Before ending out Ethics in Civil Engineering series, we want to make sure we promote action beyond education.
We hope that the series was effective in educating you all about important topics in ethics and equity. Education itself, however, is not the end goal. We highly encourage you to get involved in at least one of the ways detailed in this final blog post. We must use our impact as civil engineers to dismantle the destructive status-quo and advance the movement toward racial and social justice.
Voting is a vital aspect of the advancement of social change. And with the U.S. presidential election nearly a month away, voting is especially important now. Vote if you can!
It is also important to always think critically about your behaviors and actions when involving yourself in civil engineering. Above are some questions to ask yourself and others to ensure you are thinking critically.
Here are some organizations to keep up with to stay involved in racial and social justice:
Anti-Racism
Black Lives Matter: @blmlosangeles
White People for Black Lives: @wp4bl
March and Rally Los Angeles: @marchandrallyla
Tenant Rights, Houselessness, and Community Activism
Ground Game LA: @groundgamela, fosters civic empowerment and resident support in Los Angeles
Streetwatch LA: @streetwatchla, coalition of organizers concerned about tenant rights in LA
LA Community Action Network: @lacanetwork_official, empowers people dealing with poverty to create & discover opportunities
LA Tenants Union: @latenants, fights for the human right to housing
Strategic Actions for a Just Economy: @saje_southla, fights for economic justice by focusing on tenant rights, healthy housing, and equitable development
Skid Row Coffee: @skidrowcoffee, neighborhood pop up coffee shop and job training program for people with low-income
Los Angeles Poverty Department: @lapovertydepartment, focuses on culture/art and brings together Skid Row service providers, grassroots orgs, and community members
KTownForAll: @ktownforall, volunteer-led grassroots organization serving Koreatown’s homeless community members
Little Tokyo Service Center: @ltsc.cdc, assists low income individuals; contributes to community revitalization and cultural preservation in Little Tokyo
Chinatown Community for Ethical Development: @ccedla, builds grassroots power with low-income and immigrant communities through organizing, education, and mutual help
Union de Vecinos: @uniondevecinos, organization of neighborhood committees of LA where low income working families, seniors, and youth come together to build community and reclaim neighborhoods
Infrastructure/Transportation
NOlympicsLA: @nolympicsla, coalition that focuses on the harmful impact of the Olympics
The Untokening: untokening.org, a multiracial collective that centers the lived experiences of marginalized communities to address mobility justice and equity
Crenshaw Subway Coalition: www.crenshawsubway.org, grassroots group of Crenshaw Blvd stakeholders, seeking a Crenshaw-LAX Line designed in the manner desired by the community
Climate Activism
Sunrise Movement: @sunrisemvmtla, young people fighting against the climate crisis
SoCal 350 Climate Action: @socal.350, empowers Southern California communities to join together for environmental, social, and economic justice
Our Climate Voices: @ourclimatevoices, creative collective of young womxn, queer folks, & BIPOC+ humanizing the climate crisis through ethical storytelling for radical change
And here are some other resources to continue your education:
Books
As Long as Grass Grows: The Indigenous Fight for Environmental Justice, from Colonization to Standing Rock by Dina Gilio-Whitaker (Environmental Racism)
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson (Racism in City Planning)
The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu (Gentrification)
Movies
Dark Waters (2019): environmental racism
Come Hell or High Water: The Battle for Turkey Creek (2013): environmental racism
State of Exception (2017): mega-events
Thank you for joining us, stay vigilant!
Here are some organizations to keep up with to stay involved in racial and social justice:
Anti-Racism
Black Lives Matter: @blmlosangeles
White People for Black Lives: @wp4bl
March and Rally Los Angeles: @marchandrallyla
Tenant Rights, Houselessness, and Community Activism
Ground Game LA: @groundgamela, fosters civic empowerment and resident support in Los Angeles
Streetwatch LA: @streetwatchla, coalition of organizers concerned about tenant rights in LA
LA Community Action Network: @lacanetwork_official, empowers people dealing with poverty to create & discover opportunities
LA Tenants Union: @latenants, fights for the human right to housing
Strategic Actions for a Just Economy: @saje_southla, fights for economic justice by focusing on tenant rights, healthy housing, and equitable development
Skid Row Coffee: @skidrowcoffee, neighborhood pop up coffee shop and job training program for people with low-income
Los Angeles Poverty Department: @lapovertydepartment, focuses on culture/art and brings together Skid Row service providers, grassroots orgs, and community members
KTownForAll: @ktownforall, volunteer-led grassroots organization serving Koreatown’s homeless community members
Little Tokyo Service Center: @ltsc.cdc, assists low income individuals; contributes to community revitalization and cultural preservation in Little Tokyo
Chinatown Community for Ethical Development: @ccedla, builds grassroots power with low-income and immigrant communities through organizing, education, and mutual help
Union de Vecinos: @uniondevecinos, organization of neighborhood committees of LA where low income working families, seniors, and youth come together to build community and reclaim neighborhoods
Infrastructure/Transportation
NOlympicsLA: @nolympicsla, coalition that focuses on the harmful impact of the Olympics
The Untokening: untokening.org, a multiracial collective that centers the lived experiences of marginalized communities to address mobility justice and equity
Crenshaw Subway Coalition: www.crenshawsubway.org, grassroots group of Crenshaw Blvd stakeholders, seeking a Crenshaw-LAX Line designed in the manner desired by the community
Climate Activism
Sunrise Movement: @sunrisemvmtla, young people fighting against the climate crisis
SoCal 350 Climate Action: @socal.350, empowers Southern California communities to join together for environmental, social, and economic justice
Our Climate Voices: @ourclimatevoices, creative collective of young womxn, queer folks, & BIPOC+ humanizing the climate crisis through ethical storytelling for radical change
And here are some other resources to continue your education:
Books
As Long as Grass Grows: The Indigenous Fight for Environmental Justice, from Colonization to Standing Rock by Dina Gilio-Whitaker (Environmental Racism)
The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson (Racism in City Planning)
The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu (Gentrification)
Movies
Dark Waters (2019): environmental racism
Come Hell or High Water: The Battle for Turkey Creek (2013): environmental racism
State of Exception (2017): mega-events
Thank you for joining us, stay vigilant!