Greenpeace toxics and environmental justice specialist Damu
Smith will speak to a national audience on environmental racism and
environmental impacts on human health during the Congressional
Black Caucus 29th Annual Legislative Conference on Managed Health
Care today. The conference is taking place in Washington D.C. on
Thursday, September 16, 10 a.m. at the Washington D.C. Convention
Center – Hall C.
Damu Smith and veteran civil rights leader Congressman John
Lewis (D-GA), who was arrested several times for his protests
against Jim Crow segregation laws, will discuss the connections
between race, human health and the environment.
Mr. Smith has worked with poor, predominantly African American
communities in Louisiana that are speaking out against chemical
industries and government support of these industries. Polluting
facilities have turned the state into a “global toxic hot spot” and
have earned the Mississippi River corridor the notorious nickname
“Cancer Alley.” In addition, Mr. Smith has led numerous national
delegations on fact-finding missions through Louisiana, helping to
expose the high rates of cancer and other illnesses caused by toxic
pollution.
Environmental racism is evidenced by industry practices and
government policies that fail to protect lower-income,
African-American communities such as those along Louisiana’s
“Cancer Alley.”
“After years of witnessing first-hand the tragic health, social
and economic costs the chemical industry has heaped upon
communities of color in Louisiana and across the nation, it is
heartening to know that the Congressional Black Caucus recognizes
this as a major health crisis,” Mr. Smith said. “I hope this Town
Hall Meeting can spark a deeper national dialogue, as well as
immediate action, on how to protect people of color and all
Americans from further devastation.”
Damu Smith will be available on the day of the Town Hall Meeting
for interviews.
Read a
transcript of Damu Smith’s speech.
