Isaias Hernandez - Growing up, My Family and I Lived in Affordable Housing Units Located in Toxic Facilities That Created Environmental Injustices (Environmentalist)

Isaias Hernandez

What inspired me to become an environmentalist is seeing the number of environmental injustices growing up while schools never addressed these interconnections. I was angry, sad, confused, and hopeless at times because I had internalized all my pain. 


1. Tell us about your background and journey?

I grew up in a low-income community in Los Angeles, California. Growing up, my family and I lived in affordable housing units located in toxic facilities that created environmental injustices. My passion for questioning why some cities were designed this way and others weren't based on race, class, and status made me want to learn about the planet. 

I went to the University of California, Berkeley, to earn an Environmental Science Degree and realized how elitist academic spaces were. As a Queer POC, most of my environmental classes were never diverse, often misrepresented cultural experiences, and presented language that was inaccessible for those who may not have come from strong academic backgrounds. 

Environmental education is a human right and I felt that institutions should never privatize information and rather show support to make it public.


2. What is the idea behind 'Queer Brown Vegan' and what is it about?

Queer Brown Vegan is my project that wanted to showcase to people that you don't need many resources to create environmental education through the power of social media. I wanted to be vulnerable to who I was as a Queer POC doing environmental work and provide forms of introductory levels of environmentalism. 

When I first started back in 2019, I had a small community of only about 500 followers and thankful to see that it has grown over the past year! QBV will continue to be me and really showcase my personal Lifestyle, Education, and Video Content to discuss different levels of Environmentalism.


3. What inspired you to become an Environmentalist?

What inspired me to become an environmentalist is seeing the number of environmental injustices growing up while schools never addressed these interconnections. I was angry, sad, confused, and hopeless at times because I had internalized all my pain. 

When I finally confirmed that through environmental education, I wanted to make sure that no one ever has to go without learning it. For me, environmentalism embodies and draws upon the following three main values, Indigenous wisdom, cultural-based experiences, and lived-experiences.


4. What according to you is the biggest environmental threat today?

Hmm, that's a great question. I would have to say that white supremacy itself is embedded in the ecological crisis. It's not something in the past, as there is a spectrum of those who uphold white supremacy while depleting natural resources. 

I feel that anti-racism and environmentalism go hand-in-hand when talking about these issues because we must understand that every extractive system is interconnected in living beings' oppression. If we are going to fight for the justice of life itself, we must dismantle white supremacy as it is a form of environmentalism.


5. Is Technology helping or contributing in fighting environmental issues?

I feel that we need to be very critical of how technology is being used. In my opinion, we should always ask the rhetoric versus the reality of the technology itself to see if it is actually operating efficiently. Social media has allowed many people to create creative change. It almost acts as a catalyst for people to create change.


6. Who inspires you the most and why?

I would have to say, my Mother. She had immigrated to the United States after earning her degree and could never teach in schools in the U.S. However, she became an educator in my life that encouraged me to be bilingual. She is a true environmentalist at heart.


7. What message do you have for the younger generation?

To younger generations, this is an intergenerational movement built upon young, older, and elderly folks who have been doing this work for years. We will not place the burden on you and fight alongside together to protect our planet. 

You must also understand that you do not need to be an activist if you do not want to. You can be an educator, artist, painter, photographer, or anything you truly feel passionate about while fighting for the planet!


8. Which is your favorite book and why?

A favorite book of mine is called "A Terrible Thing to Waste: Environmental Racism and It's Assault On The American Mind". It looks into how the medical industry and environmental locations discriminate against BIPOC communities. 

This book is great for people wanting to understand concepts of environmental and medical racism. When hearing about environmental racism, it can be difficult to contextualize. However, this book does a great job of allowing the reader to understand how that looks like.


Isaias Hernandez


Interviewed By - Serene Ingle