Week Eight - Public Services and Civil Rights
Share an idea or two from this week's reading. What was most interesting to you? What was most strange? How does the reading this week fit into issues and discussions we have had in this class?
Week Two - The Emergence of Civil Rights as A National Issue in the United States
Share an idea or two from this week's reading. What was most interesting to you? What was most strange? How does the reading this week fit into issues and discussions we have had in this class?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I noticed as a commonality throughout the cases of complaints and disdain with public services in Memphis, Charlotte, and Flint, is an apparent neglect or willful ignorance of any racial context on the part of politicians and spokesmen. In Flint, for example, when Gov. Snyder was asked if race played a part in the Flint water crisis, he expressed a disbelief in the concept of environmental inequality going hand-in-hand with racial inequality. This is a problem that emerges in nearly every conversation with politicians about race. It seems that direct violence between obviously misled and poorly-educated racists and people of color is the only thing that can be defined as racism. When Gov. Rainey or other political leaders speak of accountability, they do not see themselves as being accountable for systemic racial inequality. In this way, the public service crises in Flint and Memphis both illustrate the idea that racism in the twenty-first century does not happen in the public sphere, but only in the private.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Junior, particularly contemplating about government officials and their accountability, or lack thereof, in regard to the conversation about systemic racial inequality. However, I was shocked to read that Governor Snyder acknowledged that he could not provide any excuses as to the Flint water crisis. Furthermore, it was appalling to read that D.E.Q. still failed to address that what happened in Flint was real. And yet, Flint is everywhere. In one of the articles, Reich is quoted to have said, "You can see it [environmental and social injustice] in the siting of coal-burning power plants, incinerators, oil refineries and freeways, which predominantly are built in poor sections of cities and suburbs around the country, and usually where people of color reside." My questions is, are we really all that surprised by what happened in Flint in consideration to how poor people of color have been continuously treated in our country's history? When in reality, we can look to many of our neighbors facing similar injustices next to our gated safe haven.
DeleteJunior and Lamisa make very interesting points. It is very easy for politicians to stand in the face of tragedy and deny the gravity, complexity and urgency of the situation when the affected citizens due not have the socioeconomic capital to cause a stir or place pressure on those in office. It is unbelievable how many people I myself have encountered who do not believe in environmental racism, especially in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. So, no--I'm really not surprised that the predominantly black residents afflicted by the Flint water crisis are being neglected. However, it does make me wonder what would happen if a politician WERE to acknowledge the racial layers in the crisis. Of course, it would be a major advancement for the problem to be recognized...but does that necessarily mean action would follow? Does it mean people (namely whites) with the capital and resources to correct the disparities would take enough interest to do anything? If a politician were to admit having a role in racial inequities, would it only cause whites to lose trust in their elected officials? What would need to happen in order to see as much effort exerted in insuring the health and wellbeing of inner-city POC as it is for whites?
DeleteI found the article on the Flint crisis to be very thought provoking. The article's main point is that government aid during an environmental crisis is largely influenced by wealth which in turn leads to discrimination. The Flint case study is a perfect indicator of how money and power still governs our political system and its priorities in the 21st century. During the Flint crisis, lower class, predominately African American neighborhoods weren't receiving the necessary aid required by the government compared to more affluent communities. The author also tied in the Hurricane Katrina disaster, and how the government responded disproportionately to the different communities that had been impacted depending on their wealth. I myself have witnessed a similar incident. After the horrible storm in Memphis this summer, houses in lower income areas were out of power for an extended period of time while other neighborhoods that were bordering the zoo and Rhodes had power within a few days. This is a reality for many communities nation wide.
