Tomasita González, environmental-justice organizer, answers questions | Grist | InterActivist

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Tomasita González, of SouthWest Organizing Project.

Albuquerque and Santa Fe, and probably other cities and towns in New Mexico, are seeing lots of development of housing for new residents. What are the environmental implications? How seriously is the water supply strained? Are underprivileged or minority communities affected? -- Mark Stephen Caponigro, New York, N.Y.

Thanks for the question, Mark. SouthWest Organizing Project is currently looking to study race and class and residential water usage in the state. Who's using all this water, and how can we reduce that use? As I write, Intel (you know, inside your computer) uses millions of gallons of water per day while residents and children who live on Pajarito Mesa don't have access to clean, safe, and running water, electricity, or other basic services.

A number of Navajo, and perhaps other Native Americans, are employed in uranium-mining operations in New Mexico. This sort of work is said to be unhealthful for workers. Is that true? Is it part of a pattern of overlooking the health issues of Native Americans? -- Mark Stephen Caponigro, New York, N.Y.

The complete nuclear cycle runs its course in New Mexico. From the testing of the first atomic bomb at the Trinity site, to the mining of uranium (yes, mostly from indigenous lands), to the research and development of the next generation of nuclear weaponry in our many national labs, to the storage of weapons of mass destruction, and finally to the dumping of nuclear waste in southern New Mexico's Waste Isolation Pilot Program.

Uranium mining on Native land has had devastating health implications not only for workers but also for whole pueblos and communities.

As a kind of "nuclear colony" of the United States, New Mexico continues to rank last or next-to-last in all economic indicators -- child poverty, income, education, access to health care and insurance, etc.

This destructive nuclear cycle and legacy, though, has not come without resistance, particularly from Native Americans like the late Dorothy Purly of Laguna Pueblo.

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I am a Mexican interested in U.S.-Mexico border pollution caused by major facilities, both public and private. Do you plan to collaborate with Mexican civil organizations on this matter? -- Angel Manzano-Magdaleno, Mexico City, Mexico

SWOP is a founding member of the Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice, a binational network of social, economic, and environmental-justice organizations along the U.S.-Mexico border. I will be in Mexico City next week for the World Water Forum. In May, we're signed on to participate in the first Foro Social Fronterizo to be held in Juarez/El Paso.

Are there English, Spanish, or bilingual children's books you'd recommend that communicate ecological ideas or principles you think are important for environmental justice? Do you have favorite authors/poems/literature that give you inspiration/guidance? -- Kimberly Ruffin, Lewiston, Maine

¡Sí, Se Puede! Yes, We Can!, by Diana Cohn, about the 2000 janitors' strike in L.A., is one my kids like.

Also, our cultural youth group, Jóvenes Unidos, puts on plays, art exhibitions, musical performances, and other forms of culture to communicate and inform our communities about environmental and other issues.

You use the term "corporate globalization." I don't understand that; what is it? -- Thom Holland, San Diego, Calif.

We live in a world in which a tube of toothpaste has more rights than a human being, and capital is valued more than human life. That's corporate globalization.

This is the first time I have been aware of SWOP. It has been around a long time, but kind of in the shadows. Are you becoming more visible, or am I the one in the dark? -- Jerry Broadbent, Bucoda, Wash.

Ouch. Where you been, man?

As an Albuquerquean, how do you feel the undocumented-worker problem can be addressed to both protect social services for all and stop the exploitation -- chemical exposure, low wages, no worker's comp -- of immigrants? -- Jared Webb, Rocky Mount, Va.

Participatory democracy and direct action. It's an inspiring combination.

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This is just a hearty "thank you" for what you are doing. I grew up in Five Points in Albuquerque. I am a Sister of Charity and have been an environmentalist for many years. Since 1970, I have been involved in renewable energy -- built two solar buildings --- and also have given over 1,600 workshops, seminars, and retreats in areas of eco-spirituality, sustainable futures, renewable energy, etc. Keep up the wonderful work! It's nice to see another Gonzalez who is passionately committed to moving as many folks as possible toward a sustainable future. -- Sister Paula Gonzalez, Cincinnati, Ohio

Right on, Sister. Maybe sometime in the future we can hook up and share some ideas about renewable energy. One of our big campaigns is to get basic services -- like running water, electricity, roads, school transportation, etc. -- into a low-income community of color where over 400 families live, including mine. This community is called the Pajarito Mesa. Right now the community is working on getting water, but we have in mind solar or wind for energy.

Questions from Grist editors | Questions from readers

SWOP and Go

Tomasita González, environmental-justice organizer, answers readers' questions