Climate change and racism are both extremely important issues that urgently need to be addressed. However, climate change and racial justice are incredibly closely interlinked, so solving one must also involve solving the other.
Climate change and racism are both extremely important issues that urgently need to be addressed. However, climate change and racial justice are incredibly closely interlinked, so solving one must also involve solving the other. This is commonly known as ‘climate justice’, which defines climate change as not only an environmental issue, but also an ethical and political one. The injustice is where the effects of climate change will not be felt evenly across the globe, and the most affected will be those who have not contributed much to the crisis. For more on climate justice please see this blog here. Another common term used is ‘environmental racism’, where people of colour are disproportionately affected by the effects of climate change.
So, how is climate change connected to racism? Many studies have been carried out to see the links between the two, and the outcomes have shown that everything joins climate change, environmental justice, and racial justice together.
In light of the Black Lives Matter movement, studies in the US have found that areas with large proportions of people of colour are more likely to be polluted with toxic waste. Those disposing of their waste choose to pollute sites where there are high percentages of Black people. This leads to various health issues, including cancer, asthma and high blood pressure. Climate change simply reinforces this issue by trapping the air pollutants close to the ground.
Historically, Black people have faced oppression in times of climate hazards. For example, after the effects of Hurricane Katrina, funds to repair and restore communities were insubstantial as a result of a racially influenced government, causing Black neighbourhoods to be one of the worst impacted.
In the workplace, there is a limited number of Black people as scientists, trying to address climate change, showing how systemic racism and climate change are closely linked.
Looking to the future, many of the worst affected countries are countries where people of colour are a majority. In addition, they are also the countries who have contributed least to the climate crisis.
Climate change simply perpetuates existing inequalities, often involving race, in society. We cannot solve the climate crisis without tackling systemic racism.