Tag Archives: Political Justice

“Reimagining ‘Justice’ in Environmental Justice: Radical Ecologies, Decolonial Thought, and the Black Radical Tradition” by Laura Pulido and Juan De Lara, 2018

September 25, 2019 5:51 pm /
Submitted by: Suzanne Oboler, Professor, Latin American and Latinx Studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice
“In this article, we rethink the spatial and racial politics of the environmental justice movement in the United States by linking it to abolitionist theories that have emerged from the Black Radical Tradition, to critical theories of urban ecology, and to decolonial epistemologies rooted in the geopolitics of Las Americas. More specifically, we argue that environmental justice organizing among multi-racial groups is an extension of the Black Radical Tradition’s epistemic legacy and historical commitment to racial justice.”
This article was retrieved from the author’s website. It is open access. The article was published in Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space 2018, Vol. 1(1–2) 76–98
Posted in: 2011 - Present, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , , , ,

“Trump Racist and Environmental Database” by Laura Pulido

September 25, 2019 4:23 pm /

Submitted by: Suzanne Oboler, Professor, Latin American and Latinx Studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice

To access the database, click here: “Trump Racist and Environmental Database” by Laura Pulido 

The author states: “In an effort to cope with the onset of the Trump administration, I began making lists of all the racist and anti-environmental things that were happening. I did this out of curiosity, but also to document the changes themselves. I began the process on my blog, but was not able to maintain it. In Winter 2018 I taught “Race, Nature & Power” (Geography 410/510) at the University of Oregon and took the opportunity to develop a class-based research project centered on the lists. Working together, we tried to identify all the racist things that happened in Trump’s first year and all the anti-environmental actions. We then analyzed the lists and studied how the two different agendas unfolded. On this page you can find the data itself, as well as the accompanying article that discusses the findings. The article, “Environmental Deregulation, Spectacular Racism and White Nationalism I the Trump Era,” is forthcoming in the Annals of the Association of American Geographers.

This information is posted at the author’s website and is in the public domain.

 

Posted in: 2011 - Present, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , ,

“Principles of Environmental Justice”, 1991

September 24, 2019 4:46 pm /

Submitted by: Suzanne Oboler, Professor, Latin American and Latinx Studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice

To read online, click here: 17 Principles of Environmental Justice

The Delegates to the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit held on October 24-27, 1991, in Washington DC, drafted and adopted 17 principles of Environmental Justice. Since then, The Principles have served as a defining document for the growing grassroots movement for environmental justice.”

PREAMBLE

WE, THE PEOPLE OF COLOR, gathered together at this multinational People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit, to begin to build a national and international movement of all peoples of color to fight the destruction and taking of our lands and communities, do hereby re-establish our spiritual interdependence to the sacredness of our Mother Earth; to respect and celebrate each of our cultures, languages and beliefs about the natural world and our roles in healing ourselves; to ensure environmental justice; to promote economic alternatives which would contribute to the development of environmentally safe livelihoods; and, to secure our political, economic and cultural liberation that has been denied for over 500 years of colonization and oppression, resulting in the poisoning of our communities and land and the genocide of our peoples, do affirm and adopt these Principles of Environmental Justice:

This document is in the public domain and was posted and retrieved online at the environmental organization’s website: https://www.ejnet.org/ej/principles.html.

 

Posted in: 1990-1999, Part 1: Texts for Teaching and Learning about Justice, US / Tagged: , , , , , , ,

The Movement for Black Lives: Platform, 2014

September 23, 2019 10:30 pm /

Submitted by: Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept of Africana Studies at John Jay College

Click here for: Platform for Black Lives.

“The Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) is a coalition of groups across the U.S. which represent the interests of black communities. It was formed in 2014 as a response to sustained and increasingly visible violence against black communities, with the purpose of creating a united front and establishing a political platform. The collective is made up of more than 150 organizations, with members such as the Black Lives Matter Network, the National Conference of Black Lawyers, and the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, and endorsement from groups including Color of Change, Race Forward, Brooklyn Movement Center, PolicyLink, Million Women March Cleveland, and ONE DC. In response to the sustained and increasingly visible violence against Black communities in the U.S. and globally, a collective of organizations representing thousands of Black people from across the country have come together with renewed energy and purpose to articulate a common vision and agenda. Our resistance and rebellion are not new, but like other times in history have come to a critical mass, and the bravery of those in Ferguson and across the country captured the attention of the world. A year ago, over 2,000 of us gathered in Cleveland to reflect on the state of our movement for liberation and celebrate our people, both those who have fallen and those who have survived. It was there that we began the process of uniting to articulate a shared vision of the world we want to live in.”

