Desensitized to Trauma: The Jackson Water Crisis, Environmental Injustice, and Implications for Public Health Social Work.

Abstract

In 2021, Jackson, Mississippi, received national attention after a winter storm caused the failure of operations at the city's largest water treatment facility. Years of neglect to a crumbling infrastructure triggered the Jackson water crisis, leaving residents without clean and reliable access to water. Predating any one administration, Black and low-income residents had long raised concerns about excessive water bills, broken water mains, poor water quality, and deterioration of the city's water system. Despite years of advocacy and concerned citizens, agenda items continued from one administration to the next without any resolution to this public health issue. For public health social workers, the Jackson water crisis represented a call to action to integrate environmental justice into practice and education, and to advocate for systemic solutions that impacted the city's most affected. The Jackson water crisis revealed how infrastructure failures threatened one's basic human right to clean water. Additionally, this crisis spotlighted an urgent need for equity-driven policies, as well as funding at both the state and federal level. Thus, creating opportunities for the social work profession to take an active role in advancing environmental justice by addressing the systemic inequities revealed by crises like Jackson's water failure. By integrating environmental justice into practice, social workers can help drive structural reforms that protect health, dignity, and community resilience.