Introduction
United States has stood to be one of the world’s economic power houses. The country has been recognized as one of the nations with more than enough resources that could fully support its citizens. This however, resulted in some negative effects which include ecological destruction and racial discrimination.
Though considered as having some of the best environmental laws, the communities within the country are not given equal treatment. The policies safeguarding the environment have not fully addressed some equal benefits to all members of the society since some communities are generally overlooked when it comes to usage of land and agriculture (Schelhas 7).
Access to arable land has been a difficult task for the minority blacks who live in the USA. Large chunks of land and other natural assets have been dominated by the wealthy, majority of which are whites. The less privileged have been denied access to these natural resources and also used as damping sites for environmental wastes. This calls for the importance of including asset-building in the democratic strategy in order to account for sustainability and most importantly empowering the community (West 13).
Research questions
The research will seek to answer the following questions;
- To what extent do public policies contribute in reducing or increasing the cases of racial inequality in agricultural and environmental affairs?
- What brings about the unequal exposure to environmental protection?
- What policies can help reduce racism, raise productivity and increase employment opportunities?
Literature Review
According to Collin and Robin (13) political and logistical problems are the main barriers to environmental and agricultural justice. There is no fixed relationship, between agricultural development and environmental stress. Both are determined by national policies and by investments that seek to increase research capacity and the knowledge needed to move from racial based society to a liberal society which treats human being with equal rights (Collin and Robin 13).
Studies have revealed that agricultural work is crucial in the economy of a nation, and much attention should be given to both the rate and pattern of its development. Non-farm activities and policies that affect interactions between agriculture and industry are also important determinants of the level of employment and social status (West 13).
According to Pefia (6), “there is a direct relationship between the persistence of environmental racism in farm work and the political, legal and economic conditions that maintain farm workers in a state of labor repression.” This was an implication that unequal trends in the environmental protection as well as unequal exposure to the environmental dangers emanated from the collective effects of several conditions and these conditions were more of economical, political and legal.
The government’s public policies and laws that were put in place to give support to the farm labor contractor system gave limitations on legal grounds that could enable farm workers to organize themselves for the protection of their rights (West 13). According to Majka, immigrant status which has not been documented of a large number of farm workers weakened even more the farmer’s capacity to deal with the injustice challenge that face them in the agricultural place of work.
The absence of the legal frameworks or the frameworks that are weak for organizing unions, attaining collaborative rights for bargaining, and the right to protest, presented greatest grave barriers to the achievement of the environmental justice for these workers (Majka and Majka). Basically, this implied that as long as the farm workers were still defenseless and unorganized, they still had limited ability to deal with the environmental racism in their work places as well as in the places they live.
There existed some level of discrimination in US Department of Agriculture (USDA) loan, credit and subsidy program (Schelhas 7). Unequal treatment of farmers of color as well as discrimination imposed by the United States Department of Agriculture engaged a well documented legacy of institutionalized racism. There was acceptance by the internal report made by the Civil Rights Action Team of lack of success of the United States Department of Agriculture to go in line with the laws of federal civil rights.
In the United States of America, Racial discrimination in USDA was left greatly unchecked at a time when Reagan administration came to an end. This was brought back by the Clinton administration in the year 1996 but the destruction had been done and the civil rights enforcement complaints were still eminent all through the 1990s (Swanston, 82).
Global environmental study shows that there are so many environmental issues around the world that people have to contend with irrespective of their race or color. Amongst these environmental hazards include; dirty water, polluted air, waste treatment areas, municipal dumping sites, and government or industrial disposal facilities amongst others.
However, researches have revealed that within the United States these environmental hazards have been worsened by the practice of racism. The existing environmental policies and practices are of great disadvantage to some individual communities of the same race.
These policies have brought about environmental racism which has really benefited northern counties as opposed to Southern counties. According to Majka and Majka, environmental discrimination can be likened to institutional discrimination which is defines as “actions or practices carried out by members of dominant racial or ethnic groups that have differential and negative impact on members of subordinate, racial and ethnic, groups.
These policies brought about extreme exploitation of arable land and the natural environment in favor of the native population. Those who form the numerical minority in politics and in any other sector were subjected to policy discrimination (Majka and Majka).
The country under its current policies placed numerous strains on the environments associated with the under-privileged within the society mostly people of different race. This is seen in industries dealing with massive mining and extraction of resources. Globalization has made it easier for international companies to occupy places that have least environmental rules and regulations, cheap labor and good consumer base.
