Home
/
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
/
MLK and Environmental Justice
MLK and Environmental Justice
Jul 1, 2025 6:15 AM

Environmental Justice Blog: “If Rev Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. was alive today he would be an environmental justice activist.”

Perhaps. MLK went to Memphis in 1968 on a mission for black garbage workers demanding equal pay and better work conditions. He was killed before he got there. 15 years later, black activists would stop a hazardous waste landfill in Warren County, North Carolina, often pointed to as the beginning of the environmental justice movement.

Are the two related? Sure. Martin transformed civil rights, and his agenda might have included environmental justice eventually. But I think his priority (like that of his protégé, the Rev. Jesse Jackson) was always people, not pollution.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. (read on…)

And I don’t think that’s changed much. This more current bit (2000) on environmental justice in the African munity by black liberation theologian James Cone is illuminating.**

Until recently, the ecological crisis has not been a major theme in the liberation movements in the African munity. “Blacks don’t care about the environment” is a ment by white ecologists. Racial and economic justice has been at best only a marginal concern in the mainstream environmental movement. “White people care more about the endangered whale and the spotted owl than they do about the survival of young blacks in our nation’s cities” is a well-founded belief in the African munity. Justice fighters for blacks and the defenders of the earth have tended to ignore each other in their public discourse and practice. Their separation from each other is unfortunate because they are fighting the same enemy — human beings’ domination of each other and nature.

The leaders in the mainstream environmental movement are mostly middle- and upper-class whites who are unprepared culturally and intellectually to dialogue with angry blacks. The leaders in the African munity are leery of talking about anything with whites that will distract from the menacing reality of racism. What both groups fail to realize is how much they need each other in the struggle for “justice, peace and the integrity of creation.”

Keep reading:

Do we have any reason to believe that the culture most responsible for the ecological crisis will also provide the moral and intellectual resources for the earth’s liberation? White ethicists and theologians apparently think so, since so much of their discourse about theology and the earth is just talk among themselves. But I have a deep suspicion about the theological and ethical values of white culture and religion. For five hundred years whites have acted as if they owned the world’s resources and have forced people of color to accept their scientific and ethical values. [snip]

If we save the planet and have a society of inequality, we wouldn’t have saved much.

He affirms these thoughts in a 2004 interview here, adding this striking bit:

Most of the toxic dumps are in places where people don’t have resources to fight against them, usually munities…

That’s an interesting statement. Wonder if it’s true? I did. In a very non-scientific analysis I wanted to see whether toxic waste is going to predominately black or white cities. I opened up the 2005 EPA National Biennial RCRA Hazardous Waste Report and picked the top two “receivers,” the largest hazardous waste treatment and disposal facilities (what Cone calls “toxic dumps”) in each state. Then I checked out the demographic data for each of those cities.

The first two cities had by far the majority of waste disposed of in each state, so I think it’s a fair description of where most of our waste goes. Also, some states are higher waste generators but ship their waste out of state, so this list shows where toxic waste is disposed of – again, paying attention to Cone’s concern. States that don’t have TSDFs are listed as N/A; some states only had one. The amount disposed of in tons is in (). The % is black population, and if I couldn’t find data I noted that.

Here’s what I came up with. The national average for black population is 12.35%, and cities under that average are in bold.

[Note: Ignore breaks in the list; just the way the list formatted. They don’t mean anything.]

