301549
Race, place, and gender in the South: A medical anthropological perspective
Objective/Purpose: To discuss the significance of EJ organizations in providing information needed to address the health needs of Black women and girls.
Methods: Administration of a post-flood, qualitative health survey to residents in two primarily Black communities in rural North Carolina. Reviewed collaborative research activities from a sample of southeastern U.S. EJ organizations in order to identify issues affecting the health of Black women and girls.
Results: According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the EJ threshold for identifying a minority community is 35.8% of the total population. Most of those surveyed and those active in EJ groups are in communities that meet the EPA EJ threshold. We found that these are vulnerable populations when it comes to environmental challenges and a majority of those active in these organizations are women.
Discussion/Conclusions: We found that Black women and girls reported a variety of illnesses they believed came from exposure to environmental hazards. They reported conditions that ranged from chronic respiratory illnesses to disruption of their reproductive systems. Grassroots EJ organizations often worked with researchers to identify the source of these potential health hazards relaying this information to their communities. We found these organizations key in connecting Black women and girls to appropriate health care access.
Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health educationSocial and behavioral sciences
Learning Objectives:
Name five active environmental justice grassroots organizations across the southeastern US.
Explain how oral narratives from women and girls can be used to identify exposure to adverse environmental conditions.
List five environmental hazards that have the potential to adversely affect the health of women and girls.
Keyword(s): Women's Health, Environmental Justice
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have been conducting qualitative research on environmental justice in the Southeast for more than twenty years. For over nine years I have directed the Africana Women's Studies program at Bennett College. I have presented on issues involving the environment and women in various venues including as an invited speaker. In October 2012 I received the Steve Wing International Environmental Justice Academic Award.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.