This link is to the organization’s website. It is in the public domain.

Posted in: 2011 - Present, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , ,

“The Prison-Industrial Complex,” Death Row Interview, Mumia Abu-Jamal, 1996

September 20, 2019 7:46 pm /

Submitted by: Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept of Africana Studies at John Jay College

To view video click here: Mumia Abu-Jamal “The Prison-Industrial Complex,” 

Mumia Abu-Jamal (born Wesley Cook on April 24, 1954) is an American convicted murderer, sentenced to death for the December 9, 1981 murder of Philadelphia police officer Daniel Faulkner. He has been described as “perhaps the best known Death-Row prisoner in the world”, and his sentence is one of the most debated today. Before his arrest he was a member of the Black Panther Party, an activist, part-time cab driver, journalist, radio personality, news commentator and broadcaster. Since his conviction, his case has received international attention and he has become a controversial cultural icon. Supporters and opponents disagree on the appropriateness of the death penalty, whether he is guilty, or whether he received a fair trial. During his imprisonment he has published several books and other commentaries, notably Live from Death Row.

The YouTube video was posted by Esoteric Word Views.  Can be used for educational purposes under the Fair Use provision.

Posted in: 1990-1999, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

“Are Prisons Obsolete?” by Angela Davis, 2003

September 20, 2019 7:14 pm /

Submitted by: Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept of Africana Studies at John Jay College

To read online, click here: “Are Prisons Obsolete?”

There is abundant evidence that the current system of punishment and imprisonment is out of control and ineffective as a means of rendering more people equal, safe, secure, and otherwise free. Nevertheless, there seems to be a presumption that before replacing any of this outdated, ineffective, destructive, and obsolete system, we must first discover, create, or otherwise imagine an alternative one that is first proven to be effective and all-encompassing. Angela Davis further supports the abolition argument and provides some very clear and tangible reasons to further examine the impact of the prison industrial complex, rather than continuing with prison reform.

This book was retrieved from an organization website: The Collective Liberation. The Catalyst Project helps to build powerful multiracial movements that can win collective liberation. In the service of this vision, we organize, train and mentor white people to take collective action to end racism, war and empire, and to support efforts to build power in working-class communities of color. Use for educational purposes under the Fair Use provision of the Copyright Act. The book states that it is an “open media” book.

Posted in: 2000 - 2010, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , ,

“Structural Racism and Community Building” by Lawrence Keith, et al., 2004

September 20, 2019 5:29 pm /

Submitted by:  Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept of Africana Studies at John Jay College

To read online, click here: “Structural Racism and Community Building”

This submission is from the Aspen Institute: Lawrence, Keith, Stacey Sutton, Anne Kubisch, Gretchen Susi and Karen Fulbright-Anderson. 2004. “Structural Racism and Community Building.” Aspen Institute Roundtable on Community Change. Washington, D.C.: The Aspen Institute.

Since 1997, the Roundtable has been focusing on how the problems associated with race and racism in America affect initiatives aimed at poverty reduction in distressed urban neighborhoods. The Roundtable has explored how race shapes the social, political, economic, and cultural institutions of our society, and how those dynamics produce significant and ongoing racial disparities in the well-being of children, families, and communities. The work also has an applied dimension that describes how to incorporate
racial equity into social and economic development work. The premise behind all of the Roundtable’s work on race is that adopting a more race conscious approach to community building and social justice work.

This resource was found on the Internet at the Aspen Institute organization website. Use for educational purposes under the Fair Use Provision.

Posted in: 2000 - 2010, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , , ,

“Theorizing and Teaching Democratic Community Economics: Engaged Scholarship, Economic Justice, and the Academy” by Jessica Gordon Nembhard, 2008

September 20, 2019 4:27 pm /

Submitted by: Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept of Africana Studies at John Jay College

To read online: “Theorizing and Teaching Democratic Community Economics: Engaged Scholarship, Economic Justice, and the Academy.”

