Making Connections

5:04 minutes

Democracy Now!

This segment of Democracy Now! addresses the health effects of social and economic inequality. The program interviews author Steven Bezruchka of the University of Washington School of Public Health, who has written that "combatting inequality might be the best way to ensure improved health."

3:34 minutes

University College London

In this clip, Professor Richard Wilkinson discusses the link between income equality and psychosocial well-being. Among wealthy nations, he says, countries with the smallest gap between rich and poor also tend to have the greatest life expectancy and the lowest rates of mental illness, homicide, incarceration, teen pregnancy, and infant mortality.

1:36 minutes

Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative

In this clip, Professor Daniel Faber, Director of the Northeastern Environmental Justice Research Collaborative, defines environmental racism and explains how U.S. environmental policies selectively target communities of color for the siting of ecologically hazardous facilities.

8:38 minutes

National Labor Committee

This clip from the Institute for Global Labour and Human Rights (formerly the National Labor Committee) documents the harsh labor conditions endured by Bangladeshi garment workers. Two young workers, Mahamuda Akter and Lisa Rahman, talk about what it's like to be paid pennies per hour to make garments for Wal-Mart and Disney.

0:51 minutes

CompassionateListenr

In this video, Vietnamese Zen master and author Thich Nhat Hanh explains the concept of "interbeing." According to Nhat Hanh, "It is impossible to 'be' by yourself, alone. You have to inter-be with everyone and everything else." If true, this analysis suggests that perpetrators and targets of prejudice are more interconnected than typically assumed, and that progress on one social justice issue is intertwined with progress on all social justice issues.