An option for Mossville... perhaps not.

In my policy class my professor described the process of voting with your feet (moving to a district in hopes of a better quality of life for any number of reasons) as a means of changing and improving your life and environment when those in power (elected officials) will not. Is it OK to move because your voice isn’t heard? What about the people left behind?
Although this is accepted and used by many people idea bothers me primarily for three reasons:
I believe Mossville is no outlier regarding core problems faced by the community, in fact there are hundreds of towns across America where structured racism is accepted and it continues simply because there are no other options, communities are left feeling defeated. This leads to reason number 2- in Mossville the residents’ voices are particularly hushed because their town is not incorporated. Mossville lies between Sulphur and West Lake, LA in the midst of fourteen refineries leaving the community in the shadow of the refineries. After fifteen years of getting sick, fighting for their rights, and being angry in the face of opposition, what are their remaining options?
Reason number three- the community is forced to be ill which increases their feelings of hopelessness. Adding to the feelings of illnesses and exhaustion many residents do not feel they can do anything about their environment since past experiences have failed; many community members can recant stories of failed attempts to gain some type of awareness from those in power. Further enhancing the communities’ beliefs the state of Louisiana gives tax breaks to large companies to build and expand production; understanding all to well the benefits and risks associated with their lucrative incentives. Many people can deduce that the closer you are to a toxic site the more your chance for negative health risks increase, yet who is making the decision as to whether or not the corporations build? It is not the community members, in fact they often have no say; it is the stakeholders, those that benefit while the community members that reside near the plants suffer the harms associated with inhaling cancerous air irresponsibly polluted daily by the refineries.

I think we can understand how voting with your feet becomes a method of staying healthy and safe. Not all people can be blessed with the ability to move, in a community such as Mossville the roots of family and community can be traced back over 140 years. Many people in the community have moved however for many that remain they will never leave. Mossville is their home and they want it to remain like that for future generations.

The fact remains that ALL people regardless of their ethnicity or racial background deserve to live a healthy life. The fact that refineries in Europe operate with out polluting the environment is a testament for future aspirations in this country but also reveals the truths as to why clean operating standards doesn't occur in a capitalist, profit driven society. *Nicole

Apathy: One of Humankind's Greatest Evils

It has been a week since our return from Louisiana and I find myself continually reflecting upon my experiences in Mossville and also in New Orleans.

I have always considered myself blessed, however, I never considered myself privileged. My consciousness was first awakened to the concept of me being a white privileged woman when I attended the Undoing Racism workshop in January. Before then, I had conceived of myself as a decent white woman who cared about humanity and tried to do my best to help those in need - me not being a racist was all that was required of me. I was so wrong.

Not that I was so blind or naive to think that racism no longer existed in America. I just did not comprehend how our governmental and social systems are set up in a way that continues to support the white privileged class. After spending a week in Mossville I believe I am finally beginning to understand what white privilege means and also what structural racism does to individuals and a community.

There is no excuse for our government to shamefully continue pretending that they don’t know whom the sources are of all the toxic substances that are accumulating in the bodies of the Mossville residents. Not when the great majority of residents experience illnesses such as asthma and other diseases with environmental triggers. Not when there are millions of pounds of these toxic substances being released into the air and groundwater both legally and accidentally on a regular basis. Not when the local police allow plant employees to play vigilante and intimidate concerned citizens (granted concerned citizens not from the area) and then assign police officers to “question” these individuals under the guise of homeland security. I continually wonder if we had been a group of all Black citizens, rather than mostly white, would we have so easily driven away from the encounter.

In the words of Helen Keller: “Science may have found a cure for most evils; but it has found no remedy for the worst of them all -- the apathy of human beings.” The residents of Mossville deserve much more than our caring thoughts they deserve for us to transform our apathy into action and passion - not only while we are in Louisiana but in every interaction we have where ever we may be.

~ Gloria

Beautiful people

This is my first post.

The people in Mossville are some of the most beautiful people I have ever seen--physically, emotionally and spiritually. There is a light that shines from their eyes.

Beja and I attended church on Sunday, March 21, 2010. We were invited to fill out information cards and were welcomed with smiles. The pastor wove us and New York into his sermon; the singing and music were amazing. One of the singers is the pastor's daughter and she has made a CD...what a voice.

The church bulletin has a section that says:

"Don't Forget to Pray for...

Illness
An adolescent 14 year old with cancer, need healing
A couple, pancreatic cancer surgery & one has mass on kidney...
Another, cancer in remission...
Another, mass on stomach...

and on and on..

I have traveled to Mossville three times now and come home ill each time. This in a matter of days, not months or years. I wonder not that Mossville residents are dying but how they remain alive and keep the faith.

What is loved remains in the heart. My spiritual teacher says that we cannot take anything back--not the harsh words, not the love. I'm grateful for the latter.

