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by Laurel Hopwood, Co-Chair, Environmental
Justice Committee
 Thousands of Central American agricultural workers filed lawsuits
claiming they were left sterile after being exposed to DBCP, a
pesticide used primarily in banana plantations.
The lawsuit claims that Dow Chemical Company noted atrophied testes
in laboratory animals exposed to the pesticide, yet Dow suppressed
information about its toxicity and continued to market, sell and
use DBCP outside of the United States.
The lawsuit also accuses Dole Fresh Fruit of negligence and fraudulent
concealment. Dole neither warned the workers of the dangers of
DBCP exposure nor tried to protect them by issuing gloves, safety
glasses or masks, the lawsuit claims. Plantation workers were allowed
to ingest and bathe in DBCP contaminated water when they lived
in company supplied housing on banana plantations, the lawsuit
said.
The Superior Court judge broadened the potential reach of the
case by linking other pending lawsuits involving sterility claims,
naming Del Monte, Chiquita, and Shell Oil as defendants. United
States pesticide manufacturers have never faced a U.S. jury trial
over their products used abroad. One of the defendants exclaimed, "We
are fighting multinational corporations. They are giants and they
are going to fall!"
 After decades of struggle, justice may be served in a Los Angeles
courtroom. Yet plantation workers who became sterile told the press
that they end up living in shame as they are labeled a castrated
bull.
What's a citizen to do? In the marketplace, choosing organic instead
of conventional produce is a statement of support for the workers
who are exposed to life altering pesticides. An organic banana
may look like a conventionally grown banana, but looks can be deceiving.
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