It’s May The 4th in Australia, succeeded by May the 4th in the U.S., which is when most of the cool Star Wars day stuff gets posted online and to social media – but this year, we’ve been treated to a little something earlier – the…. *checks notes*…. Darth Vader respirator?
Here’s how the Darth Vader respirator has been pitched to me: “The ‘Smoke eVader’ is sized for children, aiming to shed light on climate-change-fuelled bushfires, integrating a P2 and A1 respirator to guard against smoke and ash,” the press release reads.
In any other situation, I would write this off as a tone-deaf yikes, but this thing is made to be controversial. The group behind it, a Melbourne-based activist organisation called Rouser, focuses on trying to get people talking about climate change.
“So many people feel frustrated that there’s not more they can do to drive climate action. But studies show the simple act of having a conversation about the need for urgent climate action makes a real difference. Talk About Climate Day exists to inform people and encourage them to have a conversation on May the Fourth and every other day,” Rouser’s creative director, Rob Beamish said.
Look, it beats defacing art, right?
No, look, I’ll humour Rouser a little here. It’s a creative use of Darth Vader’s iconic mask, which is canonically a respirator as the Sith lord has difficulty breathing, much like us when there are bushfires – which Australia has a lot of. It hasn’t been officially licenced by Disney, but it’s a pretty potent way of getting people thinking about climate change.
“Due to a lack of climate action, climate-change-fueled wildfires are getting worse and happening more often. Unfortunately, the World Health Organization has reported children are more susceptible to health impacts from inhaling smoke and ash from wildfires,” the official website for the Smoke eVader reads.
Rouser is doing this to support “Talk About Climate Day”, an initiative of its own creation to get people chatting about how the world is on f*cking fire.
The Smoke eVader is being auctioned for $1,950. Proceeds go towards supporting Rouser.