Racism at heart of US failure to tackle deadly heatwaves, expert warns

Jeff Goodell, author of The Heat Will Kill You First, found ‘engine of planetary chaos’ in travels from Antarctica to California

Racism is at the heart of the American government’s failure to tackle the growing threat of deadly heatwaves, according to the author of an authoritative new book on the heating planet.

Jeff Goodell, an award winning climate journalist, told the Guardian that people of color - including millions of migrant workers who are bearing the brunt of record-breaking temperatures as farmhands, builders and delivery workers - are not guaranteed lifesaving measures like water and shade breaks because they are considered expendable.