Comment by ajxs

The re-framing of this story within the narrative of American racial conflict feels remarkably cheap. Don't misinterpret this as a lack of sympathy for those residents, I feel quite the opposite. I feel strongly about this in particular, that air and water quality is a major issue. One where those impacted are particularly powerless to protect themselves. However I feel that pushing the racial component of the story cheapened an otherwise good article. Whether the people impacted are predominantly African-American is likely incidental. This is likely the effect, and not the cause. Economically marginalised individuals of all backgrounds are most likely to be impacted by this kind of pollution. If you make any environment unpleasant, people with the means to leave will do so, selecting for the most marginalised populations. Regardless, this is ridiculous... How is this acceptable within the first world?