When a Furious Greta Thunberg 'Stared Down' Donald Trump with Anger on Camera

When environmental activist Greta Thunberg crossed paths with Donald Trump at a UN summit, she didn't seem too pleased to see the ex-commander-in-chief. In a video recorded by multiple outlets, the Swedish advocate was casually standing when her expression suddenly turned into disgust upon the arrival of Trump captured on cameras. 

Back in September 2019, Thunberg happened to be in the same room as Trump at the United Nations in New York to attend the meeting on religious freedom when she looked at him with a steady stare, one that spoke volumes about her feelings for the Republican front-runner, as per The Guardian. 

Her death stare prompted an immediate reaction on social media, one of them was from Julián Castro, the Democratic presidential contender, who tweeted the video and captioned, "I think a lot of us can relate." Although, not directly, she did aim at Trump and other leaders while addressing the UN summit, saying, "You are failing us," due to their slow-moving actions for the growing climate crisis. 

Thunberg, who started off as a teenage activist, said had she paid attention to Trump she'd have wasted her time. In an interview with BBC Radio's Today program, she said that she's unbothered by personal attacks and instead finds it funny. She also hoped that she'd love to go back to her normal life, per NBC News.

When the interviewer asked what she'd have said to the then-president, Thunberg responded, "Honestly, I don't think I would have said anything because obviously, he's not listening to scientists and experts, so why would he listen to me? So I probably wouldn't have said anything, I wouldn't have wasted my time." 

The former president has long criticized Thunberg's environmental efforts and in 2020 he criticized climate advocates at the World Economic Forum in Davos and called them "prophets of doom." At the event where the then-teen activist was a star guest, Trump dismissed "alarmists" who wanted to "control every aspect of our lives." 

Trump's views have always contradicted Thunberg's. He has called climate change "mythical", "nonexistent", or "an expensive hoax." The two locked horns on social media multiple times and surprisingly, in a tweet, Trump, who's infamous for his own inflamed persona, called out Thunberg for her "anger management issues." 

The presumptive Republican presidential nominee took a jibe at Thunberg who was declared TIME Magazine's Person of the Year for 2019. He retweeted producer Roma Downey's congratulatory message and captioned, "So ridiculous. Greta must work on her Anger Management problem, then go to a good old-fashioned movie with a friend! Chill Greta, Chill!" 

In response, Thunberg updated her X, formerly Twitter bio reflecting Trump's comments, "A teenager working on her anger management problem. Currently chilling and watching a good old-fashioned movie with a friend." His rival Joe Biden hit back, "What kind of president bullies a teenager? @realDonaldTrump, you could learn a few things from Greta on what it means to be a leader."