The “Invisible Casualty of War”: The Environmental Destruction of U.S. Militarism

Editors’ note: Climate change heightens the imperative for thoughtful and strategic environmental activism. In this context, it is important to acknowledge the oversized responsibility of the U.S. military for greenhouse gas emissions and environmental destruction more generally. In this DifferenTakes, H. Patricia Hynes exposes the toxic legacy of U.S. militarism, including the environmental impacts of waging war and the waste generated by building and maintaining military bases, weapons, and maneuvers. Tackling this toxic legacy and dismantling militarism provide an important opportunity for peace and environmental movements to work together.

— Betsy Hartmann and Anne Hendrixson