Race and Environmental Issues

This is different from what we usually post, but is relevant and important, especially in the current political climate. Environmental activism is political in itself, and it's no use to fight for one cause while neglecting others directly affected.

Environmental issues are tied to racial issues because communities of color in the United States suffer the effects of pollution and climate change much worse than white ones do.

Black and Latino communities are disproportionately exposed to air pollution than what they personally produce through using vehicles and electricity. This is due to redlined neighborhoods often being near fracking sites and factories. White Americans, on the other hand, experience better air quality than the national average, despite them polluting more.

The health problems caused by living in these polluted areas has contributed to higher COVID-19 mortality rates for people of color (POC), as well as systemic racism leaving them with the fewest medical resources.

It is important for environmental activists to take black, indigenous, and Latino lives into account in their work, as well as fighting for more representation of those communities in their organizations.

Some ways to help are to attend Black Lives Matter protests, post about racial issues on social media, donate to environmental organizations with black/indigenous/Latino representation and racial justice groups, vote for politicians who support environmental action and racial justice, and continue to inform yourself through articles and documentaries from reliable sources.

Click these links to read more about the environmental impact on POC communities:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/06/05/climate/racism-climate-change-reading-list.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2020/06/29/climate-change-racism/

https://e360.yale.edu/features/unequal-impact-the-deep-links-between-inequality-and-climate-change

Some racial justice organizations to donate to:

https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/support-us

https://advancementproject.org/donate/

https://www.naacp.org/donate/

https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ddsignup

https://secure.eifoundation.org/site/Donation2?df_id=6082&mfc_pref=T&6082.donation=form1&s_src=kyrcmain&utm_source=kyrcmain

https://act.thedreamcorps.org/donate/donate/

https://giving.uchicago.edu/site/Donation2?df_id=1714&mfc_pref=T&1714.donation=form1

https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ms_blm_homepage_2019

https://www.ncbcp.org/donate/

http://www.livefreeusa.org/ourcalling

https://support.eji.org/give/153413/#!/donation/checkout

Stay healthy and thanks for reading!