Relevance of the Study
This research tends to champion for the restoration and non-discriminating use of natural assets. It brings to the realization that natural assets are not limited but comprise variety of things such as land, clean air and water. The study seeks to show the necessity of utilizing agricultural land and environment with equality in mind.
This focuses on reducing poverty level alongside building of financial wealth amongst the communities. The study will seek to identify give clear effects of public policies on natural resources and their effects on both rich and poor (West 13). The report will seek to find out why minority farmers have lost significant amounts of land and potential farm income as a result of discrimination by Farm Service Agency programs and the programs by its predecessor agencies (Schelhas 7)
Methodology
Both quantitative and qualitative methods of study will be applied in this case. Literature survey study on the uses and challenges of environmental policies on agriculture and racism will form the basis of the study. The risks, challenges and benefits of Environmental policies will be identified and accounted for by use of examples.
Part of the data will be obtained from the primary sources which provide explicit information on inequality brought about by poor government policies. Questionnaires will be prepared for use during structured interviews respondents being community members and environmental officials
Qualitative method helps in easier understanding of data since it emphasizes on direct information from people’s words and actions. Qualitative method has the characteristic that it should gather information on acquired data, based on quantitative methods. The task of understanding and presenting qualitative research proved to be very demanding as statistics.
Empirical Analysis
Inductive coding will be used to reveal how consistent the research is with the information given. The data will be broken down and re-organized to achieve the intended objective. The grouped data will then be categorized for the purposes of comparison that will help in providing practical reality of the research (Straus and Corbin). For quantitative analysis Chi-square analysis test will be utilized. The critical alpha level that will be used to measure discrepancies is 0.05.
Empirical research design is developed in order to help in exploring the theory discussed in this paper. Individual calculations will be measured based on the interviews conducted and previous data collected statistically analyzed. Available database having track details on the nature of the effect of public policies on agricultural land and environment based on race will be analyzed.
Meta analysis will be conducted to include all the effects of public policies on racial inequality down the previous years. This research seeks to establish an understanding between the research objectives and findings from the interview (Strauss and Corbin).
This research employ the use of Grounded theory which will be used for the purposes of interpreting the data collected. Collecting, interpreting and understanding of data will be done best in grounded theory, where the collection of data, its analysis and theory are closely related bringing some relevance to the research undertaken (Strauss and Corbin).
There is the utilization of peer debriefing which ensures that the required consistency is achieved. For the purposes of coding, the interview scripts are scrutinized to ensure identification of similar or different opinions, the similar ideas are identified substantiated and all the comments highlighted within the transcript margins.
Two different evaluators are used each making his own coding frame for sampling the sub-transcripts (sub-sample used n=2). The different findings will then be compared to ensure accuracy of the coded data. From this a coding frame is produced that is appropriately utilized on the whole data collected. The data will then be thoroughly compared and analysed to tally with the requirements as per grounded theory approach.
Data collection will also be followed by the process whereby the data is grouped into themes which assist in detailed description of the research based on the social and environmental settings. The validity of the research will be based on transparency and viability of message conveyed. Individual narrative interviews are conducted concurrently with the process of transcription and coding of data which is later concentrated and categorized for analysis (Strauss and Corbin).
Works Cited
Collin, Robert & Robin, Morris. “The Role of Communities in Environmental Decisions: Communities Speaking for Themselves,” Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation Volume, 13 (1998): 10-58
Majka, Charles and Majka, Thomas. Organizing US farm workers: A continuous struggle. In. Hungry for profit: The agribusiness threat to farmers, food and the environment, ed. F Mgdoff, J B Foster, and F H Buttel. New York: Monthly Review Press. 2010.
Pefia, Devon. “Environmental justice and sustainable agriculture: Linking ecological and social sides of sustainability”. Resources paper series, 23 (October 2002):34-48
Schelhas, John. Race, Ethnicity, and Natural Resources in the United States: A Review. Natural Resources Journal. 42, (2002): 30-110
Swanston, Stephen. Environmental Justice: mobilizing for the 21st Century: Environmental justice and environmental quality benefits: The oldest, most pernicious struggle and hope for burdened communities. Carolina: Academic Press, 2002.
Strauss, Corbin. Basics of qualitative research: Grounded theory procedures and Techniques. London, 1990. Print
Timmer. Agriculture and the state: Growth, employment, and poverty In developing countries, Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1991
West, Patrick. “Urban region parks and black minorities; subculture, marginality, and interracial relations in park use in Detroit metropolitan area”. Leisure sciences 11, (2009): 11-28