Juan Parras
Juan Parras is the Executive Director and Founder of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (t.e.j.a.s.) non-profit organization. Parras’ observations, coupled with his personal experiences, prompted his interest in championing the rights of underserved communities against environmental discrimination. Parras has served as Project Coordinator and Community Organizer for the Environmental Law and Justice Center at Texas Southern University. He has also worked as International Union Representative for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Union (A.F.S.C.M.E.) One of his most successful campaigns prevented a Japanese company from building the largest polyvinyl chloride plant in a Louisiana community already overburdened with pollutants. Parras is currently working to organize fence-line communities along the Houston Ship Channel.
Presentations from Facing Race 2014
Trailers, Tarps and Toxins - Interventions at the Intersection of Disaster Capitalism and Environmental Racism
How do disasters and disaster recovery policy exacerbate racially disparate outcomes? What are community-led policy solutions for advancing equitable recovery? In the context of accelerating climate change and environmental racism, what happens when disaster strikes is a critical front in the fight for racial justice. From hurricanes to tornados to tar sands to industrial accidents, the Gulf South has experienced a high concentration of these disasters. Panelists will share analysis and strategies in response.
Speakers: Monique Harden, Thomas Dardar Jr., Juan Parras, Yudith Nieto