BP’s All-Out Gulf Disaster. An All-Out Response?

Gulf Coast area residents and small business owners are scratching their heads over BP’s announcement today that it has put on hold current efforts to plug the hellhole.  More analysis is needed, the oil giant says. ^[1] However, to many, the final analysis is that the damage has been done and that ALL-OUT efforts are needed to stop and clean up the spill and, moreover, provide relief to the many people whose livelihoods are aversely impacted.

The BP disaster affects everyone, including the Asian American community.  As such, it is encouraging to know that the major AAPI groups have banded together to analyze the breadth and depth of the damage, particularly amongst Asian Americans who make their living in the Gulf.  Beyond the oil slick, plumes of “misinformation, confusion, and mistrust” cloud efforts for relief.  Let’s hope the ensuing joint efforts of these organizations are just as well ALL-OUT.

Please read the joint press release below:

JACL, OCA, and APIAVote Visit Gulf Coast Communities Affected by Oil Spill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

14 July 2010

CONTACTS
Floyd Mori | JACL National Executive Director | (202) 223-1240 | [email protected]
Lan Nguyen | OCA Program Associate | (202) 223-5500 | [email protected]
Naomi Tacuyan Underwood | APIAVote Deputy Director | (202) 223-9170 | [email protected]

Washington, D.C. — From July 7-10, 2010, leaders from the Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), OCA, and APIAVote visited the Gulf Coast to gather first-hand accounts of how the Asian American community is being affected by the BP oil spill. The explosion on Deepwater Horizon, an offshore drilling rig, has threatened the livelihood of thousands of fishermen in the Gulf region. The Southeast Asian American community in particular, an estimated 80 percent of whom are involved in the seafood industry, has been heavily impacted.

JACL, OCA and APIAVote met with Vietnamese fishermen, local community advocates, BP representatives, and state and federal officials in Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana. The goal of the trip was to assess the needs and current situation of Gulf fishermen in order to better target relief efforts and assistance to the communities.

“Through focus groups with over 25 Vietnamese fishermen, we learned that the most pressing concern for people is finding a job to support their families and pay bills while they are unable to fish. The meager claims provided by BP have not been nearly enough for families with house and boat payments. For most fishermen, the only jobs available are with the BP oil cleanup efforts, but they are frustrated with the lack of transparency in the oil cleanup hiring and claims process,” said Floyd Mori, National Executive Director of the JACL.

George Wu, Executive Director of OCA and chair of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), noted, “There is a strong language access problem for the Vietnamese, Laotian, Cambodian, and Thai community in the Gulf Coast. While some materials are being translated into the appropriate languages and interpreters are available in limited instances, there is still a lack of in-language resources and up-to-date information. This has caused misinformation, confusion, and mistrust.”

“We need to continue to work directly with the people most affected by the oil spill so that they have a voice at the table. These communities will be affected by the oil spill for decades. There are immediate needs and longer term capacity building to be done, but it starts with working alongside communities on the ground,” said Naomi Tacuyan Underwood, Deputy Director of APIAVote.

Findings from this visit will be published in a report detailing recommendations and key areas of need, which will be submitted to the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. 

^[1] Tom Breen & Harry R. Weber (AP), “After days of progress, BP freezes work in Gulf”, Yahoo! News, July 14, 2010