• The United Nations special rapporteur for human rights in Myanmar Yanghee Lee, is calling for an end to the escalation of violence in the Southeast Asia nation’s northern border in Kachin State, home to decades of ethnic conflict. (“Myanmar Army Killing Civilians in Escalating Conflict in Kachin, Warns UN,” The Guardian, May 1, 2018; “Thousands Rally to Urge Rescue of Civilians Displaced by Fighting in Kachin State,” Radio Free Asia, April 30, 2018)
• British Petroleum’s 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion killed 11 oil rig workers, and spewed millions of barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. That disaster provoked concern for worker and environmental safety, which led to the creation of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, which is now at risk under the pro-fossil fuel Trump administration. (“8 Years After Deepwater Horizon Explosion, Is Another Disaster Waiting To Happen?” NPR, April 20, 2018)
• In late April Flint, Michigan activist LeeAnne Walters won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Award for leading a grassroots campaign to test the city’s tainted drinking water. Flint’s drinking water was contaminated with lead after state and local officials began using the polluted Flint River as a source for the city’s water supply. (“A Water Contamination Crisis without Boundaries” Goldman Environmental Prize, 2018; “The Goldman Prize Missed the Black Heroes of Flint — Just Like the Media Did,” Grist, April 23, 2018)
