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Garbage Wars by David Naguib Pellow

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Garbage Wars

The Struggle for Environmental Justice in Chicago

The Struggle for Environmental Justice in Chicago

By David Naguib Pellow

By David Naguib Pellow

By David Naguib Pellow

By David Naguib Pellow

Best Seller

Part of Urban and Industrial Environments

Part of Urban and Industrial Environments

Paperback $24.95

Sep 17, 2004 | ISBN 9780262661874

Ebook $18.99

Sep 17, 2004 | ISBN 9780262250290

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    About Garbage Wars

    A study of the struggle for environmental justice, focusing on conflicts over solid waste and pollution in Chicago.

    In Garbage Wars, the sociologist David Pellow describes the politics of garbage in Chicago. He shows how garbage affects residents in vulnerable communities and poses health risks to those who dispose of it. He follows the trash, the pollution, the hazards, and the people who encountered them in the period 1880-2000. What unfolds is a tug of war among social movements, government, and industry over how we manage our waste, who benefits, and who pays the costs.

    Studies demonstrate that minority and low-income communities bear a disproportionate burden of environmental hazards. Pellow analyzes how and why environmental inequalities are created. He also explains how class and racial politics have influenced the waste industry throughout the history of Chicago and the United States. After examining the roles of social movements and workers in defining, resisting, and shaping garbage disposal in the United States, he concludes that some environmental groups and people of color have actually contributed to environmental inequality.

    By highlighting conflicts over waste dumping, incineration, landfills, and recycling, Pellow provides a historical view of the garbage industry throughout the life cycle of waste. Although his focus is on Chicago, he places the trends and conflicts in a broader context, describing how communities throughout the United States have resisted the waste industry’s efforts to locate hazardous facilities in their backyards. The book closes with suggestions for how communities can work more effectively for environmental justice and safe, sustainable waste management.

    About Garbage Wars

    A study of the struggle for environmental justice, focusing on conflicts over solid waste and pollution in Chicago.

    In Garbage Wars, the sociologist David Pellow describes the politics of garbage in Chicago. He shows how garbage affects residents in vulnerable communities and poses health risks to those who dispose of it. He follows the trash, the pollution, the hazards, and the people who encountered them in the period 1880-2000. What unfolds is a tug of war among social movements, government, and industry over how we manage our waste, who benefits, and who pays the costs.

    Studies demonstrate that minority and low-income communities bear a disproportionate burden of environmental hazards. Pellow analyzes how and why environmental inequalities are created. He also explains how class and racial politics have influenced the waste industry throughout the history of Chicago and the United States. After examining the roles of social movements and workers in defining, resisting, and shaping garbage disposal in the United States, he concludes that some environmental groups and people of color have actually contributed to environmental inequality.

    By highlighting conflicts over waste dumping, incineration, landfills, and recycling, Pellow provides a historical view of the garbage industry throughout the life cycle of waste. Although his focus is on Chicago, he places the trends and conflicts in a broader context, describing how communities throughout the United States have resisted the waste industry’s efforts to locate hazardous facilities in their backyards. The book closes with suggestions for how communities can work more effectively for environmental justice and safe, sustainable waste management.

    Product Details

    Category: Science | Domestic Politics

    Paperback | $24.95
    Published by The MIT Press
    Sep 17, 2004 | 254 Pages | 6 x 9 | ISBN 9780262661874

    Category: Science | Domestic Politics

    Ebook | $18.99
    Published by The MIT Press
    Sep 17, 2004 | 254 Pages | 6 x 9 | ISBN 9780262250290

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    Praise

    …insightfully assesses the ability of those at the bottom of the heap to mount an effective resistance for environmental justice.—Environment—

    …An indispensable book for anyone interested in waste…or the continued effects of racism and classism in American society.

    —The Public Historian—

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