Across the United States, people of color and poor communities have been subjected to toxic pollution and other environmental hazards in the places where we live, work, and play. The U.S. government has established a complex environmental regulatory system that facilitates and perpetuates environmental racism and injustice. By permitting toxic and hazardous facilities to operate in close proximity to people of color and poor communities, the U.S. government prioritizes the economic interests of polluting industries above the protection of the fundamental human rights to life, health, racial equality, and security of one’s home.
AEHR advocates for what is at the heart of the struggle for environmental justice – the protection of life, health, and racial equality – by applying human rights laws to remedy governmental systems that subject communities, especially communities of color, to severely toxic environments.