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Students
at 70 Schools on Five Continents Build New Student Movement Against Dow Chemical As during the Vietnam War, students are rising up and demanding that Dow Chemical be held accountable for its toxic legacy of death and destruction. Events at more than 70 colleges, universities and high schools and on five continents are planned in the weeks surrounding the 20th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster, marking the largest student movement against the company in a generation. Descriptions of many of the events taking place are included below, navigable by region. ..........• Summary of Student Events ..........• International Events ..........• United
States Events
This year, students from more than 70 colleges, universities, and high schools around the world organized and participated in a wide range of protests, demonstrations, and educational events to mark the 20th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster. These events were organized by Students for Bhopal, Association for India’s Development (AID) chapters, the Campus Greens and the Environmental Justice Program of the Sierra Student Coalition (SSC), and represent the first mass student movement Dow has faced since the Vietnam War. The number and range of student events represent a real and growing threat to Dow’s reputation, and its ability to do business with colleges and universities across the country. At the same time, student interest in the campaign continues to grow, and the momentum for Bhopal among students has never been greater. Here’s a quick look at student events for the 20th anniversary (more complete information can be found below): Who Participated? Where Events Took Place What Events Were Organized? ..........• 36 copies of the book “Trespass Against Us” and 35 copies of the film “Twenty Years Without Justice” were donated to college and public libraries around the country. Highlights “We started by reading a survivor testimonial aloud and then read aloud our open letter to James Ringler (available here). Two folks went up to the door to present Ringler with a jhadoo and letter which he refused and told us to get off his property. We left the jhadoo, the book Trespass Against Us and the letter on his doorstep and then went back out to meet our group. We stayed on the street in front of his house and shouted chants and marched so that he would know for sure that this issue was not going away. We were honored to have a visiting delegate from the New Trade Union Initiative in India with us, who is here as part of a collaborative exchange/dialogue with Jobs with Justice so that Indian workers and American workers can start building relationships and organizing to prevent any such disaster from ever occurring again. The cops came but did not chase us off and actually took our fact sheets and just waited while we did our thing. All in all a very positive night!” ..........• Washington, where supporters of ICJB paid a visit to Dow board member Barbara Hackman Franklin's office to deliver a letter from the group, "Trespass Against Us: Dow Chemical and the Toxic Century" and a vial of contaminated Bhopal well water (watch the 11-minute video at http://flow.mediavac.com/ramgen/sinkers/2004/watergateDec0304.rm). About 50 people attended the event, which was covered by the AFP (see http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/us_india_bhopal), the Hindustan Times (see http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1137761,00050001.htm), Reuters, and Independent media (see http://dc.indymedia.org/feature/display/110410/index.php). ..........• Delhi University in India, where the members of the student group “We for Bhopal” released the report of its October 2004 Fact Finding Mission to Bhopal, for which students met with survivors, toured the factory grounds, and interviewed the Chief Minister of the state government and other officials. The students intend to deliver the report in person to the President and Prime Minister of India, following up on their meeting with the President in March. In addition, “We for Bhopal” organized a massive candlelight vigil to mark the anniversary that drew a great deal of press attention, and judged the results of its college essay competition. ..........• University of Texas, Austin, where the members of AID-Austin organized a three-day-long series of events. These included a day-long protest against University involvement with Dow, a hunger strike and candlelight vigil, and a film screening and open discussion about the disaster. ..........• St. Benedict’s Preparatory High School in Newark, New Jersey, where the members of the SBP Environmental Club showed the video "Twenty Years Without Justice" and a slide show to the 650-strong student body. A copy of the film and the book “Trespass Against Us” were donated to their high school library. On Friday Dec. 3rd a group of students went to NJIT and Rutgers and handed out information slips. “In total we got 650 students and 100 teachers at St. Benedict's and at NJIT and Rutgers we got to speak with about 150 students and about 50 teachers.”
Delhi University, India ..........•
1.
