Race, Toxic Exposures, and Environmental Health: The Contestation of Lupus among Farmworkers.

Extant research has established that low-wage workers of color are at higher risk for occupational exposures. While the medical sociology literature regarding contested illness provides insights into the dynamics surrounding workplace exposures, some environmental illnesses such as lupus have gotten scant analytical attention. This is a significant gap because women of color, who are more likely to hold these high-risk jobs, are disproportionately affected by the disease.

Emerging contaminants, coerced ignorance and environmental health concerns: The case of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

Over the past decade, there has been widespread concern about environmental contamination linked to an emerging class of compounds known as PFAS [Poly- and per-fluorinated alkyl substances]. PFAS contamination has been found in drinking water across the United States. Despite the increased interest within the scientific community, little research has been conducted on community environmental health concerns related to this emerging contaminant.

The enduring legacy of black lung: environmental health and contested illness in Appalachia.

Over the past twenty years there has been a deadly resurgence of coal workers' pneumoconiosis (CWP), commonly known as black lung disease. While increased prevalence of the disease is alarming, these data only capture cases where CWP has been officially recognised. We argue that many more cases of the disease are going unreported.

Women's childbirth preferences and practices in the United States.

Over the past two decades, research on childbirth worldwide has documented women's varied perceptions of and decision-making regarding childbirth. Scholars have demonstrated the impact of medical authority, religion, perception of risk, and access to care providers on the decisions women make about where to have their babies and with whom. Virtually all research on how women make these choices, however, has focused outside the United States.