Reflections on Dr. Lee's Turning Participation Into Power

• Date: 01 August 2022
• Author: LaTricea Adams

52 ELR 10628 ENVIRONMENTAL LAW REPORTER 8-2022

COMMENT

REFLECTIONS ON DR. LEE’S TURNING

PARTICIPATION INTO POWER

by LaTricea Adams

LaTricea Adams is Co-Founder and CEO of Black Millennials 4 Flint.

Turning Participation Into Power: A Water Justice Case

Study1 presents a rich, conceptual framework with

the Constituent Empowerment Model (CE Model)

that mirrors the foundational work of Dr. Robert Bullard ’s

Environmenta l Justice Framework2 in its very community-

centered perspective. e article also integrates the Jemez

Principles³ as a practical approach to community oversight

and accountability. Using Baltimore as a case study added

much value to the topic, as the state of Maryland is k nown

for more progressive legislation regarding environment;

however, Prof. Jaime Lee spares no criticism of the need for

more constituent-centered and commu nity-led acc ount-

ability and oversight of the implementation and ongoing

life cycle of policy in practice.

Professor Lee calls out the recurrence of “performative

inclusion” where decisionmakers attempt to appease the

community by creating an invisible table or in the words

of Dr. Lee, “cosmetic processes” where community voice is

heard only for the purposes of show and not for substan-

tive contributions to problem solving. Dr. Lee successfu lly

dismant les the unspoken m antra “process over pe ople” and

ips it on its head where the people, the community, iden-

1. Jaime Alison Lee, Turning Participation Into Power: A Water Justice Case

Study, 28 G. M L. R. 1003 (2022).

2. Robert D. Bullard, (2008) Environmental Justice in the 21st Century,

49 P 151 (2001), https://uwosh.edu/sirt/wp-content/uploads/

sites/86/2017/08/Bullard_Environmental-Justice-in-the-21st-Century.pdf.

3. S.W. Network for Envt. and Econ. Just., Jemez Principles for Democratic

Organizing (1996) Jemez, New Mexico, https://www.ejnet.org/ej/jemez.

pdf.

tify the problem, create the process, and utili ze their demo-

cratic power to inform the actions of government agencies

and policymakers a like. e CE Model also demonstrates

the power of intersectional environmentalism, as it ampli-

es the need for equity in accessing power by addressing

upfront the challenges often faced by communities expe-

riencing economic distress and communities of color that

are often met with racial bias a nd discrimination. Essen-

tially, the CE Model completely refutes any and all forms

of classism and racial bigotr y as a prerequisite to engaging

in the community-led process. e individuals who are

most disproportionately impacted are respected as the tr ue

experts as they a lways should be.

Turning Participation Into Power: A Water Justice Case

Study should be deemed as a civic engagement tool that is

versatile beyond an environmental context, as its success

can be replicated to best serve other topics of public policy

at the local, state, and even federal levels. As the current

federal administration is laser-focused on environmental

justice, including the Justice40 initiative for example, this

article is very timely.

4. L T, T I E: H  D-

 S  O  P P + P (2022).

5. U.S. White House. (2021) e Path to Achieving Justice40, https://www.

whitehouse.gov/omb/brieng-room/2021/07/20/the-path-to-achieving-

justice40/.

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