Environmental Racism in Richmond, CA
I am not even the slightest bit surprised that the Richmond Chevron Refinery made the list for corporations taking advantage of communities through Environmental Racism. I can still remember the 2012 Chevron refinery fire. This place is a stain on our community. Chevron likes to give back to the community they poison by sponsoring many school programs that focus on science and engineering at local schools. But that can not be equated with the damage there plant has been doing to Richmond for decades. They are regularly involved in the politics of the city of Richmond, which was on full display during Richmond's last election where Richmond spent millions of dollars to get pro-Chevron candidate Nat Bates elected as Mayor, an election he subsequently lost.
Richmond is a pioneer and one of the most innovative cities in the country; Richmond residents are getting smarter about these deceptive strategies by Chevron every day and the last election is a strong indicator of that.
I am simultaneously dumbfounded and aware of the obvious example of environmental racism in the Bay Area's backyard. How can we continue to let 200,000 barrels of oil be made daily and not wonder why there are such obscenely high rates of asthma, and contemplate the demographics of people who live in Richmond versus North Berkeley and Emeryville.
ReplyDeleteDo you think the fact that they're giving millions of dollars to education in the East Bay's school districts makes up for the polluting?