Gonna Trouble the Water considers the sacred nature of water and the ways in which it is weaponized against non-white communities. Firmly grounded at the intersection of environmentalism and racism, Gonna Trouble the Water makes clear the message: to deny water is to deny life.
The book Gonna Trouble the Water: Ecojustice, Water, and Environmental Racism is available now through The Pilgrim Press.
With compelling contributions from scholars and activists, politicians and theologians -- including former Colorado governor Bill Ritter, global academic law professor Ved P. Nanda, Detroit-based activist Michelle Andrea Martinez, and many more -- Gonna Trouble the Water de-centers the concept of water as a commodity in order to center the dignity of water and its life-giving character.
Essays include:
Waterways -- Paths of Freedom and Justice for All
Environmental Justice and Detroit's Long Shadow
Water -- A Living Spirit
Beyond the Temptation of Ecological Disgust
Racial and Religious Solidarity in the Shadow of Coal Ash
and more
"Gonna Trouble the Water is brilliantly conceived, timely, and prescient for our world where water-mediated racisms continue to accrue. It is a must-read for all who work in water ethics and environmental justice."
- Christiana Zenner, author of Just Water: Theology, Ethics, and Fresh Water Crises
"A gem of a collection that would make a wonderful resource for environmental studies courses."
- Roger S. Gottlieb, author of Morality and the Environmental Crises
"Gonna Trouble the Water challenges readers to de-center dominant Eurocentric perspectives on water as a resource that can be used, protected, or exploited."
- Amanda J. Baugh, author of God and the Green Divide: Religious Environmentalism in Black and White