As a former Detroit-area community organizer turned independent journalist, I have witnessed firsthand how predominantly low-income communities of color are exposed to toxic pollutants due to discriminatory policies. Detroit’s air is often chocked with smog, and our tap water is sometimes discolored and foul-smelling. As an organizer, I have helped stage rallies to raise awareness about the disproportionate impact of pollution on marginalized communities, and also lobbied local politicians and the US EPA for stricter regulations on industrial pollution.

But it wasn’t until I read Toxic Communities, by Yale professor Dorceta E. Taylor, that I realized just how pervasive environmental racism is in our city—and in the United States as a whole. 

Environmental protection isn’t solely a matter of politics. Environmentalism is often expressed through arts and culture, including literature, which can provide new insights into the relationships between humans and nature. Environmental literature can spark someone’s interest in environmentalism or fuel an existing passion. A-C-T-I-O-N is inseparable from education. 

To celebrate Juneteenth, I’d like to share a few of my favorite books. Juneteenth, our newest federal holiday, marks the emancipation of enslaved African Americans. It’s a good time, then, to remember that environmental justice is also an issue of freedom and liberation.

Here are five books that will deepen your understanding of how environmental racism impacts marginalized communities and how you can become an advocate for change. 

Colors of Nature: Culture, Identity, and the Natural World, edited by Alison H. Deming and Lauret E. Savoy

This anthology features essays by writers from diverse cultural backgrounds who explore how their identities intersect with nature and the environment. The essays offer a range of perspectives, as well as insights into issues of environmental justice.

Toxic Communities: Environmental Racism, Industrial Pollution, and Residential Mobility, by Dorceta E. Taylor

Taylor investigates how low-income communities of color in the United States are disproportionately exposed to toxic pollutants due to discriminatory policies and practices. She also explores ways in which these communities have organized to fight for greater environmental protections.

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer

This book weaves together traditional Indigenous knowledge with modern scientific understanding to explore our relationship with plants and the natural world. Kimmerer argues that caring for the earth is a reciprocal relationship that benefits both humans and nonhuman beings.

Environmental Justice: Concepts, Evidence and Politics, edited by Gordon Walker

This collection of essays provides an overview of key concepts related to environmental justice, as well as case studies from around the world that illustrate different ways in which environmental injustice can occur.

A Terrible Thing to Waste: Environmental Racism and Its Assault on the American Mind, by Harriet A. Washington

Washington explores how exposure to toxic pollutants can negatively impact cognitive development, particularly among people of color. She also examines how environmental racism perpetuates systemic inequality in other areas of life. 

Let’s continue educating ourselves and taking action toward a more just and equitable world for all. Happy Juneteenth!