1/ Sharon Lavigne lives in St. James Parish, Louisiana, a predominantly Black town with one of the highest cancer risk levels from air pollution in the US.
Years of pollution from nearby chemical plants has affected residents’ health — including hers. bit.ly/3dLQwpG
Years of pollution from nearby chemical plants has affected residents’ health — including hers. bit.ly/3dLQwpG
2/ After being diagnosed with pollution-linked autoimmune hepatitis and seeing neighbors die from other illnesses, she started RISE St. James, a faith-based environmental justice group that aims to prevent more industrial developments in their neighborhood.
3/ RISE St. James is trying to prevent the construction of a $9.4 billion plastic plant that could double the amount of toxic chemicals already in the area.
It’s just one example of how Black neighborhoods in the US have been fighting back against industrial pollution.
It’s just one example of how Black neighborhoods in the US have been fighting back against industrial pollution.
4/ Black people breathe 56% more pollution than they cause, compared to white people, who breathe 17% less pollution than they generate, a 2019 study found.
That’s because there’s an unequal amount of plants, pipelines, and landfills in majority-Black communities in the US.
That’s because there’s an unequal amount of plants, pipelines, and landfills in majority-Black communities in the US.
5/ Industrial pollution is “the new form of slavery,” says Lavigne.
Activists say it doesn't have to be this way. A stronger environmental policy could reverse the harm done to Black neighborhoods.
Read the full story from @rachjuramirez: bit.ly/3dLQwpG
Activists say it doesn't have to be this way. A stronger environmental policy could reverse the harm done to Black neighborhoods.
Read the full story from @rachjuramirez: bit.ly/3dLQwpG
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