Principles of Environmental Justice

This is old news, but sometimes old news can be refreshingly good news. This is from a 1991 conference that has henceforth become known as "The First People of Color Environmental Leadership Summitt." The summitt established 17 principles of environmental justice, connecting the dots between environmental degradation and racism. I'll paste the preamble below, but if you'd like to look at the 17 principles, click here.

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 insure environmental justice; to promote economic alternatives which would contribute to the development of environmentally sage 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.