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This Black History Month, LCV remembers that we are indebted to generations of Black activists whose courageous actions gave rise to the environmental justice movement over four decades ago. Their struggle for a better future for their communities continues to inspire and shape the environmental movement today. We are particularly indebted to the activists of Warren County, North Carolina, who in September 1982, organized a protest against an EPA decision establishing a landfill in their majority-Black community to hold toxic transformer oil that had been illegally produced and dumped on a roadside by the Ward Transformer Company. Notably, the oil contained cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls. The Warren County protests are widely credited as the beginning of the environmental justice movement that continues to this day. Tragically, environmental racism continues to persist in our society, and predominantly Black communities still face disproportionate harm from toxic pollution, climate-induced disasters, and public health crises. These are the same communities that our country has systematically disenfranchised and excluded from the democratic process — which underscores the inexorable links between climate action, environmental justice, and voting rights. 
Today, LCV activists, volunteers, and supporters like you are proud to work in partnership with environmental justice groups and to advocate for justice for all communities impacted by environmental racism. We firmly believe that no matter what one’s zip code, all people have a right to clean air, safe drinking water, access to open spaces, and a safe climate. Since 2018, we’ve worked with the Equitable and Just National Climate Platform and other partners to advance environmental justice priorities in federal and state climate policy. We continue to work to ensure that the climate, jobs, and justice investments in last year’s historic Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) flow to the most impacted Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and other communities of color. Right now, LCV and our supporters are fighting for strong new protections against soot and methane pollution. Studies have shown that communities of color are exposed to harmful gas leaks and soot pollution at higher rates than predominantly White communities, leading to a range of dangerous and unjust health outcomes including asthma and cancer. The EPA has proposed to strengthen soot standards that haven’t been reviewed in over a decade – and we need to submit at least 30,000 comments to make the new standards a reality. Can you take a moment to add your name? Thanks to the tireless advocacy of Black communities, along with the support of the environmental movement, progress is being made to root out environmental racism. But we must do far more. Help LCV continue to advocate for environmental and climate justice so that every community across the nation has access to clean air, clean water, and public spaces. Thank you for joining us in the fight for environmental justice. Onward, Gene Karpinski President League of Conservation Voters |
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