Another instance of racial discrimination has been uncovered, this time by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s civil-rights office. It’s been discovered that the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) discriminated against African American’s residing in Flint “during the permitting of a power plant” in Genesee County more than two decades ago. Since it’s construction, the Genesee Power Plant burned “wood waste and other debris from 1992 through 1994.”
Another instance of racial discrimination has been uncovered, this time by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) civil-rights office. It’s been discovered that the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) discriminated against African American’s residing in Flint “during the permitting of a power plant” in Genesee County more than two decades ago. While in operation, the Genesee Power Plant burned “wood waste and other debris from 1992 through 1994.”
In a recent letter dated January 19 of this year, the office detailed out their findings of an investigation, claiming, “African Americans were treated less favorably than non-African Americans.” How so? Well, many argue that Michigan environmental officials did everything from “posting uniformed, armed guards at public hearings to limiting comment time.”
One example occurred in October of 1994. At a hearing to discuss the power plant permit, “armed state conservation officers were stationed” around the meeting space. The crowd gathered was predominately African American, and it was the only permit hearing out of two that the “MDEQ asked armed officers from its conservation department to attend.”
Why the excessive show of force for something like a permit hearing?
Well, EPA officials believe the appearance of armed guards at the meeting was an intimidation tactic. In fact, the EPA said, that prior to the meetings, “the presence of uniformed, armed police was uncommon and assigning such officers seems only to have occurred in communities with high populations of African-Americans.” According to the EPA’s report:
“There is no evidence in the record that personnel safety may have been a concern due to the controversial nature of an issue. In evaluating the use of armed and uniformed officers in this situation, the EPA considered the intimidation factor through threat of police force as historically used against African-Americans when attempting to exercise their rights.”
Other discrimination complaints include instances during meetings where African American residents weren’t allowed to have their voices heard because “hearings were closed early or comment periods were limited.” Unfortunately, the EPA investigation found that the MDEQ has done little in way of changing “its policies to address complaints about public participation at hearings.”
In response to the EPA’s findings, the MDEQ said it “disagrees with the EPA assertion that MDEQ has not taken sufficient action to address public participation, especially in minority communities.” They went on to explain that part of their job is to “respect Michigan residents and to protect public health and the environment.”
Unfortunately, this instance of racial discrimination, even if it occurred 20 years ago, is evidence that racism is still alive in America. Fortunately, however, this finding was the “first by the EPA’s Office of Civil Rights Compliance in 22 years,” so perhaps some progress is being made.
Sources:
EPA Finds Civil Rights Discrimination in Flint — Two Decades Later
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