Our Land
Environmental Justice Communities
Caste intersects with everything, including environmental issues. Communities that have been historically discriminated against because of caste, whether it be racial, economic or ethnic, are exposed to a higher rate of environmental hazards within their communities than those assigned to privileged caste communities globally. According to The American Public Health Association these communities are referred to as “environmental justice communities.” These populations are comprised of “marginalized racial/ethnic, low-income/poor, rural, immigrant/refugee and indigenous populations that live in areas disproportionately burdened by environmental hazards, unhealthy land uses, psychosocial stressors, and historical traumas…”
People are getting into good trouble all over the world as it relates to environmental issues and their communities. Proceed through this lesson and perhaps you will want to join or create a movement!
Environmental Justice Communities
Caste intersects with everything, including environmental issues. Communities that have been historically discriminated against because of caste, whether it be racial, economic or ethnic, are exposed to a higher rate of environmental hazards within their communities than those assigned to privileged caste communities globally. According to The American Public Health Association these communities are referred to as “environmental justice communities”. These populations are comprised of “marginalized racial/ethnic, low-income/poor, rural, immigrant/refugee and indigenous populations that live in areas disproportionately burdened by environmental hazards, unhealthy land uses, psychosocial stressors, and historical traumas…”.
People are getting into good trouble all over the world as it relates to environmental issues and their communities. Proceed through this lesson and perhaps you will want to join or create a movement!
Residential Castes
Environmental racism and casteism produce factors that make vulnerable communities susceptible to poor health outcomes, comorbidities, food insecurity and displacement due to catastrophic climate events because of their close proximity to toxins and various hazardous materials found within their environment. According to the USDA’s Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2022, approximately 23% of African Americans within the United States had experienced the negative impact of food insecurity leaving one in three Black children without reliable access to food. This burden of malnutrition is closely linked to communities facing high rates of poverty and low income.
One example of environmental casteism is redlining, which segregates people into “residential castes” using discriminatory zoning practices and banking regulations. Redlining was legally banned under the 1968 Fair Housing Act, however the aftermath of these casteist policies and ideologies can still be experienced today. Restricted from living in resource-rich white neighborhoods before the act was banned, racial, ethnic and economically marginalized communities, were directed towards low-income and tenant housing located in industrialized areas within the urban landscape. Without the option of economic mobility or political influence, minorities and immigrants soon found themselves living in neighborhoods with a disproportionate number of polluting facilities, industrial waste sites and other environmental hazards.
Residential Castes
Environmental racism and casteism produce factors that make vulnerable communities susceptible to poor health outcomes, comorbidities, food insecurity and displacement due to catastrophic climate events because of their close proximity to toxins and various hazardous materials found within their environment. According to the USDA’s Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2022, approximately 23% of African Americans within the United States had experienced the negative impact of food insecurity leaving “1 in three Black children without reliable access to food. This burden of malnutrition is closely linked to communities facing high rates of poverty and low income.
One example of environmental casteism is redlining, which segregates people into “residential castes” using discriminatory zoning practices and banking regulations. Redlining was legally banned under the 1968 Fair Housing Act, however the aftermath of these casteist policies and ideologies can still be experienced today. Restricted from living in resource-rich white neighborhoods before the act was banned, racial, ethnic and economically marginalized communities, were directed towards low-income and tenant housing located in industrialized areas within the urban landscape. Without the option of economic mobility or political influence, minorities and immigrants soon found themselves living in neighborhoods with a disproportionate number of polluting facilities, industrial waste sites and other environmental hazards.
The Relationship Between Caste and Environmental Justice
According to the U.S. EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management’s 2020 report on populations residing near abandoned hazardous waste sites known as Superfunds, “Approximately 21 million people live within 1 mile of a Superfund site (roughly 6% of the U.S. population) while “approximately 73 million people live within 3 miles of a Superfund site (roughly 22% of the U.S.population.” Of the millions of residents within the United States living between one and three miles of identified contaminated (or formerly contaminated) sites, a disproportionate amount belong to racial or ethnic minority groups, are low-income earners or are linguistically isolated. Overexposure to hazardous chemicals in drinking water sources and airborne toxins caused by industrial emissions create an unhealthy environment for people living in the community.
