A Climate of Justice: An Ethical Foundation for Environmentalism (Library of Public Policy and Public Administration Book 16)

This open access book helps readers combine history, politics, and ethics to address the most pressing problem facing the world today: environmental survival. In A Climate of Justice, Marvin Brown connects the environmental crisis to basic questions of economic, social, and racial justice. Brown shows how our current social climate maintains systemic injustices, and he uncovers resources for change through a civic ethics of repair and reciprocity. A must-read for researchers and educators in the area of environmental ethics and those teaching courses in the fields of public policy and environmental sustainability. With the support of more than 30 libraries, the LYRASIS United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Fund has enabled this publication related to SDG13 (Climate Action) to be available fully open access. Advance Praise for A Climate of Justice Preface References Acknowledgments Contents About the Author Chapter 1: Introduction: Three Kinds of Engagement 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Developing an Interpretive Framework 1.3 Telling ``Telling ́ ́ Stories 1.4 Empowering the Civic References Part I: The Interpretative Framework Chapter 2: The Earth 2.1 Introduction 2.2 The Earth and Our Humanity 2.3 The Earth and the Social 2.3.1 Indigenous Peoples ́ ``Original Instructions ́ ́ 2.3.2 Modern Instructions 2.3.3 Earth as a Living Provider 2.4 A Modern Dwelling 2.5 The Earth and the Civic 2.5.1 Environmental Victories 2.5.2 A Stable Earth or a Hothouse Earth 2.6 Continuing the Work References Chapter 3: Our Humanity 3.1 Introduction 3.2 People of the Earth 3.3 Existing as Contemporaries 3.4 Neurobiology and Human Dignity 3.4.1 Antonio Damasio ́s Neurobiology 3.4.1.1 The Brain and the Mind 3.4.1.2 Three Types of Emotions 3.4.1.3 Damasio ́s Different Selves The Core Self The Autobiographical Self 3.4.2 The Western Individual 3.4.3 Daniel Siegel ́s Interpersonal Neurobiology 3.4.3.1 Mirror Neurons 3.4.3.2 The Primacy of Attachments 3.4.3.3 The Emergence of ``Myself ́ ́ 3.5 Personal Dignity References Chapter 4: The Social 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Characteristics of Social Worlds 4.2.1 Communicative and Behavioral Patterns 4.2.2 Perceptions and Expectations 4.2.3 Guarding Moral Boundaries 4.3 The Social Trend of American Prosperity 4.4 Our Social and Biological Lives 4.4.1 Sex and Gender 4.4.2 Race and Color 4.4.3 Ancestry and Social Evolution 4.5 Experiencing the Social 4.5.1 Social Diversity 4.5.2 Social Divisions 4.5.3 Social Conflict 4.5.4 Social Rifts 4.5.5 Social Amnesia 4.6 Social Philanthrophic Trends 4.6.1 A New Form of Feudalism 4.6.2 Unequal Wealth Distribution 4.6.3 The Problem with Philanthropy 4.7 Social Coherence References Chapter 5: The Civic 5.1 Introduction 5.2 The Recognition of Civilian Rights 5.2.1 The Protection of Civilians in International Humanitarian Law 5.2.2 The Civilian/Military Quandary 5.2.3 Civilians and Veterans 5.2.4 The Rule of Law 5.3 A World of Limits 5.3.1 The Earth ́s Limitations 5.3.2 Human Limitations 5.3.3 Ernst Becker ́s Heroism 5.3.4 Social Limits 5.4 Moving Toward a Climate of Justice References Part II: Telling ``Telling ́ ́ Stories Chapter 6: White Compromises and American Prosperity 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Causes of the Civil War 6.3 The National Compromises to Allow Slavery 6.4 The Civil War Becomes a Freedom War 6.5 The First Period of Reconstruction 6.6 The Second Period of Reconstruction 6.7 The Era of ``Redemption ́ ́ 6.8 Unraveling the White Compromise 6.9 The Tailwinds of American Prosperity References Chapter 7: Reinhold Niebuhr During the Time of the White Compromise 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Niebuhr ́s View of the Ambiguity of Human Existence 7.3 Racial Conflict During the Time of the White Compromise 7.3.1 The Elaine Massacre 7.3.2 Anti-lynching Legislation 7.4 Niebuhr in Detroit 7.5 Niebuhr ́s Christian Realism 7.6 Niebuhr ́s Christian ``Idealism ́ ́ 7.6.1 The Southern Tenant Farmers ́ Union 7.6.2 The Delta Cooperative Farm 7.7 Niebuhr on Non-violent Action 7.8 Niebuhr on American Power in the World 7.8.1 Children of Light and Children of Darkness 7.8.2 The Irony of American History 7.9 Niebuhr and Race in the 1950s 7.10 Niebuhr ́s Dualism 7.11 Niebuhr and the White Compromise 7.12 Niebuhr and the Human Community 7.13 Niebuhr and American Prosperity References Chapter 8: The Sharecropper ́s Story and An Ethics for Environmentalism 8.1 Introduction 8.2 The Story of the Lands of the Atlantic 8.2.1 The Africans ́ Land 8.2.2 The Americans ́ Land 8.3 The English View of Land 8.4 The Latin View of Land 8.4.1 The Common Law and Roman Legal Systems 8.4.2 The Social Function of Land 8.5 Sharecropping 8.5.1 Mill ́s Evaluation of Sharecropping 8.5.2 Southern Sharecropping 8.6 Reciprocity 8.7 Reparations 8.8 Restoration 8.9 Getting There from Here References Part III: Empowering the Civic Chapter 9: Civilian Empowerment: A Theological Inquiry 9.1 Introduction 9.2 A Theology of Civilian Empowerment 9.3 Western Religion and Nature 9.3.1 The Gods of the Earth 9.3.2 Good Luck or God ́s Blessings 9.4 Gods and our Humanity 9.5 Gods and the Social 9.6 Two Views of the Flow of GOD ́S Power 9.6.1 Paul Lehmann ́s Christian Ethics 9.6.2 Edward Hobbs ́ Trinitarian Analysis 9.7 Civilian Power References Chapter 10: The Citizen ́s Role in Creating a Climate of Justice 10.1 Introduction 10.2 The Empathy Option 10.2.1 Empathy and Self-Understanding 10.2.2 Empathy and Disagreement 10.3 The ``Commoners ́ ́ Option 10.3.1 The Commons and Triadic Thinking 10.3.2 The Commons Story 10.3.3 Commoner or Citizen 10.4 The ``Ethics of Care ́ ́ Option 10.5 Making Civic Connections References Chapter 11: An Invitation to Civic Dialogue 11.1 Introduction 11.2 The Clash of Stories 11.2.1 Confederate and Lynching Memorials 11.2.2 Mount Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial 11.3 My Invitation 11.4 A Caring Citizen 11.5 Education for White People 11.6 Types of Civilian Invitations 11.6.1 Invitations from Future Generations 11.6.2 Invitation from Syrian Civilians 11.6.3 Invitation from Migrants at the Southern Border 11.6.4 Personal Invitation to Engage in Dialogue 11.7 Creating Conditions for Good Conversations 11.8 We the People References Index