We for Bhopal, AID-Delhi, Greenpeace-Delhi, and The Other Media
are jointly organizing a large candlelight vigil in Delhi. UPDATE!!: We had a morning meeting "THE LESSONS OF BHOPAL: Corporate Crimes, Accountability, State Collusion And their Impact on Women", organised by The Other Media, Jagori and Amnesty International-Delhi. Champa Devi Shukla represented the Bhopal Survivour groups at the meeting. Usha Ramanathan (legal researcher), Roma (political activist), Amarjeet Kaur (trade unionist) and Kalyani (feminist) spoke at the meeting. In the afternoon from 3 pm onwards, a peaceful demonstration at the India Gate was organised by ICJB members- We for Bhopal, The Other Media, Greenpeace and Association for India's Development. We had long banners demanding Dow to Clean up, which were publicly signed/hand printed by students, activists, passers-by, tourists (this spot is one the major tourist spots of Delhi). We also got the Dow Declaration signed by people. The banners and the declaration are being sent to the Dow's Corporate office in Bombay. As the evening descended, we lit candles...we had "No More Bhopals" written with candles in the middle and stood around holding candles. We observed 2 minutes silence to pay homage to the dead after which, along with Champa didi, we all took pledge to fight for justice in Bhopal. Villagers from Maharastra, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand along with Narmada Bachao Andolan and National Alliance for People's Movement leaders Medha Patkar, Sanjay Sanghwai, Sanjay MG, Surendra Mohan, Aruna Roy and many others joined us during the candle light vigil. We sang songs, shouted slogans, held hands...it was beautiful. We all felt united in our diverse struggles for justice from different parts of the country. Loyola College, Chennai,
India Cuddalore, India Multiple Colleges, Philippines Young Volunteers for the Environment, Togo University of Sydney, Australia Speakers: As we approach the 20th anniversary of the Bhopal Gas Disaster (3 December 2004), this seminar will give participants a timely opportunity to revisit various dimensions of the issue of devolving legal responsibility for human rights violations upon corporate actors. Of relevance to community groups, corporate executives, corporate lawyers, regulators, insurers, unions, academics and activists alike, this issue remains as live and contentious today as it was two decades ago, as evidenced by recent debate surrounding the Jackson Report on the liability of James Hardie for asbestos-related claims. Drawing together specialists from the corporate and human rights law fields, this seminar will involve reflection upon the regulatory initiatives that have been put in place since Bhopal and discussion of further developments anticipated in relation to corporate accountability under international human rights laws. Speakers will examine the latest international developments in litigation and regulatory strategy seeking to render corporations more accountable (and persistent obstacles thereto), as well as the implications of these for corporations and their risk managers. Those who attend this seminar should leave it better equipped to grapple with the complex legal and policy questions raised by proposals to render corporations answerable for violations of international human rights law. This seminar is part of the Continuing Legal Education Program administered by the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney.The seminar is an initiative of the Sydney Centre for International and Global Law. Based at the Faculty of Law at the University of Sydney, this Centre was created in 2003 with international law as its primary focus. The Centre specialises in teaching and research in international law and on issues pertaining to the global practice of law. The Centre offers advisory and related services to governments in Australia and throughout the Asia Pacific region, as well as to non-governmental organisations and others in the public and private sectors. Through initiatives such as this seminar series, the Centre is working to create links among those involved in the practice of international law throughout Australia. For more information about the Centre, please contact Professor Donald R. Rothwell, Director, Sydney Centre for International and Global Law, Faculty of Law, University of Sydney, 173-175 Phillip Street, Sydney NSW 2000; Tel: (+612) 9351 0308; Fax: (+612) 9351 0200; Email: donr_at_law.usyd.edu.au. A complete program of the seminar is available at www.law.usyd.edu.au/cle/2004/IntLawSem2004_Bhopal.pdf. UPDATE!!: The seminar was a big success and well attended! Brandenburg University of
Technology Cottbus, Germany UPDATE!!: "All the students and our professor enjoyed the presentation, many of them were shocked after seeing the horrible photos and after knowing the actual recent situation in Bhopal." Universidad Nacional, Heredia, Costa Rica University of Alberta, Canada UPDATE!!: “It was a huge success! Both David Suzuki and MLA Raj Pannu were great. The film was shown in a room for 400 -- and there were 435 present. I also understand that Vue Magazine is doing an article -- they are a weekly arts tabloid. I do think we have raised some level of awareness. Also there was an MBA student in the audience who had family affected by the disaster -- he sent a very long and emotional e-mail surprised that people here cared and so thankful they did. I should also mention that he was very concerned that any compensation given really gets to the people who suffered -- apparently the compensation from the Indian government didn't get to these people. I also know that many people who couldn't make the film will be watching it on the Nature of Things.” University of Windsor McGill University ..........1)
A screening of the new documentary Bhopal: The Search for Justice,
a film produced by White Pine Pictures and the NFB and which analyzes
the prospect for environmental and human justice in Bhopal. The
screening will be followed by a panel discussion with the filmmakers,
representatives of Amnesty International, Greenpeace, and Dr. Daya
Varma. The discussion will be moderated by Jooneed Khan.