ReplyDeleteThe two articles that interested me are Shamus’ article, “How race, class set the stage for Flint water crisis” and Osnos’ article, “The Crisis in Flint Goes Deeper Than The Water”. Both of these articles discuss the extremely unjust events that occurred in Flint. Shamus asserts that the people of Flint, “are victims of racial, economic and environmental injustice” (Shamus 1). I believe that this quote captures the issue accurately. I was extremely frustrated with the government’s attempts to cover up the severity of the issue and their efforts to convince the people of Flint that the water was safe to consume. Shamus’ claim that racism and other unjust factors are the foundation for this issue is what needs to be at the forefront of discussion. Osnos concluded his article with discussing a cartoon that was criticizing the way the government was handling the crisis in Flint. He wrote, “It shows two water fountains: one marked “White,” has clean water flowing from the spout; the other, marked “Colored,” offers a geyser of red muck” (Osnos 4). This quote illustrates how minorities are disregarded in our society, which alludes to the era of Jim Crow and forces us to discover the ripples of segregation that are still present today.
ReplyDeleteIn light of this weeks discussion on public services and civil rights, I found the intersection of race, class and the funding, regulation, and upkeep of utilities to be interesting. Specifically, the Flint crisis is a telling manifestation of a history of racially discriminatory policies in impoverished, majority minority areas of major cities across the nation. In this case, it took years for the impacts of Flint's unacceptable water quality to garner widespread public attention, despite the fact that residents had been lobbying local elected officials to address their concerns about the tap water. What I find most interesting about this conversation, is the ways in which problems with public services intersect and compound with structural issues related to race and class. For example, some of the testimonies from Flint describe how many of the residents wanted to leave after their concerns weren't addressed but were not able to for lack of transportation or a lack of job prospects. In the context of our overarching conversation surrounding civil rights and social change, I think it is vital to grapple with the ways in which acute issues, like the Flint water crisis, can affect and be affected by the legacy of racism in the United States.
ReplyDeleteThe articles assigned for the day really highlighted for me the reality that can be clearly seen in the city of Memphis each day. There are clear distinctions in housing and public aid on nearly every block within the limits of Memphis, creating an atmosphere that is wrought with injustice and misrepresentation. The article of the Flint water crisis showcased the fact that this issue is not unique to Memphis, but exists all across the United States. Clear racial lines are being drawn to discreetly create further division within one community, a practice which ultimately cripples an area. The articles read for today show that racial discrimination occurs beneath the surface and is often connected to inner political ties.
ReplyDeleteThe case of Memphis Gas, Light & Water Div. v. Craft was particularly helpful in affirming the injustices outlined by Shamus and Osnos in their analyses of the Flint water crisis. It was discouraging for me to read a nearly 40 year-old court case that sought simplify communication between clients and their energy company, followed by a very recent case of many petitions being ignored for months on end while people were ingesting unsafe chemicals. Even more discouraging is the blatant relationship between these cases and disadvantages in race and class. It is apparent, through these commentaries, that political and social capital as it is entwined with ideas of race and class are severely determinant in the ability to affect change, even when it comes to the health and wellbeing of your family. The crisis is not only in unequal access to resources, but in an inability to mobilize for a solution.
ReplyDeleteThe Third Rail article was really interesting and did a great job explaining how the highways, streetcars, and cars prompted white flight in Baltimore well before it occurred in other cities. I like how it explained why so much damage was done during the Baltimore (Freddy Gray) riots that happened only a few years back. One of the things that really stuck out to me was when MacGallis said that we as Americans rationalize white flight as the American dream. The majority of people would not believe that the American dream is built around prejudices, but when you really think about what we consider as the American dream, it's hard to argue that the American dream is not built around prejudices.
ReplyDeleteFrom this week’s reading I found the “How race, class set the stage for Flint Water Crisis” piece to be particularly interesting. When Shammus writes “race and poverty are mixed in a cocktail of mistrust that leaves deep physical and psychological wounds for which a salve offers little relief; a band aid only mask the problem,” I found her words to be particularly moving. For so many issues impacting cities today, race and poverty are such common underlying factors influencing the aid these problems receive from both government and non-profit organizations. More often than not, the type of aid used to alleviate these issues only touches the surface level, and acts as a band aid providing temporary menial relief. It does not go deeper to abolish these issues and provide the necessary resources to propel society forward past these issues and fix them once and for all.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading 'The Third Rail' by Alec Macgillis, two principle reflections arise for me. First, toward the beginning of the piece, Macgillis notes that the language of the racist housing ordinance of 1911 was of a "typically Baltimorean variety" (4). Meaning, the language was polite and worded in such a way as to appear nothing more than a means of preserving peace. This style of racism, Macgill posits, was unique to the North because the South was much more overt in its bigotry and discrimination. Taking into account that this sort of neoliberal avoidance of addressing the underlying problem head on had begun as early as 1911, I'm left wondering if there are any sociological means of tracking both the development of neoliberalism and the differing sorts of racism that flourished in each region of the country. Are the really distinguishable and did they (the use of polite language, for example) lead to markedly different outcomes? Second, how similar is the situation with MATA buses to Baltimore's failure to initially provide a functional metro to impoverished populations? A large part of me knows that if white elites relied in the buses in Memphis they's operate a lot more efficiently.
