformers”. Other US cities like New York and Chicago also rolled out events in support of the March for Science.

The March for Science is just the start of a weeklong program planned by the organisers, to increase the importance of science in the daily life of people around the world. Over the course of the “ Week of Action ”, every day is dedicated to explaining better the reason for the march, and exploring and advocating various issues related to science. Government officials, educational institutions and citizen bodies around the world have been roped in to support the efforts during the Week of Action.

The organisers have split the movement into cells or “satellites” all around the world. The main march in Washington was supported by people carrying placards all around the world, including the North Pole. There are two local chapters in India. One is located in Hyderabad in Telangana, and another is located in Coimbatore, in Tamil Nadu. Users can register as members to the local satellites, or provide them with funding directly. There is also a global merchandise store for the march, with apparel that sport the slogans “there is no Planet B”, and “Science, not Silence.”

One of the main aims of the march is to enable scientists to play a greater role in policy and governance. There is also an effort to increase the engagement of scientists with the general public. Science by children, citizen scientists, and protecting the environment are some of the issues that are going to be explored over the course of the week of action.

At the end of the week, on Saturday, 29 April, there is another march planned, known as the People’s Climate March.

With inputs from IANS