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WE ACT on Capitol Hill

On February 26-27, 2019, WE ACT and fellow environmental justice champions from around the country visited Washington, D.C. to elevate our concerns about the myriad of environmental and health issues disproportionately affecting low-income communities and communities of color. In particular,

Reflecting on MLK’s Dream of Conquering Materialism by Creating Healthier Communities and Good Jobs

A year before his assassination, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. warned us that “when machines and computers, profit motives and property rights, are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, extreme materialism and militarism are incapable of

What would happen to health and housing in NYC if tenants had as much power as landlords?

New York City is in the throes of one of the worst housing crises in generations. Affordability is plummeting, displacement and homelessness have reached record levels, and the severe public health consequences of the living conditions that feed gentrification will

The How’s, Where’s and Why’s of Lead

On September 26th, 2018 the Federal Government of the United States’ lawsuit against the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), US v. NYCHA 18 Civ 5213 (WHP), had a public hearing. Among other housing safety and sanitary violations, lead paint

Safe, Affordable, Clean and Dignified Housing is Always the Key to Health

I grew up in California’s wine country with mild and wet weather throughout the winter. My family’s three-bedroom apartment would be mostly warm and cozy during those months but the bedroom I shared with my younger sister would be damp

Growing Old

I was raised in Harlem from birth, born at the old Women’s Hospital on February 17th, 1950. My most vivid memories from my childhood are from my home on 116th Street between 8th and Manhattan Avenue. Living there with my

Transforming Community Spaces: Lessons from West Harlem Group Association

“When Architects and Designers specify better, healthier building products for housing renovations it can make a big impact on the lives of residents and provide concrete evidence for change.” —Alison Mears, Director, Healthy Materials Lab Research demonstrates that substantial human health

People’s Climate Movement Mobilization Meeting Speech

Good evening everyone. My name is Langa Sibanda, I am seventeen years old, and I am here with WE ACT for Environmental Justice. I attend the Beacon School in Hell’s Kitchen, but I reside in West Harlem. Tonight, I am

Let’s Rap About Flint

As famous rapper J.Cole once said, “Lemme take y’all back man as I do so well…” It’s January 2016. You’re on the way to the gym to keep that New Year’s resolution you had made about being healthier. Driving in

Home is Where the Heart – and Lungs Are

The Health Threats of Substandard Housing and Respiratory Illness in Low-Income Communities Whenever someone asks me where I grew up, I always pay homage to Bushwick, a working-class neighborhood in northern Brooklyn. But some of my earliest memories are from