ELON — Climate change is a race issue, a money issue and a child health issue.
Dr. Robert Bullard, known as the “father of environmental justice,” spoke about inequality and climate change Tuesday night at Elon University to a crowd of about 200 — a mix of students and community members.
Bullard is distinguished professor of urban planning and environmental policy at Texas Southern University. He has written 18 books on environmental issues, and in 2008, Newsweek named him one of 13 Environmental Leaders of the Century. The same year, Co-op America honored him with its Building Economic Alternatives Award.
On Tuesday night, he presented multiple maps and charts, showing that poor people — specifically, poor African-Americans — are more likely to suffer from the effects of climate change than others.
People of color breathe 38 percent more polluted air than whites. African-American households, even at a middle income level, are more likely to live in polluted areas than white households at a low income level. African-Americans are 52 percent more likely to live in urban heat islands, which are 5 to 10 degrees hotter than areas with abundant grass and trees that provide shade, than are whites.
The neighborhoods surrounding coal plants and refineries are often African-American neighborhoods, where parks and schools are placed near polluting factories that cause high numbers of children to have asthma, and this is happening in mostly Southern states where governors don’t believe in climate change.
Bullard says it’s past time to do something.
“We have to address this in policy, in programs. We can’t just stick our heads in the sand and say, ‘Uh, well, it will go away’ or ‘It’s over there. Let them take care of it.’ We’re all in this together. We have how many Earths? Last time I counted: one,” he said.
Part of getting policies and programs in motion is creating a movement, which Bullard said depends on the youth of America.
“This Saturday, there’s a march on science, and it’s time for scientists to march. The idea of justice, fairness and equity: we have to have young people involved, we have to have students involved,” Bullard said. “As I said this afternoon, every social movement that has been successful in this country has had a strong student and youth component, and climate change is no different. With that in mind, I think we have a future that we can turn over to young people and have them take it across the finish line.”
Reporter Jessica Williams can be reached at email@example.com or at 336-506-3046. Follow her on Twitter at @jessicawtn.