Community environmental issues have long been caused by larger organizations taking advantage of communities, often small and downtrodden communities; however, today, many of those communities are fighting back against the larger corporations that are causing environmental havoc within their borders.
In the Koch Brothers EXPOSED documentary, the people of Crosset, Arkansas suggest that there is something causing cancer in their community. “It’s a crime,” the preacher of the community says, shaking his head; these people, he suggests, are ill and dying far before their time because the Koch brothers and their associated conglomerates are polluting the water in the community. “These people are sick they’re dying. It’s murderous,” one of the experts claims, as the camera pans to shots of the residents coughing and demonstrating their trouble breathing. Although the film cannot prove the link between the Koch brothers’ firms’ activities and the cancer cluster in this particular Arkansas neighborhood, it does seem likely that the two issues are linked, if not completely connected (Bravenewfoundations).
In a similar vein, there is a landfill that has been proposed in Texas, which sits directly across the street from one man’s property. Despite the fact that the aquifer for the community runs directly under the proposed landfill site, the individuals who are responsible for the landfill are still considering building it. The land around the proposed landfill site is all farmable and workable land, as well; including this landfill in the region would be highly irresponsible of the people involved (Macdonald). However, as often happens in cases like this, there are many people in government and other organizations who are willing to ignore what is right for the members of one community to do the “greatest good” for the population at large; when it comes to peoples’ health and wellbeing, however, the greatest good should not necessarily outweigh the rights that each individual has to be safe and healthy. “You can hear the roar in the background of people who are concerned,” one resident says, “and their concern is the underground water supply” (Macdonald). It makes sense that these people would be worried about their water supply; it could affect their health for years to come, not unlike the issue in the Arkansas community of Crosset.
Uncommon Productions has also released a film about a downtrodden community that is coming under attack by an industry that is determined to make a profit at any cost. According to Uncommon Productions, the coal mining industry has been mining for coal in the Appalachian mountains and “literally turning the mountains to rubble” (UncommonProductions). The beauty and serenity of the countryside is being destroyed by these explosions, and the company is literally tearing down the mountains that these people live on. This is a problem that is made worse by fracking-- the cracking of the earth’s crust to force oil out (Link TV). These two processes are fundamentally destroying the countryside where these individuals live, and making it very difficult for them to live in peace. According to Link TV, “Fracking is a high-risk process that threatens to both destroy the environment and wreck lives” (Link TV). When these two processes are combined-- as they are in many places in Appalachia-- they can cause severe economic and environmental issues that can destroy communities with ease. Unfortunately, the socioeconomic status of many of the people in the affected regions is not particularly high, and as a result, these people do not have a lot of power to change things in government at a local, statewide, or national scale.
A final example of a local government doing something to threaten its citizens’ health is given in the Thurman article. The Detroit government is threatening to shut off the water of citizens who cannot pay their bills-- but concerned activists are claiming that this is an abuse of power by the city of Detroit. Thurman writes, “But with the prospect of shutoffs resuming in a week, some members of Congress are now asking the Obama administration and the Department of Health and Human Services to intervene in what they contend is a humanitarian crisis facing a major U.S. city. It's ‘a little bit inhumane to put it kindly,’ Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.) said of the water crisis ‘Water is a lifeline,’ added Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas), ‘it is a human rights issue and if necessary there should be federal intervention’” (Thurman). Indeed, if the city does shut off the water for residents in Detroit who cannot pay their bills, it will be a significant human rights issue for many of the major organizations who deal with those kinds of issues, particularly the American Civil Liberties Union and related groups. Water is certainly a human right-- there should always be human access to clean water (Internet Archive).
There are plenty of examples of government and big business using its power to control and abuse small communities in the United States. Luckily, there is a growing trend of activism in the United States that helps these individuals and communities get their causes heard by people who can help them.
References
Bravenewfoundations. 'EXPOSED: Koch Industries And Cancer Risk'. YouTube. N.p., 2011. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
Internet Archive. 'For Love Of Water (FLOW) - 2008 : Free Download & Streaming : Internet Archive'. N.p., 2008. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
Link TV,. 'Fracking Hell: The Untold Story'. YouTube. N.p., 2011. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
Macdonald, Noel. 'Stop Hwy 6 Landfill Hempstead, Texas'. YouTube. N.p., 2013. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
Thurman, Scott. 'Detroit Water Shutoff Controversy Igniting Nationwide Debate'. ABC News 2014. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
UncommonProductions. '"The Last Mountain" - Official Trailer'. YouTube. N.p., 2011. Web. 27 Dec. 2014.