Arizona State University,
AID-Tempe University of Arizona, AID-Tucson University of California, Davis ..........1.
Information Table on campus early in the day when most people are
on campus. We will have available a fact sheet, information about
the concept of environmental racism and the principles of environmental
justice, information about our film screening later that day, and
a sign up sheet for those who would like to contribute to the campaign.
We may also table on the days leading up to Dec. 3rd, if possible. UPDATE!!: We had a small area of
campus surrounded by a ridiculous amount of caution tape, making
a great eye catching visual! The "Bhopal: The Search for Justice"
film screening did not draw a large audience, as it was on a Friday
afternoon, but I believe everyone that was in attendance was greatly
moved and disturbed by the film. University of California,
Berkeley University of California-San
Diego, AID-San Diego Occidental College, CalTech California Institute of Integral Studies Stanford University, AID-Bay
Area UPDATE!!: The 20th Anniversary event organized by AID-Bay Area went really well. We screened "Bhopal: The Search for Justice" to an audience of 80 in Stanford. The talk was followed by a discussion with Diana Ruiz, US Coordinator--ICJB and Nadeemuddin, one of the film makers. The event was cosponsored by 12 organizations in the Bay Area. We also donated 25 copies "Trespass Against us" to the public libraires in the area. Yale University Georgia State University,
Georgia Tech, and Emory University Events include Atlanta's premiere of "Bhopal: The Search for Justice" co-produced by Harold Crooks (The Corporation). Discussions, speakers, performances by various artists including "In their own words" performed by Kaya Collective & community members based on poetry, testimonials from Bhopal and award-winning photographs of Raghu Rai. Screening of "Bhopal Express" and a Candlelight vigil are also planned, and we will have a perspective piece appearing in Khabar's December issue and an article in AJC & the World. Copies of the new book about Dow, "Trespass Against Us", will also be donated to all three college libraries. 1) "Corporate Responsibility &
Global Justice" UPDATE!!: I just wanted briefly to write up about the successful event at Georgia State University (GSU) in Atlanta, Georgia happened this Wednesday evening, December 1. This is the first of three events coming up in the next two days at different university campuses in Atlanta. There were perhaps 30 people in the audience. It seems that many were GSU students, and given the crunch time at the end of the semester (and the less progressive state of Atlanta), the turn-out was good. After airing the hip-hop song, "Flames, not Flowers," we showed the film, "Twenty Years without Justice." We took some questions and comments from the audience after Alka added some more background information and framed the issue in the context of the unequal power imbalance of the current form of globalization. There also were some people who brought some different issues related in some way to the Bhopal issue (e.g., Coca-Cola's devastating effects in India [it's important especially because Atlanta has the Coke's world headquarters], and effects of depleted uranium on people and the environment in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere by the U.S. military) to our attention - so hopefully the audience got those connections or the larger context that leads to injustices in different ways to different, but relatively powerless, people. We were fortunate to have a GSU student from Bhopal who spoke his experience or memories of the disaster and the aftermath when he was a small child in 1984. We collected petitions to Dow Chemical (off the bhopal.net) and to the Madhya Pradesh government (off the AID web-site)(also the petition to Coca-Cola). People also filled out postcards to Dow by the Amnesty International. A local artist, on a very short notice, created and brought a sort of quilt with some sewn pictures on which people wrote their messages with markers (I think to be sent to the survivor groups in Bhopal - with some pictures we took). We then went outside to have a candle-light vigil. A guitarist from a local band, the Indicator, played a nice slide guitar for us, and we had a short testimony reading as well as a moment of silence – remembering and recognizing not only the suffering and struggles of the Bhopali survivors, but also people in India and elsewhere whose lives are unjustly affected by neoliberal globalization and the U.S. empire. Unfortunately, there was no media at the event, but there have been at least two Atlanta Journal-Constitution (local/southeastern newspaper) articles on Bhopal. 2) "Bhopal: The Search for Justice" "The documentary 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 bastis 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." 