20th Century Racism in the 21st Century
The Legacy of Racism in the Southern Region of the United States of America
D. Environmental Racism
"Race and ethnicity, not simply differences in income, are the
key indicators of whether a community is adversely affected by
environmental hazards. At all income levels, African American
children have higher lead contamination levels in their blood
than white children," according to the National Black Economic
and Environmental Justice Coordinating Committee. 20
"Wimberley; Ronald C. and Libby V. Morris, 1997, The Southem
Black Belt A National Perspective, Lexington, Kentucky; WA Rural
Studies. "These figures are gross underestimates as unemployment
statistics often do not count people in prisons and jails,
federal aid recipients, farm workers and those in the informal
economy.
"Population Reference Bureau, 2000.
"Ibid.
"On April 24,2000,16-year-old Antonio Reyes-Garcia, a Mexican
construction worker, plunged to his death while working on a
college dormitory building site in AJabama. The 16-year-old
should have been wearing a safety harness according to government
Investigators. Alabamas Child Labor Inspector said Reyes
employer tried to evade responsibility when first questioned
about the accident. ""Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in the
United States," pg. 93.
Environmental racism is another form of discrimination. Recent
government studies have shown that nationally there are more
hazardous and toxic waste facilities, landfills, chemical plants
and other polluting industries close to communities of color
causing elevated rates of cancer, lead poisoning, asthma, birth
defects and other serious health problems.2
With this correlation, it should come as no surprise that
government and industry have used the South as a national dumping
ground. The five most hazardous waste landfills nationwide are in
the South, according to Glenn Johnson, an expert on environmental
racism Johnson said Alabama is number one in the nation in terms
of the largest and most toxic landfill.
The Southern state of Louisiana has become known as the "cancer
alley" of the United States. Cancer alley refers to an area of
the state where 138 petrochemical and other industries are
clustered around predominantly African American communities. The
National Black Economic and Environmental Justice Coordinating
Committee reports that contamination from these industries have
established Louisiana as one of the most polluted states in the
country with nearly 200 million pounds of toxic chemicals
released in 1998.22
1.
7A11 of these incidents were reported by the press with the exception of the harassment of
Salvadorans in Mobile. This last incident was reported to CDR by the Catholic Church.
2.
'From "Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in the United States," pg. 141.
3. 'Intelligence Report, Winter, 1999. At one time the most prominent member of this group
was Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi.
 
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