AL Emelle (58,840 tons) 76%

Attalla (23,801 tons) 13%

AK Anchorage (144) 6%

Elmendorf AFB (4) 10%

AZ Tolleson (26,155) 1.3%

Coolidge (3,827) 8.6%

AR Foreman (98,201) 25%

Benton (78,115) 4%

CA Compton (1,233,500) 40%

City of Industry (174,574) 4%

CO Henderson (17,599) 4%

Deer Trail (4,315) 0%

CT Bristol (9,743) 2.5%

Meriden (7,276) 7%

DE Wilmington (373) 56%

DC N/A

FL Bartow (6,781) 27%

Orlando (3,446) 26%

GA Valdosta (4,203) 49%

Morrow (900) 42%

HI Navy PWC (400) 10%

ID Grand View (113,188) 0%

Mayfield (22,672) 0%

IL Chicago (179,472) 36%

Peoria (103,619) 25%

IN Indianapolis (94,677) 25%

Butler (62,562) 0%

IA Davenport (262) 9%

Des Moines (174) 8%

KS Fredonia (144,138) 0.1%

Chanute (48,646) 1.1%

KY Smithfield (47,589) 0%

Calvert City (18,173) 0%

LA Waggaman (141,885) 54%

Sulphur (99,790) 3.2%

ME South Portland (2,214) 0.4%

Leeds (167) 0.1%

MD Baltimore (127,125) 63%

Forest Hill (9) 3%

MA Braintree (18,110) 1%

Lowell (5,027) 4.2%

MI Belleville (196,057) 6%

Detroit (77,358) 81%

MN Eagan (267,034) 4%

Cottage Grove (26,298) 2.5%

MS Artesia (55,961) 85%

Jackson (735) 70%

MO Hannibal (69,375) 6%

Cape Girardeau (62,277) 9%

MT N/A

NE Kimball (35,336) 0.2%

Fairbury (333) 0.1%

NV Beatty (51,464) 0%

Fernley (8,299) 0%NH N/A

NJ Deepwater (61,173) 0%

Middlesex (49,258) 3.5%

NM Carlsbad (8,434) 2.6%

Albuquerque (437) 3.1%

NY Middletown (158,520) 14.3%

Model City (74,423) 6%

NC Durham (46,932) 44%

Geidsville (18,266) Unk%

ND Belfield (351) 1.2%

Bismarck (141) 0.3%

OH Oregon (232,602) 1.1%

Vickery (97,134) 1.2%

OK Waynoka (44,207) 2.5%

Mcalester (3,283) 8.2%

OR Arlington (90,892) 0%

Hermiston (1,882) 0.9%

PA Palmerton (224,632) 0.2%

Bath (65,449) 2.6%

RI Cranston (33,672) 3.2%

Providence (4,894) 13.8%

SC Holly HIll (68,849) 52%

Sumter (48,087) 47%

SD Sioux Falls (133) 1.8%

TN Millington (21,002) 22.9%

Oak Ridge (1,150) 7.8%

TX Deer Park (104,389) 1.1%

Channelview (83,414) 12.8%

UT Grantsville (86,149) 0.2%

Aragonite (51,760) 0%

VT Barre (195) 0.4%

Burlington (28) 1.9%

VA Arvonia (45,321) 58%

Chesapeake (448) 28%

WA Kent (17,325) 8%

a (13,831) 11.2%

WV Morgantown (5,285) 4%

Natrium (4,374) Unk%

WI Menomonee Falls (21,244) 1.7%

Eau Claire (15,917) 0.6%WY None

63 cities are under the national average for black population, and 27 cities are over it. What’s more, major disposal sites like the one in Compton CA are ranked by Scorecard.org as among the cleanest in the United States and are regulated by Cal EPA and EPA Region 9, who manage the most progressive and heavily-enforced waste disposal program in the world.

Like I said – unscientific. It’s certainly possible for example that these disposal sites are located in predominately black areas within each city (for those cities that actually have predominately black areas). But it does seem like there are a lot of “dumps” that don’t fit his generalization. Instead, TSDFs are located in nearly every state and in cities that vary widely in their socioeconomics; only one out of every three is predominately black.

So what’s the point? Christians like Professor Cone, the Rev. Al Sharpton and I have all been drawn to Psalm 24:1 for a reason – it proclaims that the earth is in fact the Lords. It doesn’t belong to mankind. And if any family munity or poor or wealthy or black or white person is drinking polluted water or breathing polluted air, we still have work to do on His behalf.

Rather than using ecology in a “disciplined and sustained fight against white supremacy,” (and calling Christians who don’t do so racist), we should use mon love for God and stewardship for God’s creation as a means of getting past the sorts of suspicions that Cone feels so deeply.

Perhaps one day all those who care for God’s creation will not be judged by the color of our skin as Brother Martin put it, but by the content of our character.

[Don’s other habitat is The Evangelical Ecologist]

**[Disclaimer: I was drawn to Cone because he is a black theologian writing on the environmental movement. I want to be clear I’m not judging black Christian ecologists across the board the way many find one Dominionist and use his statements to describe all Christians.]

