Survivor’s of the world’s worst industrial disaster, the Bhopal gas disaster, will embark on a speaking tour across the United States starting this week in Louisiana. They will meet with frontline communities and environmental justice advocates across the state, and speak at two public events:
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Lake Charles: Wednesday August 21st, 6-7:30PM. At UUMC Safe Harbor;
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New Orleans: Friday August 23rd, 6pm. At the John Thompson Legacy Center;
The survivors’ tour comes ahead of the 40th anniversary of the disaster on December 3rd in Bhopal, India. Since the night of the gas leak at the Union Carbide factory in 1984, over 20,000 people have been killed due to chemical exposure, and over 500,000 remain impacted by the chronic health conditions, generational birth defects, and ongoing groundwater contamination in Bhopal. With this tour, the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB) seeks to raise awareness and reinvigorate solidarity with Bhopal in the US, as it is where Dow Chemicals, which owns Union Carbide, is based. The Bhopal gas disaster had significant consequences for environmental health policy in the US and across the world. However, survivors remain fighting for justice. During their visit to Louisiana, they will convene with numerous environmental justice organizations to highlight similarities between the struggles in both India and the US and share stories on how Bhopalis have taken care of each other and maintained the struggle through 40 years of injustice.
