During Thursday night’s NBC Nightly News, anchor Lester Holt and correspondent Zinhle Essamuah used the water crisis in Jackson Mississippi as an excuse to race-bait about so-called “environmental justice” and claim our nation’s environmental laws are racist against poor black communities despite there being zero evidence of that being the case. Instead of pushing back, NBC decided to hype the NAACP & Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s claim that racism was a factor in Jackson’s lack of clean water.
“The water crisis triggering an NAACP complaint in September alleging racist policies by Governor Tate Reeves and the state of Mississippi claiming federal money was allocated to smaller majority white communities instead of Jackson,” Essamuah hyped in her report.
She then touted how the EPA is crying racism in Mississippi by “investigating if Mississippi violated the Civil Rights Act.”
Turning to EPA administrator Michael Regan, Essamuah outrageously asked why a “city that's over 80 percent black is facing a decades-long water crisis?”
Regan responded that “environmental justice is a serious issue in this country, which is why the President has made it a priority.”
“We know black, brown, tribal communities, low-income communities have seen a lack of investment, but also are on the front lines of the impacts of these lack of investments in climate change,” Regan huffed.
“Climate change” and “environmental justice.” Regan got all of the leftist buzzwords in during this segment with the nodding approval of NBC’s Essamuah.
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To read the transcript click “expand”:
NBC Nightly News
12/22/2022
7:15:10 p.m. EasternLESTER HOLT: An update now on a story we have reported on extensively, the water crisis in Mississippi. Tonight the head of the EPA answering our questions about whether the federal government has done enough to help the people of Jackson. He spoke with Zinhle Essamuah.
ZINHLE ESSAMUAH: 35-year-old Danika Samuel is a mom of six and lifelong resident of Jackson, Mississippi, a city plagued with a decades long water crisis. Today water in the city is deemed safe to drink, but many residents still don't trust it.
DINIKA SAMUEL: I see my momma do the same thing I do now for my kids. Every morning we come downstairs and we get us a big tall bottle of water and put it on their towel, they wash they face and brush they teeth.
ESSAMUAH: The water crisis triggering an NAACP complaint in September alleging racist policies by Governor Tate Reeves and the state of Mississippi claiming federal money was allocated to smaller majority white communities instead of Jackson. Governor Reeves previously said his administration is committed to ensuring all federal funds are made available on an objective and race neutral basis. The Environmental Protection Agency now investigating if Mississippi violated the Civil Rights Act.
MICHAEL REGAN: No city in the United States of America should have a fragile system that leaves 190,000 citizens without clean water to drink.
ESSAMUAH: EPA administrator Michael Regan says the federal government has not adequately invested in communities. Why do you think that a city that's over 80 percent black is facing a decades long water crisis?
REGAN: Environmental justice is a serious issue in this country, which is why the president has made it a priority. We know black, brown, tribal communities, low-income communities have seen a lack of investment, but also are on the front lines of the impacts of these lack of investments in climate change.
ESSAMUAH: Jackson was the first city Regan visited following his 2021 appointment.
REGAN: I saw port-a-potties lined all along the school and I thought that was due to construction. But that's what the students have been using for years because they've been dealing with low water pressure.
ESSAMUAH: The White House says new bipartisan legislation will invest at least $50 billion in the nation's infrastructure including expanding access to clean drinking water.
REGAN: It's my hope that the people of Jackson now get the type of relief that they've been looking for for decades.
ESSAMUAH: Danika Samuel hopes that relief comes soon.
SAMUEL: I want my six kids to have a wonderful future. I want this to go somewhere so my kids won't have to worry about our clean water.
ESSAMUAH: Zinhle Essamuah, NBC News, Jackson.