Comments
Welcome to mreligion comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
RELIGION & LIBERTY ONLINE
Casualty Call: A Marine’s Reflections on Good Friday
This month marks ten years since I left the Marine Corps. Although I love being a Marine I can honestly say that I don’t miss active duty. In fifteen years of service I sat on the sidelines during three separate wars, and like most Marines, being away from the action drove me insane. Although I had it easy, for some of rades, being on the supporting end back in the U.S. was almost as stressful and emotionally draining as being...
Audio: Sirico on Gnosticism, Poverty and Secularism with Larry Kudlow
On Saturday morning, Acton Institute President Rev. Robert A. Sirico joined host Larry Kudlow on the nationally syndicated Larry Kudlow Show for a wide-ranging Easter weekend discussion. Sirico and Kudlow talked about everything from the so-called “Gospel of Jesus’ Wife” to the collapse of poverty rates worldwide over the past few decades, and ended with a conversation about the ing canonizations of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II, and a reflection on whether the march of secularism can...
Patriots’ Day is a Forgotten Holiday
Few summed up the American Revolution for Independence better than Lord Acton when he declared, “No people was so free as the insurgents; no government less oppressive than the government which they overthrew.” I’ve written about Patriots’ Day on the Powerblog before, but it’s essentially a forgotten holiday. Only officially celebrated in Massachusetts and Maine and observed on the third Monday in April, Patriots’ memorates the anniversary of the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19 of 1775. The...
Between Smirks and Silence: Ending the Epidemic of Prison Rape
“Prison rape occupies a fairly odd space in our culture,” wrote Ezra Klein in 2008, bringing to the fore a subject that is still too often ignored. “It is, all at once, a cherished source of humor, a tacitly accepted form of punishment, and a broadly understood human rights abuse.” We are justifiably outraged by the human rights abuses occurring in foreign lands. Why then are we not more outraged by atrocities here in our own country? Our reactions to...
The War On Poverty And The Decimation Of The Family
Life is harsh in Twin Branch, W. Va. Despite the wide availability of food stamps, government-subsidized health care and school lunches, life is very difficult for most of the people living there. The War on Poverty, instituted by Lyndon Johnson 50 years ago, brought a lot of help to this area of the U.S., yet life is no better now, and indeed for many, worse than before that “War.” Trip Gabriel at The New York Times takes a look at...
Is Islam in America on the Rise?
The United States is often perceived as a land of religious freedom and pluralism. Has such a space allowed for the growth of a new generation of young Muslim leaders, activists, and artists? According to a recent article in TIME magazine, the rising prosperity and integration of Muslims in America is allowing for new Muslim leaders to emerge in the American public sphere. Because the United States is faring far better with Muslim cultural and societal integration than Europe, a...
The Resurrection Story was Good for the World, Which Begs a Question
Have Christ and Christianity exerted a positive influence on the development of civilization? Eric Chabot summarizes the evidence that it has, touching on everything from slavery to economics to Medieval church music, and concludes his essay by pointing to an atheist scholar who agrees. What’s the upshot if Chabot is right? Something can be useful and still false, so it wouldn’t prove Christianity true. But recognizing that the Judeo-Christian tradition has benefited civilization, and to a degree unrivaled by any...
7 Figures: Inmate Sexual Victimization by Correctional Authorities
“Inmates are still people, and therefore need to be treated as such, with all the challenges and potential that face all human persons,” says Acton research fellow Jordan Ballor. “One of the things it means to treat someone with the dignity they deserve as a human being is to not subject them to conditions where the threat of rape is rampant.” Earlier this year, the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported on one of the most overlooked threats to prisoner dignity...
Who Cares about Democracy in Hong Kong?
Not the Chinese government, which e as no shock. But what about the United States? As thisWeekly Standardblog postpoints out, two prominent Hong Kong democracy advocates recently visited Washington in an attempt to secure American support for political reform there, but to little avail. The people of Hong Kong have long enjoyed economic freedom, often ranking at the top of the Heritage Foundation’sIndex of Economic Freedom. Since moving from British to Chinese rule in 1997, Hong Kong has maintained much...
‘Ban Bossy?’ Let’s Look At The ‘Research’
Remember the “Ban Bossy” campaign? Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook created the “Ban Bossy” campaign, recruiting a horde of celebrities, in order to make sure that girls didn’t feel put out by being called bossy in the 4th grade and thus ruining their entire lives. (“Being labeled something matters,” says actress Jennifer Garner in the Ban Bossy campaign video. So does developing a thick skin.) Now, however, Christian Hoff Sommers of the American Enterprise Institute is here to tell the...
Related Classification
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.mreligion.com All Rights Reserved