Race and Environmental Justice in the United States

No segment of American society should have a monopoly on a clean environment. Nevertheless, some communities are forced to bear the brunt of this nation's pollution problem. Industrial toxins, polluted air and drinking water, and the siting of municipal landfills, lead smelters, incinerators, and hazardous waste facilities have had a disproportionate impact upon people of color, working class communities, and the poor.