We are told by Classical Western mythology that a hero is a being of great strength and courage, celebrated for bold exploits, and who is the offspring of no less than a mortal and a god.

Coca-Cola doesn’t quite fit this profile, I know. But if we change a few words–courage to audacity and strength to compulsion– I think we’ll find Coca Cola standing tall and proud. A hero among Men.

From oneworld.net - The Coca-Cola company has been charged with illegally seizing lands communally owned by small farmers and …

Banana workers in Nicaragua, who after years of work in the fields, say pesticide use has made them sterile. They are suing Dow, Dole and other firms in L.A.

From www.latimes.com - THE people crammed into the stifling basketball gym. They filled the court, lined the walls and tumbled beyond the doors onto the sun- blistered streets.

They had gathered to hear a promise of justice.

Many had spent their lives toiling on banana plantations that U.S. companies operated in this region some 30 years ago. By day, the workers …

From Gila River Alliance for a Clean Environment (GRACE), via bsnorrell.blogspot.com - A toxic waste treatment facility called Romic Southwest sits in the Gila River Indian Community next to Chandler [in Arizona] .

The U.S. EPA refuses to fine this company despite serious and repeat violations and the people who live and work in the community have little means to do anything about it. That is why [on March 24] dozens of people came out to demand the toxic waste facility be shut down .

People lined …

Saludos desde Mayaguez, Puerto Rico — During our struggle to get the US Navy to stop bombing our island municipality of Vieques, people from all over the world gave us their solidarity. A Land is Life Conference took place in Vieques. People from Hawaii, the Marshall Islands, Guam and the Philippines came to share their experiences and show solidarity for our struggle. The US no longer bombs Vieques. But it has left its toxic wastes there to continue contaminating the land. Its clean up operations are not careful of the islands eco system nor do …

By focusing on the Native American struggle for spiritual and cultural autonomy on disputed lands in the U.S. Southwest, “Trespassing” unpacks a deadly political and ethical controversy around land rights, uranium mining, nuclear testing and the disposal of nuclear waste, and examines the ability of a culture to bring itself to the brink of annihilation while simultaneously producing “gatekeepers” to combat that annihilation.

(The ad at the end of the clip has nothing to do with Intercontinental

…

From Amazon Watch - Los Angeles, CA – A report released today (link below), on the eve of Occidental Petroleum’s (Oxy) annual general meeting (AGM), reveals that the LA-based oil giant deliberately ignored industry standards and employed out-of-date practices for 30 years, resulting in severe cadmium and lead poisoning among indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon.

According to the report, based on information gathered by a team of experts in May 2006 – including a doctor, nurse, lawyers, soil scientist, agronomist, environmental engineer, and chemist – children from five Achuar …

EcoWellness: Race and hazardous waste
By Christine dell’amore, UPI
March 22, 2007

WASHINGTON, March 22 (UPI) — Twenty years after a landmark study proved a link between hazardous-waste sites and minority neighborhoods, the phenomenon has only settled deeper into U.S. towns and cities, a new report says.

What’s more, the racial differences are much greater than previously thought, according to “Toxic Wastes and Race at Twenty,” a preliminary anniversary report released today. The full report will be made public on April 22, Earth Day.

The updated report found more than 9 million Americans live in neighborhoods within about 2 miles of the 413 commercial …

Gummidipoondi residents stop illegal construction of toxic waste landfill
www.sipcotcuddalore.com
March 21, 2007

Gummidipoondi, 21 March 2007 – More than 500 residents, primarily women, from S.R. Kandigai panchayat in Gummidipoondi physically entered and stopped work at the project site of Tamil Nadu Waste Management Ltd (TNWML)’s hazardous waste landfill and incinerator. The construction was being carried out without permission from the local Government bodies and against the wishes of local residents. Representatives of Community Environmental Monitoring (CEM) and Chennai based youth group Youth for Social Change (YSC) also joined the residents in solidarity.

Speaking on behalf of the village, Mr. T. Rosepillai, Panchayat …

Protests Mount Against Mining Giant
Stephen Leahy, www.ipsnews.net
February 24, 2007

TORONTO, Feb 24 (Tierramérica) - Dangerous levels of lead and arsenic have been found in the blood of Honduran villagers living downstream from a controversial gold and silver mine owned by Canada’s Goldcorp Inc., the world’s third largest gold mining firm.

According to the ecologists who organised the study, lead and arsenic levels in the blood were higher than the maximum recommended by international standards (70 ug/dl) in a sample of 10 people who live near the San Martín mine, in San Ignacio, a municipality located in the central Siria Valley.

The study, …

NLC ignoring traditional owners’ wishes, says group
ABC News Online
Feb. 22, 2007

A group of traditional owners say the Northern Land Council (NLC) is going against its wishes by negotiating with the Federal Government over a possible radioactive waste dump in their area.

Three defence sites in the Northern Territory are under consideration as proposed dump sites.

The traditional owners from Muckaty Station, north of Tennant Creek, say their land is also under consideration as an alternative site.

Dianne Stokes represents the traditional owners and says they have written to the federal Science Minister, Julie Bishop, stating they do not want a waste dump.

But …