3) "Bhopal Express" "Bhopal Express has won awards and become a cult movie among students and on the art film circuit, but has not yet reached mainstream audiences. The scenes depicting the actual disaster are so powerful that for a long time the film was not shown in Bhopal, for fear of reawakening those terrible memories. However it is to be screened publicly in the open air at the forthcoming anniversary." University of Indiana, AID-Bloomington University of Chicago UPDATE!!: Here at the University of Chicago we had multiple events. On Wednesday December 1, 2004, students from the Environmental Concerns Organization, Green Campus Initiative, South Asian Students Association, Amnesty International and more joined in a 24 hour fast wearing buttons stating: Justice in Bhopal and all black attire. At noon we held a vigil outside on campus holding posters and passing out fliers informing the students, faculty and staff of the Bhopal Chemical Disaster. In the evening we broke fast to enjoy an Indian meal and hear Joe Kirchoff from Amnesty International spoke about Bhopal and corporate responsibility. South Asian Progressive Action
Collective Activists in eight countries join Amnesty International in demanding Bhopal clean up and accountability of Dow Chemical December 3, 2004: Lake Forest, Illinois, USA - On the 20th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster, 24 activists from the South Asian Progressive Action Collective and allied organizations delivered Indian brooms to Chicago-area Dow Chemical Director, James Ringler, urging the company to clean up the still-contaminated site. The action came on the heels of an Amnesty International report that called Dow's denials of responsibility on the matter "misleading… when at the same time hundreds of thousands of people are still suffering…" Ringler answered the door, ordered the activists off his property, and hastily closed it, refusing to accept the brooms along with a letter and the recently published book, "Trespass Against Us". On December 3rd, 1984, a toxic cloud of gas from
the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal, India, enveloped the surrounding
city, leaving thousands dead. More than 20,000 have died to date
the population of Lake Forest where James Ringler lives. More
than 120,000 people still suffer from severe health problems as
a result of their exposure. Despite acquiring Union Carbide, Dow Chemical has refused to address Carbide’s pending liabilities in Bhopal, including medical and economic rehabilitation of victims, clean up of toxic wastes and contaminated groundwater, and provision of safe drinking water. Dow has also refused to produce Union Carbide to face trial in Indian court where the company is wanted for manslaughter. “It is outrageous that people still drink contaminated water and suffer diseases without medical care due to a 20 year old disaster,” said Kamayani Swami, Association for India’s Development. “Dow Chemical must take responsibility and clean up the site immediately.” The activists were joined by V. Chandra, union delegate from the New Trade Union Initiative in India who called for common labor and safety standards so that future accidents like Bhopal do not happen in the future. In a report released Nov. 29, Amnesty International called on Dow Chemical to "…provide promptly full reparations, restitution, compensation and rehabilitation for the continuing damage done to people's health and environment by the ongoing contamination of the site." Amnesty officials also emphasized that "Human rights have been violated on a massive scale…" In 2003, 18 members of US Congress including Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky called Dow subsidiary, Union Carbide an “absconder from justice” and described Dow’s refusal to deal with the tragedy as a “blatant disregard for the law.” The Congressional members concluded that “The disaster in Bhopal continues, and is likely to worsen if Dow Chemical does not step forward to fulfill its responsibilities.” UPDATE!!: We had about 25 people up at Ringler's house on Friday - some from Chicago and others from the Milwaukee/Madison area. It was quite fun although cold. We started by reading a survivor testimonial aloud and then read aloud our open letter to James Ringler. Two folks went up to the door to present Ringler with a jhadoo and letter which he refused and told us to get off his property. We left the Jhadoo, the book Trespass Against Us and the letter on his doorstep and then went back out to meet our group. We stayed on the street in front of his house and shouted chants and marched so that he would know for sure that this issue was not going away. We were honored to have a visiting delegate from the New Trade Union Initiative in India with us, who is here as part of a collaborative exchange/dialogue with Jobs with Justice so that Indian workers and American workers can start building relationships and organizing to prevent any such disaster from ever occuring again. The cops came but did not chase us off and actually took our fact sheets and just waited while we did our thing. All in all a very positive night! I just picked up a copy of this week's Indian Reporter, Desi Talk and Garam Masala... All three had articles covering the Milwaukee/Chicago events and the 20th anniversary with big photos... the Indian Reporter article was the follow up from Kamayani's article last week.... University of Illinois-Urbana
