I sat around this table listening at lawyers, policy makers, and scientists go on for what seemed like an eternity, about reducing emissions to 1.5. All you could hear were shouts of, “1.5!”.
On the previous day, during a presentation the presenter showed an image of a fossil fuel emitter. This picture had these three stacks that were billowing out toxic pollution.
Below these stacks, and under the cover of this toxic assault were these occupied homes. I screamed, “That [expletive] does not work in the communities I serve. Further, the people I serve don’t have time to think about 1.5 when they are dying of poison from pollution.”
I believe that we must put people back on the planet. We miss the black, brown, indigenous, and poor bodies that are dying, generation after generation, from toxic genocide. We seek to influence hearts and minds to care for the planet, while failing to inform those same hearts and minds that the families on the border, LGBTQIA, Black Lives, #METOO, and other groups seeking equity are also a part of the planet.
Environmentalist and Creation Care Advocates must contend with a co-opted history that is founded on inequity, elitism, and racism! In order to contend with this, you must make reparations to harmed groups in an equitable and just manner. Racism is economic. Reconciliation must also be in the form of economic and environmental equity. Damn your ‘sorry’! Show us some upward mobility!
Environmental Justice is the solution to Climate Change, there I said it! If we would help vulnerable communities fight for environmental equity and justice, we would stop pollution; if we stop pollution, we stop the emitters of the pollution; thus, we meet our scientifically stated deadline of 12 years. This is a courageous move on the part of the profiteers of the old system. Further, we will mobilize an army that will help us in the fight for our human rights of clean air, clean water, clean energy, and clean economy.
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