Currently — March 30th, 2023

March 29, 2023

What you need to know, currently.

New Voices of Reproductive Justice — an organization focused on transforming society for the complete health and well-being of Black women, femmes, girls, and gender-expansive folks — awarded five people the, Black Women, Green Futures award in January.

According to Kelly Davis, the executive director at New Voices, this award is, “built on the radical idea that environmental justice is reproductive justice.”

“When folks think about reproductive justice, they really focus just on abortion access or just on pregnancy,” said Davis. “We're here to say, actually, the environment influences the way that you're able to create or sustain families, which are the building blocks of Black communities.”

Davis said that often today, and historically, the environmental movement has left Black communities and reproductive justice out of the conversation.

“You can tell by who they platform, the causes that they champion. They often leave Black Women and gender-expansive folks to fall through the crack.”

She says this award was created to help fill that gap and celebrate the work so many Black and Indigenous women and gender-expansive people have been doing for generations — and continue to lead today.

“Black women, along with native and Indigenous women in the Americas are the originators of environmental protection,” said Davis. “We are also often the people who are the most affected by environmental degradation.”

Look out for features and interviews with three of the Black Women, Green Futures awardees including; Tonni Oberly, the co-owner of Oaks & Spouts — a family-run farm, birth equity scholar, and doctoral candidate; Jocelyn Travis, an Organizing Manager for the Sierra Club and live long civil rights and social justice advocate; and Christa Barfield founder of FarmerJawn, a Philadelphia-based farm that cultivates accessible and healthy food for marginalized communities.

Currently is a member-supported independent news outlet and we can’t pursue our mission without you. The best way to support our work is to become a member:

What you can do, currently.

Enjoying our stories and want more reporting on the ground? We publish daily weather updates in the following cities. Sign up now!