How Plastic Pollution Disproportionately Impacts Communities of Color

In Defend Our Health’s scathing report titled Hidden Hazards: The Chemical Footprint of a Plastic Bottle we found that 64% of residents who face serious cancer risks from ethylene oxide omissions (a toxic chemical used in the production of plastic) are people of color. Many of these communities are located along the Gulf Coast, infamously known as “Cancer Alley.”

Through a combination of red-lining (a discriminatory practice that consists of the systemic denial of services such as mortgages, service loans, etc.), gentrification, and zoning policies, plastic-producing facilities in the US tend to be located near low-income communities of color, primarily Black and Brown spaces, that are exposed to severe health concerns such as asthma and cancer. Black Americans, specifically, are 75% more likely to live near facilities that produce hazardous waste.

Fenceline Watch is an organization dedicated to eradicating toxic multigenerational harm to communities living along the fenceline of industries. For more information about their work and how to get involved, please visit https://www.fencelinewatch.org/take-action.

Communities of color deserve a right to breathe clean air. Children of color deserve a future free of toxic chemicals in the air, water, and soil, regardless of their zip code.

P.S. – Help us continue this fight to ensure that we create a world where all people thrive, with equal access to clean air, clean water, and a life free from toxic chemicals by pitching in today!