ReplyDeleteThe Flint water crisis particularly interested me, because it argued that when it comes to federal aid in environmental crisis, wealth plays a huge role in how much an area receives. Consequently, cities/areas of poorer stature are less likely to receive a significant portion of federal aid than wealthier cities/areas, a clear example of systematic discrimination. The Flint Water Crisis should have been solved by now, but it still persists to this day. Surely, if this same tragedy had struck a town like Charlotte, NC, it would be solved by now. Yet, the government does not want to put that kind of money into a city with a large black population and a city that is not a huge economic booster.
ReplyDeleteAgreeing with what Ben has said, this article from the New Yorker hit home for me as I have several relatives that live in the Flint, Michigan area and have seen the impact of the crisis within their community. When the initial crisis happened, I remember asking my cousin just about what emotions and feelings were like in the community. His overall grievance, as long as most others in their community, was that most people believed it was a solvable issue, but that they were being overlooked. Even as the article suggests: "It was only after Flint residents organized their own campaign-- attracting experts and activists and national media-- that the state acknowledged the scale of the problem."
DeleteThe United States government has a long history of ignoring minority and impoverished populations environmental need. In an extreme example, the government used the island Bikini Atoll to test atomic bombs during WWII. The native population that called that island home was forcibly evacuated and never returned to their home due to the irreparable damage. These travesties still exist today in the form of examples like the Flint water crisis. The government does not priorities these environmental and human rights violations because they are occurring in majority minority and impoverished areas.
ReplyDeleteThe New Yorker article, The Crisis in Flint Goes Deeper than the Water, pointed to the detrimental influence of the political aspects of disaster relief. In a history class I took on natural disasters, we analysed response methods such as the disastrous response to Hurricane Katrina by both FEMA and local officials, exacerbating the effects of the storm exponentially. Disorganization is almost expected in times of tragedy, but what is not expected nor acceptable in the sphere of public service especially, is the denial of problems to save face, lying about public health in order to calm nerves and prioritizing the guise of beneficial service over the lives of these people. Author, Evan Osnos, highlighted this contrast by augmenting his points with convoluted quotes from spokespeople such as Brad Wurfel who stood publicly in the deep lie that Flint was offering healthy water. His argument was not totally opaque and in quotes, his political agenda of getting rid of worry lay boldly under the surface, toxically tinting his message.
ReplyDeleteThe article most interesting to me from this week was the one about Flint, Michigan. It raises important points about what environmental racism is, and why it needs to be stopped. This racism can also be seen here in Memphis. If one were to travel towards Frayser, a mostly African American neighborhood, they would see the many factories and railroads polluting the area. In fact, studies have shown that in areas like these, children have higher rates of asthma. Especially in a city like Memphis, health is heavily influenced based on where a person lives, and a prominent factor of that is environmental racism. This goes to show the tragic impact systemic racism has on racial minorities in the country.
ReplyDeleteWhat I found most interesting about this weeks reading was the discussion of due process in the Supreme Court's opinion of Memphis Light, Gas & Water Div. v. Craft. It is especially interesting to me that in this case, the Court used due process as an explanation for why certain things (electricity) could not be taken away from a resident however looking at the environmental catastrophe of Flint, Michigan the Court cannot necessarily make a due process ruling because the damage is not, on its surface, done intentionally but instead by secondary effects to the environment. My question then becomes how to get the Court to mandate clean water in Flint since they cannot use a due process reasoning? Can they use equal protection?
ReplyDelete