devastating effects on the people and their communities. A particularly tragic story is that of the Anishinaabe communities of As- abiinyashkosiwagong Nitam-Anishinaabeg (Grassy Narrows First Nation) and Wabas- eemoong (White Dog) Independent Na- tions in northwestern Ontario. Though I only learned the term envi-
ronmental racism recently, I realize that I have spent a lifetime living with and learn- ing about the forms of racism experienced by Indigenous peoples. I’ve had family say they’ll no longer eat the fish from the creek where my grandfather fished because it’s downstream from industrial and municipal waste disposal sites. Asabiinyashkosiwagong and Wabaseemoong Anishinaabeg (Ojibwe people) are left to deal with the loss of tradi- tional ways because of environmental dam- age and a lack of health care in their com- munities for themselves and the generations that have been affected. Their burgeoning awareness of racism shapes the view the In- digenous students I teach have of the world. These students are looking for reassurances that they can be active in building a good life for themselves in their communities. Seizing these moments to teach about self-advocacy and social justice has become an important
focus for me. There are no EQAO questions for this, but it may be one of the most valu- able lessons they can learn. Author Nina Lakhani defines environ-
mental racism as how “ecological hazards and climate disasters have the harshest im- pacts on people of color, native tribes and those on low incomes.” She notes that “rac- ism dictates who gets dumped on,” describ- ing the phenomenon using examples based in the U.S.: water contamination experi- enced by the predominately Black commu- nity of Flint, Michigan, and Native American communities in North Dakota experiencing illness from contamination by the coal in- dustry, uranium mining, over-fertilization and oil. Lakhani notes that impacts on a community
include social
economic instability, forced relocation and incarceration. In Canada, the work being done in Nova
Scotia by Dr. Ingrid Waldren through the ENRICH (Environmental Noxiousness, Racial Inequities and Community Health) Project digs deeply into the socioeconomic, political and health effects of environmen- tal racism in both Mi’kmaq and African Nova Scotian communities. Waldren and her team of researchers developed maps to
relationships,
“THEIR BURGEONING AWARENESS OF RACISM SHAPES THE VIEW THE INDIGENOUS STUDENTS I TEACH HAVE OF THE WORLD. THESE STUDENTS ARE LOOKING FOR REASSURANCES THAT THEY CAN BE ACTIVE IN BUILDING A GOOD LIFE FOR THEMSELVES IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. SEIZING THESE MOMENTS TO TEACH ABOUT SELF- ADVOCACY AND SOCIAL JUSTICE HAS BECOME AN IMPORTANT FOCUS FOR ME.”
ELEMENTARY TEACHERS’ FEDERATION OF ONTARIO 15
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