Mari Leslie

This Vox article discusses the connections of some chronic conditions, like asthma, and severe cases of COVID-19. Asthma can be caused by air pollution, and studies suggest race and income impact how much air pollution people are exposed to. This is one potential reason why there are racial disparities in the number of COVID cases and mortality rates–that and, the inept governmental response to communities such as Native American reservations. This indicates that not only is COVID a health, mental health, and economic crisis facing our society, but also a crisis of environmental racism–making it an issue of environmental justice as well. Decades of ignoring environmental issues in lower-income areas has led to many people being more vulnerable to this virus.

Trans, femme and nonbinary people make up an important part of our society. They are at higher risk for violence, especially those who are also BIPOC. Equality is important and lifting up the voices of those who are systematically and traditionally marginalized and harmed is extremely important in creating a just and sustainable society.

I learned that Superfund sites are hazardous waste sites, and living near to one can be detrimental to one’s health. Using the website tool ToxicSites (a map version of the EPA’s list), I learned that there are no hazardous waste sites that are very close to my town, the closest being about 22 miles away. I’m sure this is no accident, as my suburb and the surrounding cities tend to be middle-class or upper-middle-class and often are predominantly white. According to this report by the Shriver Center on Poverty Law, 70% of hazardous waste Superfund sites are located within one mile of federally-assisted housing (p. 2). The report goes on to state that “racism played a driving force in determining where federally assisted housing was built. In many cases, in concert with lawfully sanctioned segregation, federally assisted housing was intentionally placed near contaminated areas, and industry was often sited near existing federally assisted housing, without consideration of the public health implications for residents” (p. 3). The Shriver Center’s report only covers one aspect of environmental racism and injustice, and its findings are shocking.

I went for a social distance walk with my friend through the main street of my town, and I noticed a lot more detail than I do while driving. I paid more attention to the political signs and to people's front gardens, and I also noticed the other people walking around with their kids and dogs. It felt a lot less "boring" than it does normally and I did feel a little stronger connection to the town.

The voting records of the Oregon senators (Merkley and Wyden) and my representative (Bonamici) are strong on environmental issues. The current state senator for my district is Kim Thatcher (R) who has voted against environmental measures and was one of the senators to walk out/boycott a legislative session on a carbon tax this past February, which led to them leaving the state. I'm glad that nationally my district is represented well on environment issues however state-wide Thatcher is disappointing. If she loses her bid for Secretary of State, I will continue to write to her expressing my disappointment on her environmental record.

In How to Combat Online Voter Suppression, voter suppression is defined as “efforts to discourage or prevent certain groups of people from voting”. As I did a deep dive into this topic, I learned about common techniques used by politicians to restrict access to voting for political reasons. The ACLU lists voter ID laws, cuts to early voting, mass purges to the voter registration rolls and other forms of systematic disenfranchisement as one way of subversively impacting our ability to vote while often appearing innocuous on the outside. Politicians also use gerrymandering, which is when they redraw districts so that the outcomes are likely to fall more in their favor. Communities which are already systematically oppressed are most likely to fall victim to voter suppression, including BIPOC and people with disabilities. Other populations impacted include the elderly and students (the example is provided of how “Six in ten college students come from out of state in New Hampshire, the state trying to block residents with out of state drivers’ licenses”). Felony disenfranchisement varies state-to-state – some people with felony convictions are prohibited from voting only while incarcerated while others are banned for life, even if they are released from prison and are active citizens. In Oregon, people can thankfully vote when they are not in prison, while in Iowa, Kentucky and Virginia people with felony convictions are permanently barred from voting. Again, due to racial bias found in the justice system this affects black people on a disproportionate level. Everyone is affected by voter suppression, but there are often attempts to target certain populations who could threaten the incumbent politicians/political party. Voter suppression can occur online as well, through messages which undermine trust in our election system, such as the reliability of mail-in-voting and voter fraud. Certain messages can even be targeted through advertising to specific populations as well on platforms like Instagram and Facebook.

I decided to look up a company that provides less-waste options for shampoo/conditioner/razors, and I made the leap and purchased a few trial sizes and a metal razor. I've always used plastic (disposable after a few uses) razors and imagining the amount of waste I've created was enough to push me to make a change! This company also ships using recycled/reused products that should be mostly if not completely recyclable or home-compostable. I've been using a bamboo toothbrush as well for about three months and honestly love it as well. This is the only real purchase I've made except for food the past few days and it feels fairly guilt-free.

I double-checked my family and I are registered to vote last week, and this Saturday I volunteered on the phone and was able to help a few people find nearby voter drop boxes in a critical state (Arizona). Voting is important because it is one of many ways we as citizens can make our voices heard and impact the direction our country is going! Voter disenfranchisement (including poll taxes, voter ID laws and gerrymandering) is a huge issue and is used to undermine the will of the people. Helping others make sure they can vote and voting yourself is one way of many we can fight against voting injustices.

Bees in particular are keystone species which many other species depend on. Pollinators are important for plant reproduction and genetic diversity, and they help support native plants. It's not just bees – butterflies, moths, hummingbirds, flies, and even beetles act as pollinators in a garden! One important thing I learned is to plant clumps or patches of the same type of plant to increase pollination efficiency and make it easier for the pollinators to get more food and pollinate receptive plants. I got a guide for my region here by putting in my zip code, and it was really informative!