Champaign December 1: Panel Discussion Illinois State University The demonstration at ISU will simulate the deadly gas leak and how it affected those that were exposed, as well as pay tribute to those who have lost their lives as a result of this tragedy. Students will also be asking others to sign a petition that expresses concern about the issue that will later be sent to Dow Chemical Corporation’s board of directors. The students participating in the demonstration are currently studying the issue of corporate social responsibility in Dr. Dale Fitzgibbons’ MQM 385 class, and see this as a way to encourage corporations to be more socially responsible. UPDATE!!: 55+ of students participated in the demonstration, which received very extensive coverage by two of the local network affiliates as well as campus NPR. Read the local news report, and read the press release!! ISU Senior Damon Nixon says, ''Why hadn't I heard about it before that was my first reaction because with so may people dying you think it would have created more of a public outrage.'' Nixon is one of the many ISU students walking to class, hearing about Bhopal's gas leak for the first time. Business Professor Dale Fitzgibbons teaches his students how many disasters stem from irresponsible companies. Students in turn wanted to share this lesson with the school. Dr. Fitzgibbons says, ''I think this is a testimony there's a subset of students out there in colleges of business who are concerned about the environment, concerned about corporal action that hurts us and has negative impact on stakeholders.'' Student Organizer Tara Stahl says, ''Remember those who died and bring attention to the company that there are people out there who still want them to take responsibility for their action.'' The students created a simulation of the factory, a memorial and a petition to send to the company's board of directors. Northwestern University School of Law Forum High School for Creative
Studies, Blue Island, IL Louisiana State University, AID-Baton Rouge Johns Hopkins University University of Maryland, College Park UPDATE!!: Supporters of ICJB in Washington DC paid a visit to Dow board member Barbara Hackman Franklin's office to deliver a letter from the group, "Trespass Against Us: Dow Chemical and the Toxic Century" and a vial of contaminated Bhopal well water. About 50 people attended the event, which was covered by the AFP, the Hindustan Times, Reuters, and Independent media. WATCH THE VIDEO!!! (10 min, 47 sec) "The historic Watergate Complex in Washington, DC, is also the reputed hideout of Dow Chemical Board member and criminal accomplice Barbara Franklin, and it's here that the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal chose to mark the 20th anniversary of the chemical gas disaster at Bhopal, India, the worst industrial accident in history, in which nearly 20,000 people died at the hands of the Union Carbide Corporation. Dow Chemical purchased Union Carbide four years ago, but to this day refuses to assume responsibility for the cleanup of the Bhopal accident site, or compensation for the victims. "...And so it was that our man from Greenpeace was unable to enter the Watergate Office Building, obstructed by security flunkies who refused to deliver a copy of a letter and the vial of polluted drinking water from a Bhopal well to Barbara Franklin's office, claiming that Ms. Franklin was "out of the office", but if you ask me, the security goons were spooked by the vial, probably fearing a "bioterror threat". Yeah, you never can tell what Al Quaeda might be able to do with four or five ounces of poisoned Bhopal well water." Wheaton College, Norton MA Tufts University MIT Harvard University ..........•
Ashim
Roy, President of the General Electric workers' union in Gujarat
state. Grand Valley State University UPDATE!!: The petition asking Grand Valley to reconsider its associations with Dow is going great. Six groups now and 300 signatures. The resolution is in the making and hopefully will be voted on soon. University of Michigan Saginaw Valley State University University of Minnesota, AID-Minnesota ..........1)
Street performance in The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus
at 1.00 PM, and later in downtown Minneapolis. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Princeton University, AID-Princeton I wanted to congratulate heartily all those involved in last night's screening of Justice for Bhopal and the subsequent discussion by producer Harold Crooks and lawyer Rajan Sharma. This is an excellent documentary. The discussion after lasted for one hour and even then people had more questions! Sujit was forced to halt in the interest of time. No one in the audience left immediately after the film (as far as I could tell) but stayed to participate in one of the most vibrant discussions I have seen post any documentary film. St. Benedict’s Preparatory
High School, Newark, New Jersey UPDATE!!: On Friday Dec. 6th, members of the St. Benedict's Environmental Club showed the video "Twenty Years Without Justice" and a slide show to the student body. On Friday Dec. 3rd a group of students went to NJIT and Rutgers and handed out information slips. In total we got 650 students and 100 teachers at St. Benedict's and at NJIT and Rutgers we got to speak with about 150 students and about 50 teachers. Some quotes are listed below. Our chemistry teacher told us on Monday that he worked for Union Carbide the year of the disaster. He left three months after the disaster because he saw that they were lying to the public. He said that he would not be part of a company that turned its back on its own values. "You woke people up." -Teacher "After so many years, I would have thought something had been done." - Teacher "How could a company so invested in safety, be responsible for the worst chemical disaster in history?" - Student "When high school students get involved in campaigns for justice and peace, I feel there is hope for our world. If everyone in the world knew about what Union Carbide did and continues to do, this would never happen again. People need to know, and you're doing a good job reminding people about what happen." -Teacher "It was a very, very informative piece of information, that you don't hear about in the newspapers." - Student "What you taught those students in those thirty some minutes, is a lesson that they will remember for the rest of their lives." - Teacher University of New Mexico, AID-New Mexico We are expecting nearly a 100 people for the events (see below for details) and they will be Indians as well as people from other communities. We are also doing a lot of publicity. FROM BHOPAL TO NEW MEXICO: ENVIRONMENTAL
JUSTICE NOW! 20 years have passed and people from Bhopal are still awaiting Justice. However they are not flowers, they are flames and they are fighting hard for it. Association for India's Development-New Mexico (AID-NM) and Southwest Network for Environmental and Economic Justice (SNEEJ) stand in solidarity with the struggle of people of Bhopal. The following series of events are organized in the week of November 29-December 3, on the occasion of 20th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster, to raise awareness about struggles for environmental justice in Bhopal and in New Mexico. ------------------------------------------------------------ November 29, 2004 Screening of BHOPAL EXPRESS ----------------- November 30, 2004 Screening of BHOPAL: THE SEARCH FOR JUSTICE ----------------- December 1, 2004 FROM BHOPAL TO NEW MEXICO: ENVIRONMENTAL
JUSTICE NOW! ----------------- December 2, 2004 Screenings for the "People Before Profits"
series: ----------------- December 3, 2004 IN THE NAME OF BHOPAL... ------------------------------------------------------------ About the speakers and the panel discussion on December 1: Robby Rodriguez, Organizing Coordinator, SouthWest Organizing Project (SWOP): Robby is originally from Southern California by way of Tucson, Arizona. As a Cornell undergraduate student, he interned with SWOP during the summer of 1996. After becoming a full-time organizer with SWOP in 1997, he has helped to organize New Mexico communities around issues of youth criminalization, environmental, economic and social justice. He is currently a member of the Corrales Air Quality Task Force and past chair of the Youth Leadership Development Campaign. SWOP was founded in 1980 with a mission to empower our communities in New Mexico to realize racial and gender equality, and social and economic justice. Our work is built on a foundation of direct community organizing - building personal and political relationships in the community, providing leadership training, and taking action. We seek to redefine power relationships by providing the tools for people to advocate for themselves. In order to be successful we also build alliances, networks and coalitions from the local to the international level. Robby will talk about the groundbreaking effort that SWOP is embarking upon to encourage Intel Corporation to incorporate a promising new technology into its production process. The new Supercritical technology is being developed at national laboratories and applied to a method of cleaning semiconductors