A white woman in Mossville

For the past year, since entering Sarah Lawrence, I have been wrestling with the concept of white privilege, and how it applies to me. It is a difficult thing to hear, when you are not a person of color, that you live in a system that was set up to oppress others, specifically people of color. Just by being white, you benefit from it in some way. So many things began to make sense to me, and fall into place, particularly after attending an undoing racism training last month. Still, it is such an eye opener to experience it first hand, when your eyes have been opened. What was probably the most distressing to me is to witness people of color bend over backwards to apologize to me as they expressed their unhappiness, outrage, and feelings of helplessness as victims of environmental racism. I heard repeatedly comments such as "I'm not a racist" or "please don't take this the wrong way." That they felt the need to apologize angers me. The residents of Mossville are being systematically erased by the refinery industry, a sneaky form of genocide. Its appreciated that they wished me no discomfort, but angering that this world of privilege we live in necessitates the need to do it at all. Screw my discomfort. To heck with power structures. They owe me nothing. Not only should they be able to express their emotions freely, but comfortably, but because I am white, they could not. They are slowly dying, and they felt the need to make me feel comfortable. This has to stop. It is not enough that those of us who are white do not engage in racist acts personally. Simply by benefiting from a system we do not challenge is participation. We need to lend our voices to this injustice, to this inhumanity, and fight for true equality. An equality where people of color can drink the water flowing through their pipes, and breathe the air around them. Where they can talk about what has happened to them since being dragged here to make money off their sweat. Until we can do that, we are no better than those who burn crosses, or scream white power. Silence does not excuse us...Liz

Youth Group (pictures soon)

While in Mossville I really wanted to get a youth group together to talk about any pertinent issues in their community. A group of five girls and I got together (with the help of Ashley) to discuss their community. What was evident from the beginning was their emotional and familial connection to Mossville. Never have I seen a community that truly loves each other, and will help their neighbor out at any time of day. I was touched from the first day I met the Mossville residents. The girls however, defined community as what we all would think of, "it takes a village to raise a child, sharing, caring, love". But what I found interesting is the discrepancy between that definition and their definition of the Mossville community. These youth see a problem and can recognize that it is systemic. The community has been silenced and hushed for too long and these youth are not happy watching the elderly folks as they battle their illnesses, or watch as a flare burns in the distance. I only had the opportunity to spend three days with these ladies and it was evident that they are ready for a change and will push for their voices to be heard.
The project I proposed to them was for them to take pictures of their community; to describe Mossville through their pictures. They were extremely happy to do this and want to be involved with the community. The girls ranged in ages from 13-16 and I was a little disappointed we didn't have any boys that wanted to participate. However the pictures turned out great. When I return to Sarah Lawrence the girls and I will decide what pictures to print and how large they'd like them to be. I am extremely proud of the girls for the dedication and motivation and as a result of their efforts this week they have been allowed to post their pictures and descriptions at a local recreational center as well as a local church. This work is not done and I will be in contact with these teens- being a part of their lives for such a short period of time was truly enriching. -- Nicole

A word on race relations... (part 2)

Environmental racism is something we should talk about, too. Knowing the intentional history of placement of the petrochemical corporations, we can begin to construct a web of structures that impact the community. It forms the disproportional pressure placed upon communities of color that leads to oppression, disenfranchisement, morbidity and mortality.

Mossville, literally, is a poisoned place, because of the refineries, as well as the policies and institutions that allow the toxic practices to continue. Politics, social services, economics all contribute.

Our work and our world-view must be anti-racist in nature. We must challenge and dismantle the structures that oppress, that kill. (For good information and training about anti-racist work, go to The People's Institute for Survival and Beyond) ~~ Josh

How I learned to be a Mossville resident

Like the truly spoiled New Yorker I am, unaccustomed to forgoing latte's, I rolled through McDonalds in search of sugary goodness loaded with caffeine. This is how I learned what its like to live in Mossville firsthand. After two days of drinking the golden arches nectar, I realized that in order to make coffee, you need water. And water here is not good for you. In any way. I became very sick. Not just the malaise I had been feeling from breathing in the air here, which btw, makes Staten Island's ripe aroma seem like the fresh air of Wyoming, but gut wrenching sick. Worse than the illness was the fear and panic that came with it. What did I do to myself? How long would I feel this way? Was it permanent? Did I damage something? It washed over me in waves as I lay in bed miserable. Thanks to the wonders of homeopathy, I am feeling much better, but now I have time to think about the people who live here. I can leave. I will get on a plane on Saturday, and go home. To, while not clean, certainly much better air. And the water is wonderful. Nothing beats NY water. How much we take for granted. I feel connected to the residents here in a rich and meaningful way, not just because for a short time I was able to experience the very real consequences of environmental pollution, but because they live, laugh, love, and continue on despite it. They are strong, resilient, and beautiful. I am honored that they let me share their lives, even for a week. ....Liz