Executive Summary
There is a stigma which persists that African-Americans care less about environmental issues, when in fact these issues affect communities of color first hand. By drawing on the historical link of slavery and African-American spirituality I contest the idea that African-Americans are stereotypically out of touch with nature. As important as current social concerns of eradicating racial barriers in education, racial intolerance in job procurement, and excessive use of force upon African-Americans by law officers environmental equality is of equal importance. In lieu of these concerns, recent years has seen environmentalism take a back seat in the consciousness of African-Americans. In a research paper on Environmental Education Kahn and Friedman (1998) put forth that, “Black communities in the United States are disproportionately subjected to large amounts of environmental pollution and environmental hazards; however, little is known about this group’s environmental concerns, understandings and values.”
Link to full document:Black_Consciousness_Environmental_Awareness
