As the book describes, environmentalism is seen as a feminist issue because of its often direct effect upon women around the world. The authors communicate that part of taking care of other people, a job usually designated to women and those with concerns for the community, means taking care of the planet (537). Some groups find other means of connecting feminist issues to ecology such as the aptly named “ecofeminists”, a group that sees the “domination of women and the domination of nature” to be indicative of the cultures in power (537). On a more tangible level, women show the effects of a toxic environment earlier than men do because of “low body weight or because women’s bodies become what some have termed ‘unhealthy environments’ for their babies” (536). So a woman’s health does not impact just her own life, but sometimes the life a woman might be trying to carry to term. With this in mind, I see a clear connection between environmentalism and reproductive justice. In this sense, environmentalism is perhaps a part of what could make greater reproductive justice possible. One of the things discussed is the example of women doing cleaning jobs or working in nail salons that are constantly exposed to harsh, harmful chemicals. If a woman working under those conditions were to become pregnant (and probably be still working well into the pregnancy) she could be at great health risks that could negatively impact the health of her baby (218). But when it means the choice of having a job or having no source of supporting themselves and possibly a family, there is sometimes little choice as to where women find work. In the cases of immigrants or certain racial groups such as Asian women for nail salons, they have fewer options as to where they can work. Sometimes this involves issues with citizenship and sometimes it has to do with skill set, education, or just race. This, of course, then ties in with the subject of women’s work within feminist studies. Things like race, sex, and age contribute to the difficulties of finding a job as a woman. However, it gets worse with any time she might have spent away from work, at home to take care of children. So even when a woman is fulfilling what is often considered her highest duty—motherhood—she is still penalized when looking for work, and it often leads women to jobs that are dangerous or hazardous to their health. All of this loops back to our treatment of the earth, products, and the cycle of “stuff”.
Kirk, Gwyn, and Margo Okazawa-Rey. Women's Lives: Multicultural Perspectives. 5th ed. New York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2010. 217-223, 535-548. Print.
