I have lived in Virginia most of my life, visiting the lush fields of the Shenandoah Valley, and looking out over the clear waters of York Beach. These landscapes are part of what makes this state beautiful. Sadly, though, due to dangerous and reckless policies passed by the Trump administration, that beauty may soon be obscured by clouds of air pollution, the lush fields and clear waters filled with toxic chemicals.
Indeed, President Donald Trump has not only doubled down on his promise to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs across the public and private sectors, proudly declaring that his administration has “ended the tyranny of diversity, equity, and inclusion,” he also claims he is ushering in America’s “golden age.” But his relentless attacks on climate progress, clean air and environmental protections make it clear that this golden age is only for a privileged few.
In fact, now that the Environmental Protection Agency’s decades-long efforts to combat environmental injustice are being unraveled, one thing is becoming clear: This may not be a golden age for the families who can’t afford air conditioning as extreme heat waves worsen, or for children forced to play near toxic waste sites, or for Black Americans exposed to 1.54 times more fine particulate matter than the overall population.
In Virginia, low-income and communities of color are already suffering from environmental hazards. In Newport News, the Southeast Community has complained about heavy air pollution for decades.
“Our community is saturated with particulate matter because of all the things that have happened around us,” Newport News Vice Mayor Saundra Nelson Cherry told the Virginia Mercury. Pollution from Interstate 664, coupled with industrial emissions, has led to a disproportionate health burden on residents. By gutting the EPA, these burdens will become more onerous.
As a woman of color witnessing Trump’s gleeful plundering of EPA protections and related DEI policies, I can’t help but feel angry, frustrated and helpless. I have worked hard to create opportunities for myself and my children while proving that my contributions are just as valid as my counterparts, regardless of race or gender.
Similarly, in my work with Moms Clean Air Force, I have strived to ensure that my children — and all children — have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. Now, I am left wondering what these reckless and dangerous cuts mean not just to me and my family, but countless others.
The EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice once played a key role in protecting those most vulnerable to pollution. Now, entire communities have lost vital public health safeguards. Our ability to track environmental hazards is compromised. Industries will operate with few, if any, pollution controls. Simply put, more people — especially children of color — will suffer.
Already, “Children of color are up to 10 times more likely to be exposed to toxins, pollution and climate change than other children. In the U.S., rates of childhood asthma are twice as high among Black children as white children likely because of higher concentrations of particulate air pollution in Black communities,” according to the Stanford University Doerr School of Sustainability.
The majority of these statistics show that these disparities persist regardless of socioeconomic status. In Virginia, 13.4% of children have asthma, more than double the national rate.
Trump is erasing years of progress, sending a clear message that our children’s health, opportunities, and futures are expendable in the name of power and profit. Convincing the administration that environmental justice matters might be a lost cause. (Or maybe not — I can’t help but hold out hope).
But when we pledge allegiance to the American flag, don’t we end by pledging “justice for all?” So why is Trump so determined to paint justice as so un-American?
Ideological differences aside, virtually everyone in this country should agree that healthy families and healthy children are the true foundation of a golden age in America.
Stephanie Reese of Montclair is director of DEIJ and strategic implementation at Moms Clean Air Force, a national coalition committed to securing a safe and healthy future for all children by fighting against air pollution.
Originally Published: March 29, 2025 at 6:05 PM EDT