The Other Gulf
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Aug 8, 2011
Here is an apt quote from Nnimmo Bassey in The Observer. Last year, as the Macoondo Well gushed thousands of barrels of oil into the belly of the Gulf of Mexico, Nnimmo drew our attention to the Niger Delta’s daily woes: We see frantic efforts being made to stop the spill in the US. But in Nigeria companies largely ignore...
Ballad of the Black Gold
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Jul 14, 2010
From the RSW blog: “New from Talib Kweli, this hard-hitting music video unpacks the story of of Nigeria’s oil curse, the Ogoni struggle and the complicit role of Western governments and companies. Warning: this video contains strong political lyrics.”
Ballad of the Black Gold
Blog post -
Jul 11, 2010
New from Talib Kweli, this hard-hitting music video unpacks the story of of Nigeria’s oil curse, the Ogoni struggle and the complicit role of Western governments and companies. Warning: this video contains strong political language.
Leaked invite reveals Tate’s ill-timed plans to celebrate BP sponsorship
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Jun 24, 2010
Artists to protest Tate Britain Summer Party; Art/activist group Platform release briefing on oil sponsorship of the arts Embargo: 00.01 AM, Friday 25 June 2010 Tate is throwing a gala event in order to celebrate 20 years of BP sponsorship next week, a leaked invitation seen by campaign group Platform reveals [1]. The party comes...
Nigerian Regulators Need Real Powers
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Jun 22, 2010
Breaking years of silence, politicians and regulators in Nigeria are talking tough on oil spills in the aftershock of the BP disaster. Officials had stern words with Shell over its inadequate clean-up activities, and Exxon Mobil, who were ‘cautioned’ over a recent spill of over a million gallons. Upping the stakes, the governor of Delta...
The $20 Billion Question
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Jun 22, 2010
On day 58 of BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster, the US government forced BP to allocate $20 billion to compensate victims affected. While US lawmakers decried the fact that only $71 million had been paid out last Tuesday, the contrast with the Niger Delta is striking. Victims in the small village of Ebebu have waited for 40...
Will BP Oil Spill Make Shell ‘Come Clean’?
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Jun 16, 2010
As the US government takes BP to task over the disasterous Gulf of Mexico spill, many Nigerians (including twitter users) are asking, ‘what about Shell?’. There is nothing clean about Shell’s operations in the Niger Delta, where daily oil spills are frequently ignored for months and where ‘clean up’ methods include dumping oil-drenched soil into pits before...
“Summer of Tears” in Louisiana’s Bayous
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May 25, 2010
Frontline waterkeepers from Louisiana’s bayous have begun to tell of the devastation caused by the Macondo rupture in the sea floor. Tracy Kuhns, is the Louisiana Bayoukeeper as well as running the Fishing Community Family Support Center. Her husband, Michael Roberts, is a fisherman and they live on Bayou Barataria where fishing is down for multiple reasons, one being...
Skytruth challenges BP attempts to downplay spill
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May 13, 2010
Tiny Skytruth have been challenging BP’s estimates on how much crude is spilling out of the Macondo well into the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The organisation began analysing satellite & radar data soon after the Deepwater Horizon rig sank on April 22nd. BP initially claimed 1,000 barrels were spilling daily – after Skytruth pointed...
Who to blame for the Gulf of Mexico spill?
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May 10, 2010
As the leaking crude in the Gulf of Mexico chokes sperm whales, wipes out local fishing incomes and ruins tourist destinations, we’ll see continued debates over who is to blame. Obama is pointing at BP, insisting the company won’t be let off the hook. BP’s claiming that they weren’t really on the scene – Transocean...
Outsourcing explosions – a BP speciality?
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Apr 23, 2010
The explosion on a BP rig off Louisiana on Wednesday will remind Americans of BP’s atrocious safety record. Eleven workers are missing and almost certainly dead, with seventeen injured after the “Deepwater Horizon” drilling rig blew up while drilling a deep well in the Gulf of Mexico. BP CEO Tony Hayward promised change when he took...
