Laura Pulido: Environmental racism

Summary

The environmental justice movement highlights how marginalized communities, especially people of color, are disproportionately affected by environmental harms such as pollution and lack of access to resources. Emerging in the 1980s from cases like Warren County, NC, where a toxic waste dump was placed in a Black community, it critiques mainstream environmentalism for ignoring urban issues and focusing on wilderness. The movement advocates for redefining environmentalism to address everyday environments and challenges the use of science by corporations and governments. It has inspired global movements and expanded into areas like climate, food, and energy justice.

Takeaways

• 😀 Environmental racism refers to the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on communities of color, including pollution, hazardous land uses, and lack of access to environmental benefits.
• 😀 The term 'environmental racism' was coined in the 1980s, inspired by the case in Warren County, North Carolina, where a toxic waste site was placed in a predominantly Black community.
• 😀 The environmental justice movement arose from the recognition of environmental racism, aiming to address these environmental inequalities affecting marginalized communities.
• 😀 Environmental justice is broader than environmental racism, encompassing issues related to race, ethnicity, economic status, and other forms of inequality in environmental policies.
• 😀 The movement critiqued mainstream environmental organizations for focusing on wilderness and neglecting urban and working-class communities' environmental concerns.
• 😀 A core principle of the environmental justice movement is that marginalized communities should speak for themselves, rather than having their needs addressed by more privileged groups.
• 😀 Activists in the environmental justice movement challenged the role of mainstream science, which they saw as complicit in reinforcing environmental harm and inequalities.
• 😀 The movement encouraged the development of independent, community-driven science to better advocate for affected communities and challenge official narratives.
• 😀 Environmental justice emphasized the importance of everyday environmental issues like air quality, water quality, and the environment of workplaces and schools, rather than just focusing on pristine wilderness.
• 😀 The environmental justice movement has had a global impact, inspiring similar struggles around the world, such as the Chipko movement in India and other local environmental struggles for resource protection.
• 😀 The concept of environmental justice has expanded into related areas, including climate justice, food justice, and energy justice, applying the idea of justice to various environmental public health concerns.

Q & A

What is the concept of environmental racism?

Environmental racism refers to the disproportionate impact of environmental issues, such as pollution and hazardous land uses, on people of color. It also includes reduced access to environmental benefits like parks and clean air.

How did the term 'environmental racism' originate?

The term was coined in the early 1980s in response to a case in Warren County, North Carolina, where a community, predominantly African American, mobilized against the dumping of PVC-tainted soil in their area. This event connected civil rights activism with environmental issues.

What historical context does environmental racism emerge from?

Environmental racism emerged as a response to longstanding issues where poor and minority communities, especially communities of color, have borne the brunt of industrial pollution and environmental hazards, a pattern that has been prevalent for many years.

How is the term 'environmental justice' different from environmental racism?

Environmental justice refers to the broader movement that addresses environmental inequities along various lines, such as race, ethnicity, economic status, and other forms of inequality, while environmental racism specifically focuses on racial disparities in environmental harm.

What movements contributed to the development of environmental justice?

The environmental justice movement was shaped by two major strands: the anti-toxic movement, which mobilized communities against toxic pollution, and the civil rights-based activism addressing racial inequities in environmental issues.

How did the environmental justice movement challenge mainstream environmental organizations?

The environmental justice movement critiqued mainstream environmental organizations for focusing too much on wilderness preservation and not addressing issues like urban pollution and the environmental struggles faced by working-class and communities of color.

What role did science play in the environmental justice movement?

The environmental justice movement challenged mainstream science, particularly how scientific findings were often used by the state and corporations to marginalize vulnerable communities. Activists began producing their own scientific research to highlight environmental injustices.

What is the significance of the environmental justice movement redefining environmentalism?

The movement redefined environmentalism by emphasizing the importance of everyday environments, such as where people live, work, and play, rather than just focusing on remote wilderness areas. This shift brought attention to the environmental concerns of marginalized communities.

How has the concept of environmental justice spread globally?

Environmental justice has gained traction worldwide, inspiring movements in other countries. For example, the Chipko movement in India, where poor women defended forests from logging, aligns with the principles of environmental justice, though it was not initially labeled as such.

What other forms of justice have emerged from the environmental justice movement?

The environmental justice movement has led to the development of other forms of justice, such as climate justice, food justice, and energy justice, which apply the concept of justice to various environmental and public health concerns.