Marco Hernandez: The Role of COPAL in Uniting Latinx Communities with Environmental Justice

Hope is a necessary part of any justice work. In the context of environmental justice, though many prospects seem bleak, it is necessary to maintain hope and passion when working against the multitude of injustices. The environmental activist, Marco Hernandez (he/they), is the embodiment of these traits. Although the ending of a term is always a frantic time, especially during a global pandemic, my classmate Anthony and I were able to carve out a time to meet Marco despite our hectic schedules. After exchanging emails, we all met on a gloomy Friday afternoon over a Zoom call. Although we were not able to meet in person as the pandemic raged, I could clearly feel Marco’s passion and warmth through my computer screen. As someone who grew up facing environmental justice issues in his own neighborhood and continues to work against local issues every day, Marco’s passion and drive was strong and unwavering. His hope for the future endured throughout our conversation as he seemed confident conditions were improving and public opinions were changing in favor of the environmental justice movement.

Living in Minneapolis after the murder of George Floyd and the nationwide outcry that followed, I’ve felt a change in the climate of justice. It is much more visible, and many more organizations have come to the forefront on this work, specifically BIPOC led initiatives. With all this in mind I gravitated to Marco and was thrilled to have the opportunity to interview him. Both Anthony and I are seniors at Macalester interested in environmental activism. Graduating in a seemingly unstable political climate with a wavering job market due to the pandemic, we were excited to learn about the work of a recent Macalester graduate as this is work I could potentially see myself getting involved in next year.

Marco Hernandez is the current Public Policy Director at COPAL Minnesota, an organization that seeks to, “…unite Latinxs in Minnesota in active grassroots communal democracy that builds racial, gender, social and economic justice across community lines”. He graduated from Macalester in 2019 with a major in political science and a minor in Latin American studies. Since graduating, Marco has been working with COPAL fighting the construction of Line 3, the HERC incinerator in North Minneapolis, and the existing racial and economic injustices that have been amplified by COVID-19 and the subsequent economic depression.

Growing up in the San Pablo, California area, Marco was exposed to environmental injustice at an early age. The nearby city of Richmond is home to a Chevron oil refinery, the second largest in all of California, which polluted local communities daily and left an impression on Marco in his younger years. The San Pablo area mainly consists of BIPOC communities, which are often underrepresented, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation by big businesses such as Chevron. Marco stated that this facility was always visible in his community, constantly reminding them of the mistreatment they experienced from the government.

An explosion at the Chevron refinery in 2014 impacted the community for years after. Marco recalled being told to stay inside with windows closed, and the sharp increase in hospitalizations and asthma cases in the days that followed, which affected his mother. This was seemingly a turning point in Marco’s life as he realized the type of environmental discrimination their community felt. He recalled being a child, thinking clouds came from the refinery, a level of innocence that was shattered by this life changing event.He recalled being a child, thinking clouds came from the refinery, a level of innocence that was shattered by this life changing event. This was an eye-opening experience for him as he saw the institutional and historical racism connecting to environmental racism in his own community. It took years of litigation for a settlement to be reached between residents, the city of Richmond, and Chevron, with a college scholarship fund being created for young students of color called the Richmond Promise. Chevron continues to impact the community by endorsing political candidates, enlightening many to the grasp that Chevron has on the city both financially and politically. Because of this, it was hard to hold them accountable for the explosion and subsequent damage. This exposed Marco to the influence of corporate money in politics around this time.

In his senior year of high school, Marco was appointed to be part of the San Pablo Youth Commission, where he got involved in healthcare and immigration activism through Organizing for America. He was able to connect with organizers in the city and was able to work to provide subsidized healthcare for undocumented families. Marco’s experience at Macalester learning about political, race, and class theory helped him to further strengthen his foundation to become more involved with local issues in Minnesota. He saw that issues plaguing BIPOC communities in Richmond continued in Minnesota as well, especially with the placement of the HERC trash incinerator in North Minneapolis which is a primarily BIPOC community.

At COPAL, Marco has been part of global delegation trips to frontline communities that seek to learn about global environmental injustices and how communities are fighting back. He notes that mining operations in El Salvador function as a state and corporate collaboration, where police and military prevent organizing against mining pollution. With this experience, Marco connected environmental injustices to those in Richmond and Minneapolis, exemplifying that they are present all over the world at a wide range of scales. Many people who attempt to escape these atrocities and unhealthy environmental conditions come to places such as Minnesota, only to find that the racial discrimination is present in addition to environmental hazards. At COPAL Marco is working to break this cycle as they aim to “think globally and act locally”. The pattern of companies incentivizing economic gain over the environment and rights of human beings is seen all over the world. In order to fix this at a local scale Marco is working on a cumulative impacts bill.

Marco is a member of the governor’s advisory council on climate change and is pushing for a bill in the state legislature that addresses the cumulative impacts of climate change. This would force the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to examine how new proposals impact communities along with a variety of well-being measures. Marco discussed the connection felt between this legislation and communities such as Richmond where he grew up. He went on to emphasize that these facilities are continuously placed near BIPOC and front-line communities. Locally, this connection can be seen with the construction of Line 3 and the HERC trash incinerator.

