<![CDATA[Grist - Comment Feed for Reflecting on his daughter’s future, a father says the green movement must diversify]]> Grist Comment Feed en Comment #1 by aozeba http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/ Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:00:17 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/1 Beautiful

Thanks for your beautifully written and thoughtful article. I was almost moved to tears while I imagined your daughter and everyone like her. As a halfling myself, I've definitely encountered a lot of ignorance and homogeneity. One problem I see is that often when people try to address race in environmental groups only a few people of color are present, and it falls on them to describe their experiences, which gets annoying after a while. Many white environmentalists take too much of an apologetic tone when discussing race, either with each other or with people of color. Its difficult to strike a balance between talking and addressing the issue and having it take over and become overwhelming. I was surprised you didn't mention organizations working towards green jobs in inner cities, because I consider them the vanguard in diversification. These include Green For All ( http://www.greenforall.org/ ), Sustainable South Bronx ( http://www.ssbx.org/ ), and Urban Habitat ( http://www.urbanhabitat.org/rpe ).  

]]> Beautiful

Thanks for your beautifully written and thoughtful article. I was almost moved to tears while I imagined your daughter and everyone like her. As a halfling myself, I've definitely encountered a lot of ignorance and homogeneity. One problem I see is that often when people try to address race in environmental groups only a few people of color are present, and it falls on them to describe their experiences, which gets annoying after a while. Many white environmentalists take too much of an apologetic tone when discussing race, either with each other or with people of color. Its difficult to strike a balance between talking and addressing the issue and having it take over and become overwhelming. I was surprised you didn't mention organizations working towards green jobs in inner cities, because I consider them the vanguard in diversification. These include Green For All ( http://www.greenforall.org/ ), Sustainable South Bronx ( http://www.ssbx.org/ ), and Urban Habitat ( http://www.urbanhabitat.org/rpe ).  

]]> Comment #2 by MAD MAC http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/ Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:49:21 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/2 I hate to be the stick in the mud

But race is irrelevant. The issues confront us all equally regardless of race. If you were being actively kept out of the movement because of your race, I would agree. But this is sort of like the baseball / basketball race issue. Basketball is overwhelming represented by "African Americans." Baseball, by Latinos and "European Americans." Does this mean that there is some sort of latent racism in both sports keeping the other race out? No, it's culture.

If there's an issue here, it is one in which blacks need to gain more awareness (and this is doubtless tied to educational opportunities - but then we can go down an entire sociological history of the country which is pointless isn't it?) of how environmental issue are and will impact on them and why they need to take an interest in this issue as much as yuppie whites have.

]]> I hate to be the stick in the mud

But race is irrelevant. The issues confront us all equally regardless of race. If you were being actively kept out of the movement because of your race, I would agree. But this is sort of like the baseball / basketball race issue. Basketball is overwhelming represented by "African Americans." Baseball, by Latinos and "European Americans." Does this mean that there is some sort of latent racism in both sports keeping the other race out? No, it's culture.

If there's an issue here, it is one in which blacks need to gain more awareness (and this is doubtless tied to educational opportunities - but then we can go down an entire sociological history of the country which is pointless isn't it?) of how environmental issue are and will impact on them and why they need to take an interest in this issue as much as yuppie whites have.

]]> Comment #3 by EnvironmentalDiversity http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/ Tue, 24 Jun 2008 04:58:53 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/3 Openness, Inclusion, and Empathy

The comment above is an example of how much work we need to do.

]]> Openness, Inclusion, and Empathy

The comment above is an example of how much work we need to do.

]]> Comment #4 by bebedos http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/ Wed, 02 Jul 2008 14:00:48 -0700 http://www.grist.org/article/diversity/4 Realistic and Beautiful Article

I agree. The comment above is a great example of the kind of divisive thinking that is implicit in the environmental movement.  Race is not irrelevant. Perhaps it is when your race is the dominant one, the one that claims a sense of superiority, and the one that is represented in every corner of your life.

]]> Realistic and Beautiful Article

I agree. The comment above is a great example of the kind of divisive thinking that is implicit in the environmental movement.  Race is not irrelevant. Perhaps it is when your race is the dominant one, the one that claims a sense of superiority, and the one that is represented in every corner of your life.

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