Heavy Metals!

One thing that I've always connected to lead poisoning is its direct connection to the socioeconomic status of youth within poor, underserved areas throughout the United States. Last year, I completed an AmeriCorps year of service at one of San Francisco's only continuation high schools, Downtown High School. While I was there, we were unable to drink from the water fountains because the lead levels were too high and unsafe. The San Francisco Unified School District took so long to address the lead levels that there was not a resolution until the very end of the year. I often wondered the role of socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity in the district's delay, as Downtown High School is primarily composed of Black and Latinx students. Additionally, in thinking about the neighborhoods that most of our students lived in, they were most likely impacted by high lead levels from a young age within their homes as well. This is just one short example of the roles that environmental racism and injustice play within our society in maintaining oppressive social structures