Many people think of shrinking ice caps and disappearing rain forests when they hear the terms “environmental justice” and “climate justice.” But the reality of environmental devastation is much closer to home for many working people: Decades of corporations running roughshod over our land, water and air in the name of profit have left a toxic wake that disproportionately harms poor communities and communities of color. Power decides who lives near hazardous waste sites and whose water quality will be protected; environmental injustice is inextricably intertwined with the disproportionate balance of power that leads to economic inequality and racism.

Read the rest of the story on the latest issue of SEIU 1021’s magazine, Worker Power