that will dramatically reduce water and hazardous chemical use. This process could revolutionize the semiconductor industry and have far reaching benefits for communities, workers and other industries. SWOP plans to use a shareholder campaign and other strategies to move the company to implement this technology in the next three years. SWOP is also seeking short-term commitments from Intel to improve water conservation, implement best available control technologies and state of the art air monitoring systems at all production facilities. SWOP intends to increase the level of accountability and cooperation between Intel, regulating agencies, workers and communities. John Mathias, Volunteer, Association for India's Development, Ann Arbor John has been involved with the Ann Arbor chapter of Association for India's development since the winter of 2000. In the summer of 2000 he made a video showcasing several grassroots development projects in India that had received support from AID. He became involved with the Bhopal campaign through his involvement with AID-Ann Arbor, which is the nearest AID chapter to the Dow headquarters in Midland, Michigan, and the first chapter to begin taking action on the issue. In the spring of 2003, John traveled with Bhopal survivors Rashida Bi and Champa Devi, as well as organizer Satinath Sarangi, to document on video their US tour and hunger strike. Later that year, he helped organize the December 3 action in Midland, Michigan. This involved several members of AID-Ann Arbor and other UM student organizations visiting the houses of Dow board members to drop off contaminated drinking water from Bhopal, and hold candlelight vigils while reading the stories of Bhopal survivors. The event was an overwhelming success, receiving newspaper and television coverage from around Michigan. John will talk about the current highlights of the Bhopal Struggle, the role of the students in the US and around the world, in this campaign and the local actions taken by the Ann Arbor chapter of AID to encourage Dow Chemicals to take responsibility for cleaning up the factory at Bhopal. Albany Medical College Bard College On November 22nd, we held a joint screening of Ilan Ziev's documentary "Litigating Disaster" and Harold Crooks’ documentary, "Bhopal: The Search for Justice." After screening the two movies, we had a question and answer session with Raj Sharma, the lawyer who is working on the case and star of the film "Litigating Disaster", and with Harold Crooks, who directed "The Search for Justice." On December 1st, we will be screening "Bhopal Express." On December 2nd, we will have a candle lighting vigil with testimonies of Bhopal survivors read out loud. This will be followed by a screening of "The Heart Becomes Quiet," a documentary about the disaster. On December 3rd, Misty Seemans--who wrote a play about Bhopal--will have it performed at Bard. Marymount Manhattan College New York University WHAT: Justice for Bhopal Solidarity discussion;
film screening and Q&A session with the filmmaker, Harold Crooks,
afterwards UPDATE!!: In NYC at NYU's Silver Center (room booked by NYU students, Manu and Sujani), a group of students held a free screening of the new (2004) documentary film, Bhopal: The Search for Justice, a film by Peter Raymont, Lindalee Tracey, and Harold Crooks of White Pine Pictures. The screening was held on Friday, December 3, 2004 from 7-9pm, with a Q&A/Bhopal Solidarity discussion following with one of the co-producers of the film, Harold Crooks, and Brian Mooney, New York University anthropology professor and former lawyer with Kelley, Dyre and Warren, Union Carbide's New York City law firm. In light of the 20th anniversary of the tragedy in Bhopal, the film commemorated 20 years in the struggle for justice in Bhopal, India and the 2nd Global Day of Action Against Corporate Crime. The evening ended with a call for individuals and organizations to mobilize for getting involved in solidarity with the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal, to struggle for the Bhopal victims fighting for human rights, environmental justice, and corporate accountability. The event was co-sponsored by Students for Bhopal and the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB), AID-NY, INSAF, the Asian/Pacific/American Program at NYU, and United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS) at NYU. Agenda: Thanks to Sujani, Manu, Ryan, Andy, Kranthi, Vandana, Varsha, Harold Crooks, Brian Mooney and everyone who came for making this event possible. Southampton College Duke University ..........1.
A signature campaign for the congressional resolution and flyering Multiple High Schools in Charlotte, NC UPDATE!!: Our vigil went pretty well. There was some trouble everyone finding the right place in the park and the numbers were lower than expected. We only had 9 students so I was a little disap |