According to the U.S. EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management’s 2020 report on populations residing near abandoned hazardous waste sites known as Superfunds, “Approximately 21 million people live within 1 mile of a Superfund site (roughly 6% of the U.S. population) while “approximately 73 million people live within 3 miles of a Superfund site (roughly 22% of the U.S.population.” Of the millions of residents within the United States living between one and three miles of identified contaminated (or formerly contaminated) sites, a disproportionate amount belong to racial or ethnic minority groups, are low-income earners or are linguistically isolated. Overexposure to hazardous chemicals in drinking water sources and airborne toxins caused by industrial emissions create an unhealthy environment for people living in the community.
St. John the Baptist Parish
The Gulf Coast of the United States is heavily populated with petrochemical industries, which include the production and refining of petroleum and natural gas. This concentration has led to disproportionately high rates of cancer and chronic illnesses in the area, earning it the nickname “Cancer Alley.” This 85-mile stretch along the lower Mississippi River in Louisiana is home to predominantly African American communities that have lived there for generations, dating back to the era of slavery.
A 2014 report, released in 2018, identified St. John the Baptist Parish as having the highest cancer risk rates in the United States due to exposure to chemicals like ethylene oxide, chloroprene, and formaldehyde from nearby petrochemical plants. According to the 2022 U.S. census, 59.3% of the parish’s population is Black.
Residents have filed lawsuits against the industry, seeking help from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Companies like Denka Performance Elastomers, which produces neoprene, and DuPont Specialty Products USA, located in the predominantly Black town of Reserve, Louisiana, were sued by both the EPA and the Department of Justice. The lawsuits claimed these companies posed “an imminent and substantial endangerment” to the health of St. John Parish residents.
Denka is accused of violating the Clean Air Act by emitting unsafe levels of chloroprene into surrounding communities. The plant is situated next to 5th Ward Elementary School, putting students at higher risk for cancer. Despite the health risks and deaths from chronic illnesses among residents, the EPA dropped its civil rights lawsuit in June 2023. This lawsuit had accused the Louisiana State Department of Environmental Quality and Department of Health of issuing permits for petrochemical plants near Black communities in St. John the Baptist and St. James parishes.
The situation in St. John the Baptist Parish highlights how redlining—a practice of denying services, typically financial, to residents of certain areas based on race—serves as a symptom of the American caste system. This systemic discrimination has dictated where people live and their health outcomes, disproportionately affecting Black communities by placing them in close proximity to harmful industries.
What does the climate crisis and climate justice look like in Europe?
What does the climate crisis and climate justice look like in Europe?
Lincoln Park and South Deering, Illinois
In Chicago, community members and city officials moved a major polluter from a mostly white neighborhood to a predominantly Latino and Black community on the Southeast side. This move allowed a six-billion-dollar mixed-use project to replace the polluter’s former site.
General Iron Metal, a scrap-metal recycling plant, started in Lincoln Park in the 1900s as a family business. Over time, it grew into a large industry with a poor environmental record, increasing health risks for nearby residents. Lincoln Park, a mainly white and affluent area, had long complained about the noise and odor from the scrapyard. Their concerns gained political support during an alderman’s campaign. With help from the University of Chicago’s School of Public Health, residents got air quality data proving hazardous emissions from General Iron. Their efforts led to the plant’s removal from Lincoln Park.
But this wasn’t good news for everyone. In 2018, General Iron announced it would move to South Deering, a mostly Latino and Black community on the Southeast side. South Deering, already burdened with industrial pollution along the Calumet River Corridor, organized to stop the move.
Southside activist Yesenia Chavez said, “White and wealthy neighborhoods get billion-dollar development. Do we not deserve the same? Are we of lesser value because we aren’t white and rich? Are our students not as worthy of the same resources?”
This situation underscores how environmental justice issues are intertwined with caste systems, perpetuating systemic inequalities and exposing marginalized communities to greater health risks.
Have you ever heard the term “Climate Migrant?”
Have you ever heard the term “Climate Migrant?”