Crim 3703 -- Toxic In/Justice Winter 2023/24  weblog   gradesheet     index  
"Passion is in all searches and is necessary to all creative endeavors," Eugene Smith

Calendar description: This course studies harms against the environment, and actions which protest and protect against those harms. Topics include environmental pollution in nature, home and workplace; relevant law and policy; corporate crimes against humanity; and, environmental protest, activism, and social justice movements. The course explores cases, eg. Minimata, Grassy Narrows, Westray, Ocean Ranger, Deepwater Horizon.  Research involves both guided and independent work.
Required text: Green Criminology, Rob White & Diane Heckenberg, Routledge, 2014.
resourcepage   issuespage     facebookpage

Photo: "Tomoko Uemura in Her Bath," by photojournalist W. Eugene Smith, 1971, depicts a mother cradling her severely deformed, naked daughter in a traditional Japanese bathroom, an intimate photo of the effects of mercury poisoning on her daughter Tomoko, which raised the international profile of Minamata disease and the struggle of the victims for recognition and compensation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomoko_Uemura_in_Her_Bath

Evaluation: (1) Classmark (25%), reflects 'engagement': reflections, exercises, homework. (2) Proposal (20%), due week six, 2pgs max sspaced, with 3-5 refs, of an issue, such as animal activism, environmental protest, media coverage; or a topic, such as protests in Rexton over shale gas fracking, protests in BC in Wet'suwet'en territory over pipeline access, and so on. This can be done with others showing the relative amount of work, and is the prelude to the project. See the video on the homepage. Example of proposal from Crime & Media course. (3) Final Project (30%), take the proposal and develop it into a full end of term project as an interactive format, eg. prezi or powerpoint; or a 7-10 page essay, dspaced; or a video, scrapbook...; with pictures, weblinks, and academic references. (4) Exam: (25%) short answer, or alternative

Online/remote protocol: This course uses an asynchronous protocol, timeshifting class material into an alternate reality. Using the required course text, notes, guided reading questions, and video exercises will be announced through webadvisor email. These will also be posted on the weblog, submitted through email, and noted on the gradesheet. The readings are mandatory, exercises will be a proxy for class attendance, and all work preparation for a term-length guided independent research project. Please see guidelines for more information on assignments, or email instructor.  *This format is flexible, individually-focused, interactive, and indepth* Suggestion: work in dyads or groups.
 
Videos:
"Canada's Toxic Chemical Valley (Full Length)," 2013, 31mins, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnHWZE0M_-k

Report:
Commission's Final Report into the RCMP's Response to Anti-shale Gas Protests in Kent County, New Brunswick, 2020, link
Indigenous Resilience Report, 2024. https://ostr-backend-prod.azurewebsites.net/server/api/core/bitstreams/d96f9df3-4434-4d38-b1b2-72c34fc96489/content