Makenna Sowards (Free Response 1)- Social Justice Conference

 The Hampton Roads Social Justice Conference had a few panels about environmental justice, and I was able to attend Wading Between Two Titans, presented by Adrian Wood and Vincent Hodges. They spoke about a podcast Adrian created that describes the environmental racism in Norfolk, and how their fight against sea level rise negatively effects particular groups of people. In our class, we have talked a lot about how certain groups don't have the resources they need to fight environmental change, like the Haitians in Death by a Thousand Cuts. But in this instance, a sea wall was proposed to place along the Northern side of the Elizabeth River, protecting the richer, mostly white community, while leaving the south side of the river completely exposed. The community on that side, is poorer and majority African American. It really makes me think about the long-term effects of historical racism, and how that has affected the way we interact with environmental elements.

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