MWEJN Members Huda Alkaff & Donele Wilkins publish joint op-ed: “Pay up: Now is the Time for Bold Investment in Environmental Justice Groups”
Huda Alkaff and Donele Wilkins' joint op-ed was published on Friday, June 4, 2021 at Colorlines:
See: https://www.colorlines.com/articles/pay-now-time-bold-investment-environmental-justice-groups-op-ed
Pay Up: Now is the Time for Bold Investment in Environmental Justice Groups [Op-Ed]
Two environmental justice leaders in the Midwest offer solutions to the Biden-Harris Administration. Their recommendations include:
Ensure that 100 percent of the investments do no harm to frontline and environmental justice communities
Make federal funds accessible and distribute them equally, ensuring that small organizations such as ours can access resources and aren’t blocked out by larger organizations who have more resources, hindered by bureaucratic red tape, or excluded based on inequitable assessment criteria
Invest financially in people of color-led grassroots organizations to acknowledge their efforts and ensure future viability; grant us the resources to offer community-based technical assistance and equitable solutions
Require women of color and environmental justice advocates to be compensated on par with others who are doing work in this field