Abstract
Nuclear waste on indigenous lands is a reproductive justice issue. Indigenous communities experience high rates of miscarriage and reproductive cancers, which remove bodily autonomy and reproductive choice. Negative health outcomes make communities unsafe places to raise children, and the potential for increased exposure to toxins through traditional cultural practices impacts a community’s ability to raise children with those cultural practices. This paper draws on bioethical theory, secondary historical and sociological analysis, and primary source accounts. This paper argues, through a series of historical case studies, that these impacts of nuclear waste are the result of systemic racism against indigenous communities and need to be taken into consideration as energy and waste storage policies are developed to address climate change. Additionally, this paper examines current climate change discourse in this context.
First Advisor
Kristin Johnson
Second Advisor
Amy Fisher
Degree Type
Thesis
Rights
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts in Science, Technology, & Society
Date of Award
Spring 4-15-2020
Recommended Citation
Gladhart-Hayes, Katherine, "The Half Life of Environmental Racism: Reproductive Justice and Nuclear Technology on Indigenous Lands" (2020). Honors Program Theses. 35.
https://soundideas.pugetsound.edu/honors_program_theses/35
Included in
Bioethics and Medical Ethics Commons, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine Commons