Climate change is also a problem of racial justice
By: Tabitha Whiting
Tags: Social Justice, Environment, Environmental Issues, Climate Change, Racism

Climate change is also a problem of racial justice

Tackling the climate crisis means tackling racial injustice- why every climate activist should be backing Black Lives Matter

Photo credit: Unsplash.

On the surface, climate change and racism may seem like significant, but very separate, issues. But you don’t have to dig very deep to start seeing the connections between the two.

This has always been the case, so I’m wary of suggesting that now is a good time to ‘start’ talking about these connections. However, there has certainly been increased attention on and awareness about racism following George Floyd’s tragic death at the hands of police in Minneapolis, and the Black Lives Matter protests which erupted worldwide following his death. And it’s important that we extend that conversation to all corners — including environmental justice and climate activism.

At the very heart of it, climate change and racism are caused by the same broken system. A system that centres on exploitation to drive the economy.

With climate change, that means exploiting the natural world. Extracting natural resources, the oil and natural gas trapped in the earth’s layers, and using it to generate profit by producing fuel and energy with little care for what this means for the ecosystem or for the future of humanity.

It’s the same with animal agriculture and factory farming, exploiting the lives of the living creatures who share this planet with us in the cruellest in ways, in order to further our own power — and adding to greenhouse gas emissions whilst we do it, without a care in the world or any intention to stop.

With racism, it’s about exploiting people. Africa was seen as a resource for colonial expansion, with the slave trade providing free labour in the form of people who were viewed as expendable. The slave trade may have (officially) come to an end, but powerful people still don’t want to stop exploiting people of colour for their own benefit. And racism perpetuates and protects that system, encouraging us to view people of colour (or non-white non-wealthy people in general) to be lesser citizens and to feel that exploiting them is ok.

It’s a system that was never designed to be fair, just, or equitable. It was designed for powerful, rich people to exploit other people and the world’s resources in order to add to their existing wealth and deepen society’s divides for their own benefit.

As long as this system exists, we’ll continue to see the exploitation of people and the planet for the material gain of certain groups of people. It’s why we see police violence against black people. It’s why COVID-19 has hit black and working-class communities the hardest. It’s why the direct impacts of climate change will take a higher toll on these communities too, and not those in the wealthy minority who lie at the root cause of the problem but can afford to protect themselves.

This isn’t just conjecture, as I know many would claim. There’s a growing base of research which shows that people of colour are already the most affected by the impacts of climate change. Particularly pertinent is the impact of air pollution, which studies show is affecting low-income, non-white households the most because they live in predominantly urban areas, in older and less efficient housing, and are already vulnerable to health issues.

This air pollution is now impacting pregnant women in these groups, causing premature, underweight, or stillborn children. Not only does is this a result of the system which underpins our society and economy, but it’s adding to that system of inequality, effectively making it more difficult for black, low-income families to reproduce successfully.

Another example is the direct impact of extreme weather events, made more prevalent by climate change. Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans in 2005. As ever, those already vulnerable were hit the hardest, in this case the elderly, black people, and low-income families. They were less able to evacuate in time because many did not own a car. They were most likely to die. They were left homeless with nowhere to go, no second home or family in another state to rely on. They were the faces shown on television as criminals looting local stores or stealing abandoned cars as they fought to survive. They didn’t have the money to rebuild their lives and didn’t have any support from the state to do so, and so their poverty deepened. It’s a dangerous cycle.

And this is why all climate activists must also be race activists.

“Racial justice is climate justice. That means police reform is climate policy.” - Emily Atkin, climate journalist

To truly expel racism from our society and to tackle the climate crisis, we need to see the transition to a fair and clean economy.

Models for this exist. Kate Raworth’s ‘doughnut economics’ model, for instance, which has clear boundaries in terms of maintaining the health of the planet and the social foundations which protect all people.

So what can we do? Ultimately it all comes down to whether we can affect change at the level of the system.

It’s been good to see companies coming out with statements of support for Black Lives Matter during this time of protests, but this doesn’t really do anything in the long-term, especially if it’s just a one-off statement with no further action.

What we need is these companies, and individuals to insist that racist and unequal laws and institutions are left behind. What we need is to change the system to one which is not based on exploitation.

And we need climate solutions which mirror this, which are community-led and aim to benefit people as well as the environment. Solutions like community energy, for instance. It can’t just be about rich people installing solar panels on the roof of their house(s) and being able to profit from selling their solar energy. We need renewable energy installations which are developed by and owned by the community, with profit coming directly back to that community — a local, and fair energy system.

On an individual level, you can help by supporting those who are working on this agenda. Use your vote. Write to your local councillor and MP, and encourage others to do so too. Support your local community energy organisations. Support charities and organisations working to change the system, like Climate Justice Alliance, a coalition of organisations addressing racial and economic inequities together with climate change. Donate, volunteer your time, or just raise awareness by sharing on your social media or bringing it up in conversation.

It may be large, widespread change that we need to see, but we all have a part to play.