Super Blog 3 Gabriella Sheffler

This first photo is from the Vernon protest against the toxic incinerator. This protest is the subject of my project and this photograph is essential in capturing the atmosphere at the time of the event. As seen by the photo, MELA is a group of Mothers in the Latino community using their position to advance environmental justice. In the photograph, there are also children and men included. After further research, it appears the men are the husbands of the mothers in MELA and the children are the sons and daughters of MELA mothers. This photograph is significant as it showcases the collective community action taken to stop an instance of environmental racism. Additionally, this photograph showcases how MELA used their family to advance their position and give ground for protesting against the toxic incinerator. By involving the children in the protest, there is a clear representation of the community that would be impacted by the toxic incinerator in Vernon.

This next photograph is a photograph from 1992 of the Mother of East Los Angeles at a press conference. The leader of the group is Juana Beatriz Gutteriez, one of the founding members of MELA. Although this photograph is not from the Vernon protest, it showcases the in-person action taken by MELA in order to fight for environmental justice. MELA would speak at press conferences and describe how instances of environmental racism would threaten their community. Additionally, this photograph is significant because it involves one of the founding leaders of MELA.
This next photograph is a map of the suburban areas in Vernon. This is helpful to my project as the toxic incinerator was planned to be in Vernon and would affect the suburban areas. This is why MELA was so significant in the fight against the toxic waste incinerator. The incinerator would have had negative health effects on the areas on this map. The city of Vernon is predominantly a Latino community and MELA used their position as mothers, members of a minority community, and women to fight for their cause of environmental justice.

Finally, this image is a primary source document of a letter to the EPA regarding a hazardous waste facility from, among other signers, the Mothers of East Los Angeles. This is significant for a number of reasons. First, this image showcases how MELA collaborated with other organizations to achieve their goal. By having a group made up of Mothers co-signing legislation, it adds a community element to the protest. MELA showed their support for this letter and, in doing so, showed the community involvement of the city of Vernon. Additionally, this letter is significant because it showcases the methods MELA used in order to achieve their goals. MELA participated in protests, as shown by the first photograph, attended press conferences to discuss their platform, as shown by the second photograph, and participated in pushing for legislation that would advance their cause. These photographs show how MELA was successful in their efforts because they were involved in many spheres of protests. 

Comments

  1. Jose Chavez-HerediaMarch 2, 2021 at 4:19 PM

    Hi Gabriella, I think your first picture is extremely powerful! It is powerful to me because it shows people gathering up to protest something that they truly believe in, and that is inspiring. The photograph of the map is great too because it is showcasing exactly why MELA was protesting, because it looks like they were being targeted.

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  2. Antonios TheodosisMarch 2, 2021 at 4:19 PM

    The image selection for this particular topic is one that is nice and balanced. The first two images provide an inside look into the events transpiring and capture the emotion and determination that these women had fighting for their cause. What is also nice and balanced about the images you selected is that you also gave us a map and document which provide us with geographic locations, as well as a look into primary source material. It gives us the legal side of things but couples it with the "in the field" or "real" experience of the situation by showing us the protestors and their strive for environmental justice.

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