Skip to main content

Search

EH annotation 1 Cancer Alley Azusa Internship 2023

E.Hernandez11

This gas leak took place in Bhopal, India and I think that the location has an important impact on the aftermath of the situation. After the gas leaked people protested to be compensated for their lost ones but many died before they were able to be justified. I feel that if this happened in America, circumstances would have been different, there would have been more media coverage, and action would be taken more swiftly. The location of this occurrence had an impact with how it was handled after and if it had occurred some place else then it would have been different. 

EH annotation 1 Cancer Alley Azusa Internship 2023

E.Hernandez11

This film focuses on the environmental and social problem of having large gas (lethal) plants near cities or other populated areas where people can be harmed. Environmentally these gasses are no good because they are emitted into the air and are very soluble in the water which leads to ocean acidification. Ocean acidification makes it so that the ocean has a lower pH level, this can harm marine wildlife. Socially, the gas is toxic to people and as seen in the Bhopal tragedy, it can kill people or severely alter their lives. This could be seen through the immediate deaths of civilians, deformities of children born after the incident, and the families affected even years after hoping for justice.

EH annotation 1 Cancer Alley Azusa Internship 2023

E.Hernandez11

From watching the video, I feel affected emotionally because it was definitely hard to watch so many people die, especially the innocent children. It is a hard pill to swallow to watch the lives of so many people taken away from them so unexpectedly in their own homes. I feel affected by seeing the photo of the unknown child because it was hauntingly touching as it was for so many people that advocated for justice after this tragedy. It was also really daunting seeing so many people being buried and burned in mass because they were not granted the ability to be respectfully honored for their death which I think is something very valuable. Intellectually I think that this film made me think about how this tragedy could have been possibly prevented if the plant had been maintained and checked up on regularly or if the plant wasn’t so close to a whole city in the first place. And I also feel gratitude to those who are still advocating for justice for the victims and trying to get people with government power to make that change.

pece_annotation_1480273672

Sara.Till

The article appears to be a compilation of ethnographic work from various humanitarian organizations in the US, France, and Morocco. The author had first-hand experience working on projects with these organizations at these locations, and thus utilizes this perspective for the majority of the work. She supplements her assertions with data from other recent publications from these organizations, studies by independent researchers, and media analysis. 

pece_annotation_1480890337

Sara.Till

Information provided by the AWSD (Aid Worker Security Database), there were 251 individual attacks in 2013. This, and the subsequent 460 workers involved or affected, is in no way separated according to the aid work the individuals participated in. Thus, all 251 attacks may have been aimed at health care clinics, but only 50 of those injured may have been health care workers; the rest may have been members of peacekeeping forces. Further more, which members of the health care system are being harmed is extremely useful in future aid endeavors. Knowing who is targeted or particularly vulnerable could make the difference in the next incident.

Moreover, any data that is available can be difficult or complicated to obtain. Outside of the nuances of procuring data from different corporations or foundations, many organizations have individual categories for reporting incidents. They may even have different definitions of attacks and incidents-- eerily similar to how German and US officials view sexual assault in different lenses (German officials may often be disinclined to act unless penetration occurs, while US officials have been known to prosecute or bring charges for offenses such as groping).

These definition differences may also lead to an under reporting of incidents. While most available data contains information about abductions or fatalities, very little data can be accessed pertaining to threats or obstructions. This may also color how and what aid workers report; knowing that an incident did not culminate in a kidnapping or death may lead workers to be less inclined to report these issues, for fear of not being taken seriously. Aid workers may also feel that, during some stressful circumstances, reporting something that could be constituted as "mild" would only be a waste of time and resource.