environmental racism, definition of

Racial discrimination takes many insidious forms. This term refers to a situation in which industrial operations, environmental policymaking, and the enforcement (or lack of enforcement) of environmental laws unfairly impact a particular race of people, either intentionally or unintentionally. Examples include the locating of hazardous waste landfills in minority communities, and the exclusion of minorities in environmental policy-making leadership.

• Comedian John Oliver addresses environmental racism
  TV personality and comedian John Oliver shared opinions on the emotive issue of environmental racism in the US. While delivering his weekly show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the host took a dive into the history of America and how environmental...
• How will Los Angeles' 2028 Olympics impact the environment?
  Hosting the Olympics is a huge honor for cities. At the same time, it's an expensive burden. As Los Angeles plans for its summer 2028 games, many people say the event will be neither as sustainable or equitable as city leaders have promised.[...]
• New environmental racism scorecard calls out ExxonMobil
  The grading period has ended, and it’s time to find out who got the high scores and who’s failing the class. According to a new environmental racism scorecard released by shareholder advocacy group As You Sow, ExxonMobil came in...
• New study reveals tree disparities across the US
  As anybody who has ever sat under a tree has noticed, these tall, leafy plants provide shade. But what about people who live in neighborhoods without a heat-blocking tree canopy? They're going to be a lot hotter and could possibly face worse health outcomes....
• Texas lawsuit fights environmental racism in highway expansion project
  Starting in the years after World War II, Black neighborhoods around the U.S. were destroyed and replaced with highways in the name of urban renewal. But people in Harris County, Texas have had enough. The county is suing the state to stop an I-45 expansion...
• Could a private car ban make NYC more livable?
  When COVID-19 brought New York City’s traffic to a shadow of itself, Vishaan Chakrabarti, former New York City urban-planning official and founder of Manhattan-based design firm Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU), drafted an ambitious plan...