We recently took the Red, White and Water campaign to the Festival Latino in Wilmington, NC. Festival goers signed photo postcards to their member of Congress Representative Mike McIntyre asking him to stand up for our clean water protections.
Hispanic communities suffer disproportionately from the impacts of coal pollution. 32 coal-fired power plants across the country are in counties that are either more than 25% black or more than 25% Latino, and 9 are in counties that are more than 20% Native American. That means more exposure to mercury pollution from the burning of coal and arsenic pollution from coal ash dams.
So, while all Americans have a huge stake in keeping our waters clean, Latino communities are made to carry a larger pollution burden to bear.
Below are some of the great people we met in Wilmington, luchando por su derecho al agua limpia! (fighting for their right to clean water!)
Sandra DiazWith Colombian roots, a Philadelphia, Pa.-childhood, and more than a decade in Florida before joining Appalachian Voices, Sandra served as AV's North Carolina campaign coordinator and driving force behind the Red, White & Water campaign from 2007 to 2013.
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Very inforamtive story. Having grown up in South Florida where many Haitians live, I have been aware of their struggles over the years. The hopeful tone expressed by the survivors is a very good sign of things getting better albeit at marginal pace. But as illustrated in this piece, there are good people doing good things still believing in their country’s future rebirth.
Hmm is anyone else having problems with the images on this blog
loading? I’m trying to determine if its a problem on my end or if it’s the blog.
Any feed-back would be greatly appreciated.