M3.3 Environmental Justice Blog

According to one of the articles I read for this module, communities of color and poor communities are more often subjected to environmental hazards then their counterparts. It was sad to find out that our government allows this kind of treatment for disadvantaged communities. Environmental justice was not thought about until these kinds of things started occurring. In 1994, a law was finally put into place that would ensure that environmental justice was achieved through identifying and assessing disproportionately “high and adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs, policies, and activities”. This was a huge stride forward because it allowed more consideration for communities that were being taken advantage of. Currently, there still seems to be issues with environmental justice because I believe that people of lower socioeconomic status are put at higher risk to environmental hazards based on the areas in which they live. For example, unfortunately, in San Jose, the cheapest areas to live in are next to the freeway. People who live in these areas are exposed to all the pollution from the cars and trucks that drive by. In a study I read a while ago, I remember they found that children living in these areas were more likely to have respiratory problems such as asthma because of this. I think environmental injustice is still an issue currently and more needs to be done to resolve it. This fits into social determinants of health because health begins in our homes, schools, neighborhoods, etc. Therefore, if our neighborhoods aren’t protected, it makes it hard for people to stay healthy. This also connects to the “Black Lives Matter” movement because many times, they continue to be unjustly treated. This is not something that just started happening, this is something that has a very long history.