Investigation & Outreach in Slidell, Louisiana

“What I get out of this is that the almighty dollar is more important than human life, and that’s sad.” Dean R., New Orleans, LA

Investigation/Mission Statement outreach in Slidell, Louisiana

Sam Rubin, Emergency Committee, July 8, 2010

On Wednesday, July 7, four people working with the Emergency Committee – stopgulfoildisaster.org - drove up to Slidell (about 20 miles NE of New Orleans) on an investigative/outreach mission near the Rigolets. The Times-Picayune of the same day had reported that tar balls had reached lake Pontchartrain, and we were going to both document any oil as well as any response by BP/Government. We did not see any tar balls, as clean up crews had apparently scooped up the visible ones the day before, but the Times-Picayune also reported “oil was likely pushed around or under barges that were put in place in the Rigolets to stop the oil.” What we did see however, was a road near the bridge leading into the harbor blocked off by military personnel. We could also see some boom out in the water, as well as boom laid near the water behind this militarized barrier. Where a large group was gathering outside at a bar nearby, we stopped to talk to people about what was going on and share the Mission Statement of the Emergency Committee. What we heard over and over again was how this oil spill was ruining lives, economically, physically, and emotionally. We heard about many who were hit so hard they were unsure how they were going to get by. The bar owner who hosts a free crab-boil every Wednesday night outside the bar for all the local fishermen is now having to pay five times as much for the crab that he gives away for free. 

One man talked about how in the last few months his health has deteriorated and he’s having to use his inhaler far more than he ever had to. The same man spoke about how some are trying not to think too much about the oil spill because the reality is just too devastating for them and their families. He told us that “what I get out of this is that the almighty dollar is more important than human life…and that’s sad.” He went on to speak about how devastating it was for him to see a bird soaked in oil, and how “once you see that…you know what this is all about…this is robbing people not just of their livelihood but of their recreation, sport, and the beautiful things that God gave us.” Another person spoke of the real potential for suicide in this mix.

The people we spoke to were receptive to our Mission Statement. At the same time, many were unsure what it would really take to stop this disaster. One person spoke about the sad contrast between individual acts of environmental consciousness (driving less, recycling) while the oil companies destroy the planet at a furious rate. A number of people asked for copies of the Mission Statement and we left a stack of about 100 on the bar counter.

“The nets just came apart…” Long-time Louisiana Shrimper

At a nearby harbor, we stopped and talked to a tugboat captain and a longtime shrimper. They told us about how they thought the dispersants must be very toxic because of the effects they were having on the boats. They explained how the dispersants were ruining the hulls on the ships and the shrimper told us of how after dragging his netting through an area where there had been dispersants, the netting was “eaten away” and broke apart. New netting, he explained, had become “moldy and rotted away”. He told us about how these same dispersants were being dropped from the air where clean-up crews were working. When we asked about BP’s role in this, he brought up how long people are having to wait to get paid by BP and how difficult that makes things.

We left Slidell with a deeper understanding of what this oil spill is really about, and with a fresh sense of purpose. To continue pursuing the truth, wherever it takes us, and to continue to bring our call for the people to act to many more, here in Louisiana, and all over the globe. As our Mission Statement states, “The world is watching. We must not allow the Gulf and oceans to be devastated. Our mission is nothing less than stopping this catastrophe.” And as Dean, a man we met during the day said, “it’s time to take the bull by the horns.”