Bhopal: This Could Happen Here!
Film and Panel Discussion
Film:
Bhopal - In Search of Justice, 7-8 pm
Panel Discussion: 8:15-9:30 pm
The
Artery
5401 Jackson @ Prospect
Entrance at Prospect
Free to Public
Donations
Accepted
FILM DESCRIPTION
Bhopal: The Search for Justice by Peter Raymont and Lindalee Tracey
The film straddles the intersection between science, politics and human rights. Exploring charges of corruption, graft and greed, the film follows Raajkumar Keswani, the local journalist whose prediction of the Union Carbide disaster proved prophetic. Set against the rich visual tapestry of India, Keswani travels through the Indian bastiis where the poorest victims live, and to the offices of frustrated doctors and scientists. Finally he makes his first trip to North America in search of answers.
As activists protest and demand justice from DOW Chemical (which now owns Union Carbide), Keswani documents the legacy of the gas leak - the continued pollution of drinking water sources; gas widows trying to survive on inadequate settlements; the possibility that second and third generation children are growing up with genetic abnormalities caused by the gas.
The film explores the haunting human cost of a multinational polluter. Its subjects articulate their desperate need for the truth. Bhopal is a wound that continues to worsen. Beyond the initial horror and devastation of the gas tragedy is the spreading damage of environmental and genetic assault. At stake is more than fair compensation and long-term rehabilitation for the afflicted 'Bhopal' has become a rallying cry for post 9/11 concerns about chemical industry security and industrial pollution. Ultimately, the horrific gas leak at Union Carbide imposed a "chemical trespass" of the human body that demands greater regulation by governments and responsibility from multinational corporations.
For more information about the film, see http://www.onf.ca/bhopal/
(60 minutes, 2004).
PANEL DISCUSSION -
Nishant Jain - Nishant is a volunteer with the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal and the Association for India's Development. He has been associated with the campaign for 5 years. He will speak about the history and causes of the disaster, the evolution of the struggle and global nature of the issue. He will also speak about the role the Association for India's Development in various development-related initiatives in the gas-affected community. He is based in Austin, TX.
Juan Parras - As the Outreach Coordinator for the Thurgood Marshall Law School's Environmental Justice Clinic, Juan has experience working with local communities on corporate environmental issues. He will cover the threat to the Houston community (Houston is the only large city that has all of the top 10 criteria for being a terrorist threat) and his view of the accountability of Houston businesses, particularly along the Ship Channel.
Diane Wilson - a fourth generation fisherwoman and mother of five from the Texas Gulf Coast, Diane has been an activist since l989. She has fought numerous chemical giants such Formosa Plastics, Alcoa, Union Carbide (DOW), DuPont, BP chemical. She has used civil disobedience in her campaign for zero discharge of the bays and been an advocate of worker safety in the plant and health impacts on the fishing community. She will talk about the denial that Bhopalis face in India with Dow, and how that is related to the cover-up of chemical plants within communities on the Gulf Coast.
Brandt Mannchen - As Chairperson of the Air Quality Committee of the Houston Sierra Club, Brandt is familiar with the severity of the air toxics problem in Houston. He will discuss some of the pending legislation in the Texas Legislature that attempts to address the air toxics issue; the TCEQ's concurrent effort to change its emission event rules; and the Houston Sierra Club's efforts to get change over the past approximately 29 years.
For updates and information please call Sherry at 832-724-6674 or visit
http://houston.aidindia.org <http://houston.aidindia.org/>
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