Blog 7- Sarah Pearson- Sustainability and Justice Sound Great Together, Now How Do We Do It?

             In chapter 5 of Recycling Reconsidered, MacBride talks about zero waste and the quest for justice. The part that really got me thinking was on the first page of the chapter. “The challenge is to do more justly, so that the health and communities of some people are not ruined to advance the material and well-being or moral comfort of others,” p. 125. I read over this statement a few times. This statement really got to me, because I’m not sure how to do it. In a world with so much systematic oppression, I question how to make change that benefits everyone. Because the truth of the matter is, we don’t know what it is like to be someone and what it’s like from their perspective until you walk a mile in their shoes. A problem we face is that we often feel like we know what is best for others, when we really don’t. What you see is a socially constructed difference in power. This difference in power leads to the landfills and incinerators near the homes of people of color and working class people. This difference in power plays out in the continuous role of injustice that plagues our society and our environment.

            “Infrastructure both reflects and reproduces a racism and a classism deeply rooted in the American way of doing business and living in communities,” (125-126, MacBride). Racism is real. People don’t have to have the fixed label of ‘racist’ to say racist comments and direct language towards people of color that demeans them on a personal or group level. Subtle and unconscious, but equally hurtful actions and comments, can inflict messages of low self worth and continue injustice. This inherit racism plays a big role in our disposal of waste as a society. The waste is dumped on communities who often have a smaller say of what all comes into their areas.

            This section made me think of a book I recently read titled “Is Everyone Really Equal?” This book talked about the injustice in our daily lives. This book exposed me to injustice that is in our world that I saw everyday, but never fully recognized and understood. The world has a way of making things and ideas seem like they aren’t an issue or something we don’t need to worry about.  We are made to believe these things we see everyday, the way people act and carry out their lives, the jobs people have, the places they live, all result in the motivation of the individual. We often find ourselves being oblivious to the oppression that keeps individuals stuck in their current predicament. As a society, I feel like we associate with the people we feel we are most similar with, and we struggle to interact with the ones who have different life experiences, who have different stories, who have different things to teach us… And I know I am talking a lot about oppression and racism, but I believe these two things contribute to inequality in our country and that this inequality results in the burden of individuals for the sake of pleasing the few. Instead of valuing human life to the same level, our current system shows we don’t. The way our current system is running, I feel as if our problems will always end up being somebody else’s. Until we better understand and recognize the perspectives of others, and listen whole-heartedly to what they want, I struggle with the idea of moving towards sustainability justice. As much as I would like to move in a more sustainable and just world, it’s not as simple as it might sound. My mind keeps turning thinking about it. I would definitely like to move towards such a goal. Sustainability and justice sound great together.

Sensoy, O., DiAngelo, R., (2011). Is Everyone Really Equal? An Introduction to Key Concepts in Social Justice Education. New York, NY. Teachers College Press.