Unreasonable Women for the Earth

"Last fall, at the Bioneers 2001 Conference, Diane Wilson concluded her plenary by saying that she felt her story reflected the power of being an "unreasonable woman." As a fourth-generation shrimper from the Texas Gulf Coast, Diane discovered that her tiny county was the most polluted in the country. The dolphin die-offs, decreased fish catches, and increasing human disease in her community suddenly made sense. She got fighting mad. Since then, Diane has engaged in successful campaigns and direct actions -- including lengthy hunger strikes and almost sinking her shrimp boat -- to get huge chemical companies, including Formosa Plastics and Alcoa Aluminum, to sign zero discharge agreements. Her perseverance and determination paid off: both companies have since signed agreements and radically decreased their emissions (though not nearly as much as they promised.)..

"Diane had a vision at Bioneers. All weekend, she said, she had been approached by women tearfully thanking her for what she'd said about being unreasonable. Her vision: a collective movement of Unreasonable Women.

"Formally initiated in May 2002, the project launched with a four-day retreat which gathered 34 extraordinary women and leading thinkers, grass-roots activists, authors, scientists, artists, attorneys, journalists, publishers, philanthropists and community leaders and from diverse cultures and backgrounds. .. Amy Goodman's Democracy Now! and has been photographed with UnReasonable Woman Medea Benjamin protesting at a press event held by Donald Rumsfeld paving the way for war on Iraq, a photograph that found its way to the front page of many of the nation's daily newspapers."

Contact
Web: http://www.unreasonablewomen.org/

Related Sourcewatch

 * Nina Simons
 * Nina Utne