Enbridge’s Line 3 pipeline renewal project seeks to build on the existing Line 3 tar sands oil pipeline, first constructed in the late 1960s. The project has been vehemently opposed by activists since its inception in 2014 as it would add 337 miles of new pipe to the existing Line 3 pipeline, crossing the Mississippi River twice and going through Ojibwe territory. This presents an environmental justice challenge because leaks and spills from Line 3 threaten Ojibwe access to clean water and crops, and because the Ojibwe people have had little-to-no say in discussing the implementation of Line 3. Additionally, much of the old Line 3 is planned to be left decaying and polluting underground. Taken together, both of these points illustrate short-term injustice to the Ojibwe and long-term injustice in contributing to the global climate crisis. Research formed the basis of Line 3’s final environmental impact statement (FEIS), which projects it would contribute to $287 billion in social cost over the next 30 years.

Another prominent local environmental justice issue that Marco and his team at COPAL have been fighting is the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) trash incinerator in the low-income BIPOC North Loop neighborhood, which claims to contribute to renewable energy. Research has shown that HERC releases harmful chemicals, including dioxins, lead, and mercury from the burning of waste. This leads to higher rates of cancer, miscarriages, respiratory diseases, and other illnesses in the surrounding area for populations which already have inadequate access to healthcare. HERC shows the intersection of economic, environmental, and racial injustice as it conceptualizes low-income BIPOC communities as dispensable through environmental pollution. The COVID-19 pandemic further amplifies these injustices; immune systems are weakened from exposure to HERC’s pollution and from COVID, making exposure to one lead to an increased health risk for the other. People who are economically suffering and may have lost their job, as low-income BIPOC workers in the service industry disproportionately have, are less able to escape HERC’s pollution. Healthcare hemorrhaging and delays mean that those affected with COVID-19, pollution exposure, or both are less able to access life-saving care. At COPAL, Marco has been working in a campaign against the HERC trash incinerator since 2019. The campaign seeks to address the injustice that HERC receives renewable energy credits despite polluting the North Loop. Marco, in conjunction with Eureka Recycling and State Rep. Frank Hornstein, seeks to pass a zero-waste bill for companies. This includes shifting away from un-recyclable plastics, using plastics that other countries deem valuable so that they can effectively be recycled, and shifting towards greener materials, such as tin and cardboard.

When we asked Marco what kept him going when working with injustices which can often be disheartening, Marco pointed to a personal experience in El Salvador. He was told a story in which people hid out in a forest from guerrilla attacks and later reminisced how the forest protected them. They respected the forest, turning it into a national reserve to pay this protection forward. He was moved by the respect people had for the forest because of how it took care of the people. Following this, he discussed the uprising in Minneapolis that followed the murder of George Floyd. The discourse that followed these uprisings led to an increase in funding and public support for BIPOC organizations. White-led groups turned their focus to listening to the conversation rather than leading. Marco also talked about how in this legislative session at the BIPOC table, they plan to no longer water down bills, but rather to advocate for more robust racial and environmental justice bills with shorter implementation timelines. Both of these experiences Marco pointed to as sources of hope and things that keep him going in this type of work.

Marco’s advice for young activists centered on lifting up the voices and stories of frontline organizers. Too often organizations, specifically White-led organizations, can get too caught up in things like bill numbers and specifics, alienating others from participating and creating a sense of imposter syndrome for those not constantly updated.He encouraged volunteering with groups, joining if they have a membership option, and listening to others. He talked about how it is important to help others without making yourself the face of the campaign. Marco also mentioned the importance of accessible language. Too often organizations, specifically White-led organizations, can get too caught up in things like bill numbers and specifics, alienating others from participating and creating a sense of imposter syndrome for those not constantly updated.

As he concluded, Marco discussed how an institution like Macalester College can work towards an environmental justice mission. Suggestions included investing in BIPOC organizations, divesting from fossil fuels, and connecting students with organizations in this area who are doing this work. This framework could be expanded to other institutions of this kind in order to promote environmental justice around the country.

Through all of his experiences and work, Marco has a clear mission to help communities of color which are disproportionately affected at the hands of the government, drawing on his own experience in Richmond. He aims to break a cycle of injustice, drawing on many elements of racial injustice. With his environmental justice focus, he clearly aims to work against the embeddedness of these issues as racial inequalities permeate the structure of our society. He also sees the scale of these issues as environmental injustices pass across country borders and can be seen all over the globe. These injustices intersect specifically with economic disparities and racial disparities, and through Marco’s work he aims to fight against this whole cycle of governmental mistreatment of these communities.

Throughout our conversation, Marco seemed hopeful about the future of environmental justice work. His work in the fights against Line 3, HERC, and the multiple intersections of racial, economic, and environmental justice are inspirational for us, and representative of a stronger populist-left movement across the country. Our key takeaway from our time with him is that by centering and listening to frontline BIPOC leaders, organizers can create positive change in both the legislature and on the streets.

References

“Environment.” COPAL, copalmn.org/environment1.

“The PUC Fog Machine: Commission Selectively Uses Line 3’s Environmental Analysis, Favoring Enbridge.” Healingmnstories.wordpress.com, 5 Oct. 2018, healingmnstories.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/the-puc-fog-machine-commission-selectively-uses-line-3s-environmental-analysis-favoring-enbridge/.

Muller, Alan. “Community Voices: Take the next Big Step and Shut the HERC Down.” Twin Cities Daily Planet, 9 Nov. 2017, tcdailyplanet.net/community-voices-take-the-next-big-step-and-shut-the-herc-down/.

“Stop Line 3.” MN350, 11 Feb. 2019, mn350.org/campaigns/stop-line-3/.