New research from Rice University reveals that natural disasters have a disproportionate impact on the lives of Black people, affecting them personally, physically, and socially. The study, titled “The Multiplicity of Impact: How Social Marginalization Compounds Climate Disasters,” was conducted by Alex Priest, a doctoral student, and James Elliott, a sociology professor, and was recently published in Environmental Sociology.
The researchers analyzed data collected after Hurricane Harvey in 2017, focusing on how the disaster affected residents’ residency, transportation, health, employment, and social connections. They found that the challenges faced by Black individuals and their close circles were amplified due to long-standing racism that has limited their access to essential social resources such as housing, employment, transportation, and healthcare.
In addition, the study explored the perceptions of affected individuals regarding the local government’s efforts to protect homes from flooding. Respondents, regardless of their political ideology, expressed dissatisfaction with the government’s ability to prevent storm damage and protect homes. However, political ideology influenced the participants’ views on the government’s preparedness for future natural disasters more than their personal experience during Hurricane Harvey.
The study’s authors argue that traditional methods of assessing vulnerability and impact are insufficient and fail to capture the full extent of the social consequences of climate-driven disasters. They emphasize the need for comprehensive frameworks that take into account the various ways in which disasters affect marginalized communities. By adopting such frameworks, researchers and disaster managers can address the inequality inherent in climate-related disasters.
More information:
A. Alexander Priest et al, The multiplicity of impact: how social marginalization compounds climate disasters, Environmental Sociology (2023). DOI: 10.1080/23251042.2023.2215592
Citation:
Study: ‘Multiplicity of impact’ from natural disasters affects Black people most (2023, June 16)
retrieved 16 June 2023
from https://phys.org/news/2023-06-multiplicity-impact-natural-disasters-affects.html
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