How often do we realize the corporate injustices taking place in our society? Have we noticed the closure of a beloved store, known to many living nearby, with the opening of a Mega Walmart Superstore? These changes are barely noticeable in the larger span of events. However, the emotional trauma still exists.
The case concerning the Exxon Valdez oil spill in March 1989 epitomizes the frequent promotion of corporate benefits over human rights. This oil spill devastated the community surrounding the Prince William Sound near Alaska. Even though the infamous oil company claimed to take all possible steps to clean up the mess, it remained a superficial attempt and the community still suffers.
This community, isolated from high scale commercialism occurring in America, was self- sufficient. It relied on fishing as its main source of livelihood. Following the oil spill, fishing has never been the same: salmon and herring eggs have developed permanent deformities resulting in significantly low produce. The herring stocks collapsed in the market and have not recovered since.
The oil company hired a lot of people for a three year clean up program and many of those individuals have claimed to be suffering from chronic respiratory diseases even since.
The oil company never took true initiative to help ease the community’s suffering; however, what surprised me the most, after watching the documentary, was how the judiciary system kept helping the company ignore its responsibilities. The company was first slapped with a compensation of $5 billion. However, the company’s lawyers were able to bring down the compensation to one tenth of the original amount. The company has not realized that there is more than just money at stake here. The community can never fully recover for this environmental disaster. However a significant monetary compensation could have definitely help fishermen come back on their feet.
This company has since made over 140 billion dollars in profits. It is pathetic to see this sort of injustice taking place in society.
Being an environment enthusiast, I hadn’t heard much of this oil spill till the showcasing of the documentary during the Hot Docs run. I appreciate the contribution of Ms Powell and the Tech crew for providing me along with many other Comm. Students with the opportunity to learn about such compelling stories.
WAY TO GO COMM!!!
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