Mike Honda And The BP Oil Spill

Monday, August 09, 2010



Definitely wanted to make sure and post up a little bit of the Mike Honda article down at the Huffington Post because while BP is finally getting control over the oil spill - this is just the beginning.

What is equally disastrous, but less frequently reported, is the impact to the physical health, economy and livelihoods of communities living adjacent to the Gulf Coast. Among these communities, perhaps the most vulnerable are thousands of Southeast Asian and African-American families. The adverse effects experienced by this population are potent and unique.

These Southeast Asian and African-American communities are heavily dependent on the Gulf for their livelihood. Southeast Asian fishermen, for example, make up one-third of the 13,000 fishing vessels registered in the Gulf Coast. Among the approximately 40,000 Southeast Asian individuals living in the region, one in five work in the seafood processing industry. Many of these workers are the primary breadwinners for their families, resulting in an oil spill reach that is projected to negatively affect roughly 80 percent of Southeast Asian families.
Did you get that number people?

I'll give it to you once more just in case you didn't take notice of it in bold - because it's important.

80 percent.