Corporate greed has and will pollute Black communities.

John,

Thousands of dead fish and animals. Contaminated air, water and soil. The residents of East Palestine, Ohio, may face serious illness and future health issues caused by the derailment earlier this month of a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying toxic chemicals, including the cancer-causing vinyl chloride.1 In order to prevent the train from exploding, authorities burned the chemicals, creating a giant smoke cloud that shrouded the area.

This disaster was preventable. Railroad workers have been sounding the alarm on train corporations rolling back safety measures to maximize profits.2 At least three other train derailments have occurred since the one in East Palestine, including one outside of Detroit that also involved toxic chemicals.3,4

Given how frequently these dangerous trains run on tracks disproportionately built through Black communities, it’s only a matter of time before another derailment or accident triggers health and ecological disaster in a predominantly Black community. Tell Norfolk Southern to listen to its workers and implement safety measures!

TELL NORFOLK SOUTHERN TO PUT SAFETY OVER PROFITS!

Black communities are no stranger to what is happening in East Palestine. Norfolk Southern turned East Palestine into a sacrifice zone, an area concentrated with industrial activity, higher levels of pollution and an elevated risk for cancer.5 More than half of Black Americans live in the South, which has also become a hub for the nation's "sacrifice zones."6 Predominantly Black communities have more than double the estimated cancer risk as compared to predominantly white communities.7

On top of the threats of pollution and cancer, an estimated 25 million people live within a mile of a train route carrying explosive crude oil in the United States.8 This is concerning, particularly because an average of more than 1,700 derailments occur each year!9

Record profits mean cutting corners and compromising safety. Norfolk Southern saw a record profit of almost $5 billion at the end of 2022.10 That money was amassed through lobbying three presidential administrations for exemptions from safety requirements and killing a rule that would have required better braking systems on trains.11 Without these regulations, Norfolk Southern hoarded millions of dollars by neglecting maintenance of its trains and refusing to upgrade its braking system.12,13 Rather than invest in safer working conditions, Norfolk Southern bought back $10 billion of its own stocks and inflated its value for shareholders.14 

Record profits are stolen wages. Norfolk Southern, along with other major rail networks in North America, have built their empires through the exploitation of slave labor.15 Now these corporations understaff their trains while overworking their workers. They have ignored unionized railroad workers’ calls for safer working conditions, which drove them to threaten a strike towards the end of 2022.16 While President Biden imposed a contract to avoid a strike, workers are still organizing for safer working conditions, such as paid sick leave and hiring more staff.17

Corporate greed is a danger to workers, our planet and to us all. Join Color Of Change in demanding safer working conditions for railroad workers!

KEEP US SAFE, MAKE OUR TRAINS SAFER

Until Justice Is Real,

COC’s Corporate Accountability Team

References: 

  1. Li Cohen, “Thousands of dead fish and contamination in waterways: How the Ohio train derailment is affecting the environment,” CBS News, February 15, 2023, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388693?t=6&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt.
  2. Aaron Gordon, “‘32 Nasty:’ Rail Workers Say They Knew the Train That Derailed in East Palestine Was Dangerous,” Vice, Feburary 15, 2023, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388694?t=8&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  3. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388695?t=10&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  4. https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388696?t=12&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  5. Al Shaw and Lylla Younes, “The Most Detailed Map of Cancer-Causing Industrial Air Pollution in the U.S.,” ProPublica, March 15, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388697?t=14&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  6. Ken Ward Jr., “How Black Communities Become ‘Sacrifice Zones’ for Industrial Air Pollution,” ProPublica, December 21, 2021, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388698?t=16&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  7. Ibid.
  8. Amanda MacMillan and Nicole Greenfield, “Protect Your Community from ‘Bomb Trains’,” NRDC, May 11, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388699?t=18&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  9. Travis Schlepp and Nexstar Media Wire, “How often do trains derail? More than you think,” The Hill, June 28, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388700?t=20&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  10. “Norfolk Southern Reports Q4 and Full-year 2022 Results,” Norfolk Southern, January 25, 2023, http://act.colorofchange.org/go/388701?t=22&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  11. David Sirota, Julia Rock, Rebecca Burns, and Matthew Cunningham-Cook, “Rail Companies Blocked Safety Rules Before Ohio Derailment,” The Lever, February 8, 2023, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388702?t=24&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  12. Ibid.
  13. Ibid.
  14. Ibid.
  15. James Cox, “Rail networks own lines built with slave labor,” USA Today, February 21, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388703?t=26&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  16. Rachel Lerman, Lauren Kaori Gurley, Hamza Shaban, and Jaclyn Peiser, “What you need to know about the threat of a rail strike and Congress,” The Washington Post, November 30, 2022, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388704?t=28&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt. 
  17. “Rail and Labor News from RWU,” https://act.colorofchange.org/go/388705?t=30&akid=55574%2E4731121%2EVBFugt.