This chapter is from the book: “Engaging Contradictions: Theory, Politics and Methods of Activist Scholarship”, edited by Charles R. Hale, pp. 265-297. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

The editor says:

“Scholars in many fields increasingly find themselves caught between the academy, with its demands for rigor and objectivity, and direct engagement in social activism. Some advocate on behalf of the communities they study; others incorporate the knowledge and leadership of their informants directly into the process of knowledge production. What ethical, political, and practical tensions arise in the course of such work? In this wide-ranging and multidisciplinary volume, leading scholar-activists map the terrain on which political engagement and academic rigor meet.”

Dr. Gordon-Nembhard is a political economist specializing in community economics, Black Political Economy and popular economic literacy. Her research and publications explore problematics and alternative solutions in cooperative economic development and worker ownership, community economic development, wealth inequality and community-based asset building, and community-based approaches to justice.

This chapter was used with the author’s permission.

Posted in: 2000 - 2010, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , ,

“Carta abierta de un escritor a la Junta Militar” by Rodolfo Walsh, 1977

September 17, 2019 6:12 pm /

Submitted by:  Maria Julia Rossi, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Modern Languages and Literature, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

“Carta abierta de un escritor a la Junta Militar is one of the starkest testimonies about the 1976-1983 Argentine dictatorship. Written at the first anniversary of the coup d’état, in March 24, 1977, Rodolfo Walsh risked his life by writing it and sending it to newspapers in Argentina and internationally. He was killed the following day. In this letter, Walsh openly denounces many outrages the dictatorship was committing—and was going to keep committing in the subsequent years. He denounced censorship, from the perspective of a writer and journalist, but also persecutions, kidnappings and murders. In a well-documented and analytical manner, Walsh also connected the economical atrocities the dictatorship was perpetrating—a series of actions that were going to affect the Argentine financial situation until these days. This letter was first published by the exiled writer Tomás Eloy Martínez in Caracas, Venezuela.

La “Carta abierta de un escritor a la Junta Militar” es uno de los testimonios más descarnados sobre la dictadura argentina de 1976-1983. Escrita para el primer aniversario del golpe de estado, el 24 de marzo de 1977, Rodolfo Walsh arriesgó su vida al escribirla y mandarla a periódicos argentinos e internacionales. Lo asesinaron al día siguiente. En esta carta, Walsh denuncia abiertamente las numerosas atrocidades que los dictadores cometían —y que seguirían cometiendo en los años siguientes. Denunció la censura, desde el punto de vista de un escritor y periodista, pero también las persecuciones, secuestros y asesinatos. De un modo documentado y analítico, Walsh también conectó las atrocidades económicas que la dictadura estaba perpetrando: una serie de acciones que afectarían la situación financiera del país hasta nuestros días. El escritor exiliado Tomás Eloy Martínez publicó por primera vez esta carta en Caracas, Venezuela.” (Comment by Rossi, 2019)

To read online: “Carta abierta de un escritor a la Junta Militar”

The Open Letter from a Writer to the Military Junta (March 1977 ) is the last letter of intellectual, journalist and writer Argentine Rodolfo Walsh, who sent copies by mail to the means of its summary and analysis of the first year of the dictatorship a few hours before being kidnapped and disappeared . It was described by Gabriel García Márquez as a “journalism masterpiece.” 

Posted in: 1970-1989, Latin America & the Caribbean, Part 1: Texts for Teaching and Learning about Justice / Tagged: , , , , ,

“Geographies of Race and Ethnicity II: Environmental Racism, Racial Capitalism and State-Sanctioned Violence” by Laura Pulido, 2017

August 20, 2019 5:54 pm /

Submitted by: Jessica Gordon-Nembhard, Professor, Community Justice and Social Economic Development in the Dept. of Africana Studies at John Jay College

To read online, click here: Geographies of Race and Ethnicity II: Environmental Racism,Racial Capitalism and State-Sanctioned Violence

“In this report I argue that environmental racism is constituent of racial capitalism. While the environmental justice movement has been a success on many levels, there is compelling evidence that it has not succeeded in actually improving the environments of vulnerable communities. One reason for this is because we are not conceptualizing the problem correctly. I build my argument by first emphasizing the centrality of the production of social difference in creating value. Second, I review how the devaluation of nonwhite bodies has been incorporated into economic processes and advocate for extending such frameworks to include pollution. And lastly, I turn to the state. If, in fact, environmental racism is constituent of racial capitalism, then this suggests that activists and researchers should view the state as a site of contestation, rather than as an ally or neutral force.”

This is a library resource, accessed by using John Jay login to the library.

Posted in: 2011 - Present, Part 2: Subjects and Topics in Justice (ALL), US / Tagged: , , , , , ,
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