![]() ![]() African American and low-income communities are disproportionately affected by air pollution in the United States. How are people of color disproportionately affected?Īnnually, the United States Oil and Gas Industry releases about 9 million tons of methane gas and other toxic chemicals into the atmosphere. This movement initially began in the late 1980s, when a report was published ( Toxic Waste and Race) that proved communities of color were subject to environmental degradation and dangerous pollution.Ģ. It also seeks to remedy the ills of environmental racism and to give everyone a liveable future. It rests on the principle that everyone has a right to a clean and healthy environment, and the environmental justice movement strives to attain that. The burdens of pollution, toxic waste, and poisoned resources are not distributed equally across society.Įnvironmental justice is a social justice movement that seeks to dismantle the flawed environmental policies that have long harmed low-income communities and communities of color, and instead pursue policy and development that work to create a sustainable, cooperative, and equitable future for the environment. The authorities in the United States, as well as the institutions in place, often treat areas that are home to minority residents as of less value than wealthy and predominantly white neighborhoods. This goes back to beliefs initially perpetuated by the institution of slavery when enslaved Africans were considered “disposable” because they were sent to work in conditions deemed too dangerous for white workers. Some activists call environmental racism the new Jim Crow as it subjects communities of color to inequitable living conditions. People of color are more likely to die of environmental causes, and more than half of the people who live close to hazardous waste are people of color. Communities of color are disproportionately victimized by environmental hazards and are far more likely to live in areas with heavy pollution. Environmental Justice and Environmental RacismĮnvironmental racism refers to the unequal access to a clean environment and basic environmental resources based on race. ![]()
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