Decompiling Oppression #28
It's a new day. If confirmed by the Senate, Rep. Deb Haaland will be not only the first Native American Secretary of the Interior; she will be the first Native American cabinet secretary in the history of the United States. If confirmed, Michael Regan will be the second African American Administrator of the EPA. Cabinet appointments are trickling out, so let's talk about climate justice!
Climate justice is an urgent, necessary re-imagining of what mainstream climate action should look like, beginning with centering the communities that not only stand to be most affected by future climate change, but who have been severely affected by environmental injustices in the past and present. This means going beyond superficial community outreach programs or focus groups -- it means sharing and ceding real decision making power to communities that are most impacted and the individuals they choose to represent them. In order to move forward together, acknowledgement and reckonings are necessary, affirming that many of these issues (residential pollution, etc.) did not rise to the top of historically white-led environmental groups.
The term “green ceiling” refers to a lack of opportunity for people of color employed in green fields, including foundations, nonprofits, and government agencies—currently only 16% of all people in the field. She writes that although “...[p]eople of color support environmental protection at a higher rate than whites[,]... environmental organizations are not adequately reaching out to organizations representing people of color.” (from Got Green and Puget Sound Sage, quoting Dr. Dorceta E. Taylor)
When we talk about past and present environmental injustices, the racialized geography of pollution is a stark example. While there are a multitude of factors (from other types of systemic racism) that contribute to lower life expectancies for communities of color, air pollution, proximity to industrial runoff, and other environmental considerations are contributors to this reality (for example, higher asthma rates and lower life expectancy in Seattle's Georgetown and South Park). The need to acknowledge these facts took a major step forward (under tragic circumstances) with the recent ruling in the UK (the first of its kind), naming air pollution as an official contributing cause of death. Flint is the most visible case for drinking water, but is far from the only instance, as research shows that communities of color are significantly more likely to be denied access to safe drinking water.
Displacement and gentrification are major considerations for climate justice work in Seattle, as climate-adjacent projects can accelerate displacement trends that have already begun through income inequality and other factors. For example, when we build light rail stations without adequately considering the impact on affordability of the surrounding neighborhood (or skip a neighborhood altogether), we're repeating the mistakes of past movements, which left behind communities without a seat at the table. Done without proper consideration, the new development can divide and scatter existing communities (which, as you may remember, have in many cases also experienced redlining and restrictive covenants).
Food insecurity is another intersection of climate and racial and class disparities. Having a sustainable food supply chain is a critical environmental goal, but if that means that some communities are left behind because they are priced out, or stranded in a food desert, it falls short of real justice. It's also important to remember the botched rollout of plastic straw bans, which left the disabled community behind.
If we take a step back, environmental justice is yet another instance where existing hierarchies (usually built, good intentions or not, on top of generational wealth and privilege) are failing, and need to be replaced by structures that empower and center voices "from the bottom" that have been excluded for so long.
Here are this week's invitations:
Personal: Spend some time reflecting on your own environmental practices, and what your view of "good" green practices are. Do any of these depend on wealth and geography? What would be needed to make them accessible to everyone?
Communal: When discussing climate challenges, think critically about what voices and perspectives are present, and which might be missing, and find ways to seek out and amplify those missing perspectives.
Solidarity: Support Got Green, a South Seattle-based grassroots organization for environmental, racial, and economic justice.