Afterglow

The air pollution data we utilize for this project comes from a collaboration between the artist Nigel Cummings of UMass Amherst LARP and the UMass Amherst Political Economy Research Institute, specifically their PERI 100 Air Toxics at Schools Database. The database was created so parents, students, and concerned community members could understand what air pollutants have been detected in the air at their schools. Utilizing this connection, I can select any coordinates in the country and receive a detailed list of air pollutants, their percentage, which companies or addresses these chemicals come from, and the adverse effects of said pollutants. It is important to note that the data displayed is from the previous year, and the idea in its creation was that a community could install updated pieces every year, tracking the effectiveness of efforts to mitigate air pollution. The entire project is done to highlight Public Information Access and the Public Right to Know, which states that every citizen has the right to know what is in the air we breathe and the right not to breathe it in. At the heart, Afterglow highlights the issues of clean air access, discriminatory planning practices, spatial politics, and climate change.

While the air quality has improved for many Americans, the above controls have not benefited the population equitably.  Almost half of Americans still breathe toxic air.  More specifically, in its 2020 State of the Air report, the American Lung Association, an organization that tracks particulate and ozone pollution, revealed that “more than 4 in 10 people – 135 million in the US – live in counties with unhealthy levels of particle or ozone pollution” (Rosa-Aquino, 2021).  Of those over 4 in ten people, it is almost guaranteed that a large percentage of these individuals belong to one of the following high-risk categories.  Long-time victims of systemic, spatial, and environmental racism, people of color account for 70 of the 135 million Americans still breathing polluted air.  This is incredibly upsetting when remembering that of the total US population of roughly 328 million, people of color account for 77 million of that number.  As of 2020, this means that only 7 million or 10 percent of the American minority population live in a community where air quality is not detrimental to their health and well-being (Census QuickFacts, 2019). Additionally, individuals experiencing poverty make up over 15.8 million of this 135 million.  30.6 million children under 18 and 20.1 million adults over 65 are also inhaling polluted air.  The final two high-risk groups are people with underlying health conditions such as “asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease, and people who smoke” (American Lung Association, 2020).  Additionally, many of the members of these high-risk communities also live in and belong to environmental justice communities.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines environmental justice as “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income, with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies” (EPA, 2021).  While this is certainly something that would be ideal and perhaps even necessary for communities in this country and across the world, not enough has been done to transform this goal from a nice idea into reality and attain this state of true environmental justice.  For many people, the invisibility of these environmental threats prevents them from understanding just how vital clean waters, lands, and skies are.  In America, it has become commonplace to assign health issues as the blame for heightened mortality rates for minority and low-income individuals.  However, the trustworthy source of the issue is invisible.  We must start acknowledging that many of these health problems can be attributed to inhaling high levels of air pollution.  In fact, in 2020, researchers expressed “growing concern that air pollution may contribute to Covid-19 severity by directly affecting the lungs’ ability to clear pathogens” and also by “exacerbating underlying cardiovascular or pulmonary diseases” (Brandt et. al, 2020).  The structural nature of racism and inequity in this country attacks people of color and members of high-risk communities, creating additional burdens that make life even more complicated.  The worst part is that if our policies were human-oriented and the health and quality of our air were not connected with the health and well-being of the capitalist class and corporations, then it would be improved across the country.

We must do more to explore and engage our spaces and relationships actively.  The only way to understand what an Afterglow is and why it works the way it does is to engage yourself with the material.  Research and educate yourself to understand some aspects of your environment more clearly.  To witness the Afterglow, one must be one with their surroundings and landscape.  To truly witness an Afterglow, the observer must immerse themselves within the moment to understand the impact of the past on the present and of the present on the future.

Every day you take around 20,000 breaths. Don’t you deserve to know what’s in the air you breathe?