Disparities found in breathing in polluted air among Blacks and Hispanics (News Analysis Week 13)

By JOE KELLY

An article from the Associated Press covered a study that compared the amount of pollution that Blacks and Hispanics breathe to how much pollution they produce.

The Associated Press sourced the information from a study by the National Academy of Sciences. They interviewed a white biosystems engineering professor from the University of Minnesota, an African American public affairs professor from Texas Southern University and a white environmental engineering professor from North Carolina State University. None of them were involved with the recent findings. These sources were interviewed because of the range of topics they teach, their expertise on topics related to pollution and racial disparities, and the different regions each professor comes from.

The article included statistics that described the disparities between African Americans, Hispanics, and whites and how much pollution they produce compared to how much they breathe. Hispanics and Blacks breathe in 56-63 percent more pollution than they produce, whereas whites breathe in 17 percent less air pollution than they produce.

One quote from Christopher Frey, the environmental engineering professor, stuck out to me. He said, "Being able to quantify the inequity is a key step toward addressing and reducing inequity." This quote is impactful because it addresses a strategy to reduce inequity among races. Another point that was significant was a finding in professor Robert Bullard's research. Bullard, the professor from Texas Southern University, found that African Americans were 79 percent more likely to live in areas that have the highest levels of pollution. This finding further emphasizes the disparity between consumption of polluted air between racial minorities and whites.

The piece overall was effective in presenting the research findings in understandable terms, covering past research on the topic, and finding a diverse set of sources.