Varun PBook Name: Climate Change is Racist: Race, Privilege and the Struggle for Climate Justice
Author Name: Jeremy Williams
Published: 2021
We are often told that climate change is a shared global problem, and there is a collective responsibility to solve it as it affects the entire planet.
But. No.
Climate change is racist. It is racist in its origins and its effects, part of a White supremacist legacy that reaches deep into the past, through slavery, empire and neo-colonialism. There is a continuity of oppression that runs from the enslaving of Black people for the benefit of White industrialisation, to the stealing of indigenous land for the enrichment of White empires, to the pollution of the atmosphere for the benefit of White consumerism. It is one story: the same people taking the plunder, the same people suffering.
– An extract from the book Climate Change is Racist by Jeremy Williams.
This hard-hitting book by Jeremy Williams gives a perspective on climate change which probably no one else has attempted to do. Calling climate change racist, the author explains the link between the global crisis and systematic racial inequality.
Jeremy Williams grew up in African countries, Madagascar and Kenya, but later returned to the United Kingdom. Early in the book, Jeremy shares a personal story of how he was treated as a white young boy in Kenya, which made him realise the systematic injustices that would have happened to the black community over the years.
In the introduction, the book lays out the context of racial injustices by providing two world maps, highlighting countries based on carbon emissions per capita and vulnerability to climate change.
The contrasting two images underscore the injustice of climate change, as those countries responsible for climate disasters are less vulnerable, the greatest dangers fall on those who have done little to cause any damage.
Additionally, maps revealed that wealthy, predominantly white countries largely drive climate change, while its most severe impacts are felt by people of colour in less affluent nations.
Jeremy has explained that the racism in climate change is not happening at the individual or institutional level; instead, it is structural racism, where it has been ingrained into the foundations of society. The policies that excluded people of colour no longer exist, but their impact still lingers.
Currently, there are no explicit group of white people plotting against black people by causing climate-related disruptions. However, people of colour are getting impacted the most while they contributed the least to the problem. According to the book, “the reasons for this are structural and historical”.
The 187-page book is divided into 12 chapters, with the first 2 chapters enumerating those responsible for climate change, then aspects related to environmental justice, climate violence, privilege, and representation are discussed.
In terms of who caused the climate change, it is a well-known fact that the biggest emitters historically and to a large extent currently, are white-countries like the USA, Europe, USSR, Canada, and Australia. Even now, most carbon footprint is caused by corporations and industries in those countries.
In comparison, the ecological footprint of the poorest 1 billion people is the lowest, who are largely from sub-Saharan Africa and small islands.
Take the case of the Marshall Islands, a collection of atolls and islands in the Pacific Ocean with brown inhabitants. The country has contributed nothing to climate change, but stands at a risk of disappearing. Several small countries in Asia, Africa and South America face high risks of extreme weather events.
In Chapter 3, Environmental Justice, the book Climate Change is Racist, highlights multiple examples where poor countries are made scapegoats to host dumping sites, polluting industries, or extractive operations. There are also instances where marginalised communities get impacted more by a climate event and are provided with little to no support for recovery.
In Chapter 5, The Deep Roots of Climate Injustice provides a flavour of climate change that not many authors and commentators would have deliberated.
While we believe that the Industrial Revolution triggered climate change, the author notes that “it started with conquest, genocides, slavery and colonialism. That is the moment when White men’s relationship with living things became extractive and disharmonious“.
Jeremy explains that slavery and empire were racist projects, and they directly feed into industrialisation, which set off the crisis we see now. He points out examples of how even after slavery ceased, the extraction of food and resources continued during the colonial rule and post-colonial era as well.
In another chapter, Jeremy highlights people who enjoy climate privilege, who live in denial or think of climate change as an environmental issue. Their privileges ensure that they remain unaffected by the realities of the climate crisis.
In Chapter 8, related to the empathy gap, the author explains with examples how people tend to be closer and empathetic to “news stories about people like them”.
There is over-reporting of White suffering in the natural disasters, while under-reporting of happenings in developing countries. Therefore, “black suffering goes unseen and unaddressed“.
The book has delved into important points, where the climate conversation is dominated from a privileged perspective, ignoring the plight of the marginalised.
Further, solutions are not developed until a problem becomes a first-world problem, because there is a false assumption that poor and black people have higher endurance to pain and suffering. The racial empathy gap makes white people discount the suffering of people of colour.
While it is true that climate change will eventually affect everyone, the book Climate Change is Racist is against the dominant theme that it puts everyone on equal footing, which obscures the sufferings of black and brown people.
Jeremy Williams has also argued for a restorative justice process where, through mutual understanding, there can be a dialogue, inclusion, recognition of past wrongs, apology, and losses can be compensated. This can be topped up with investments in projects like renewable energy, reforestation, and land restoration, supported by significant emissions reductions.
Although the author mentioned at the beginning that he chose to keep the book short to maintain relevance, I wish it were a little longer, allowing Jeremy to provide additional examples of racial abuse in Southeast Asia and South America.
Anyway, the book hits you hard and makes you reflect on several things. Many facts and data points we might know in silos come together when viewed through the lens of this book, revealing a deeper meaning that is both unsettling and enlightening.
I also found the choice of book cover interesting. A black and white colour would have suited the theme of the book; however, it used red on the front and white on the back.
Though the author has not mentioned anything, I would assume red signals a warning of an impending climate catastrophe, and white would signify a need to act with neutrality and unbiasedness.
In the end, it is about finding a common cause.
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