Up until very recently, it’s unlikely that I would have put “reproductive justice,” “immigrant women,” and “climate change” in the same sentence. I’m happy to report that this is no longer the case, thanks to the ladies at Asian Communities for Reproductive Justice (ACRJ) and cool folks at orgs. like Grind for the Green and the Ella Baker Center.
Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to attend the San Francisco Green Festival, a 3-day extravaganza of workshops, performances, and enough green products to make you shit green the rest of your life. Not in a bad way. Some notables include aquaponics (crazy urban gardening system) and granola bars made out of grass (uh… not so tasty). I also met the venerable Amy Goodman for 5 seconds (an amazing 5 seconds it was!). There we are below, gloating evilly while she’s looking a bit uncomfortable.
But back to the actual event. Living in the Bay for almost 5 years now, I know I’m not the only one that can find the rhetoric typically surrounding the green movement to be really fucking obnoxious, hypocritical and snooty culturally alienating and economically unviable for most of the world not that convincing. So it was great to hear from a perspective that connects the health of the environment with the dismantling of systemic inequality, specifically as it relates to nail salon workers in Oakland.
According to an ACRJ report, nail care is the fastest growing sector in the beauty industry. It’s a critical job source for over 300,000 people in California, and approximately 80% of the nail salons here are owned and staffed by Vietnamese women. Due to the largely unregulated chemicals in nail and cleaning products, manicurists and cosmetologists experience disproportionate rates of stomach cancer, spontaneous abortion, birth defects, reproductive problems, and asthma. These same chemicals release greenhouse gases and contribute significantly to global warming.
Meanwhile, policy efforts often address climate change and worker health in isolation. For example, the city of Santa Cruz recently adopted Green Business rules in order to regulate the types of products used in nail salons. However, it set no minimum standards for working conditions or any regulations on the health and safety of workers. This relates to growing stories about the shitty means and conditions under which we get our “green” products. So the question becomes… will the green movement be a movement for equity and inclusion? Or same old BS coming from an increasingly powerful, shrinking minority?
Luckily, there are some dedicated people working hard to make sure its the first. Thanks to mobilized community action, Oakland has emerged as a leader in setting climate change goals. Oakland City Council has unanimously approved the reduction of emissions to 36% below 2005 levels by 2020 and to 85% below 2005 levels by 2050. It’ll take a lot of hard work in the years to come to make these goals into reality– but for now, major props to the people who pushed it that far.
