According to The United Nations committee on Economic, Cultural and social rights, “Water is fundamental for life and health. The human right to water is indispensable for leading a healthy life in human dignity. It is a pre-requisite to the realization of all other human rights” (The United Nations Committee on Economic, 2002). Clean, pure water is highly valued in every culture worldwide. Water is essential to survival; the lack of pure water can lead to diseases, malnutrition and even death. This is why the water crisis in Southern Africa has become one of the largest and most deadly epidemics in today’s society. However, there are hundreds of locations worldwide without access to pure water and the United States media coverage has hidden many of the blemishes in the United States behind a veil. It is due to the lack of coverage of these issues in the United States that many U.S. citizens are oblivious to these issues. Do to this I intend to argue that the water crisis in North America is not portrayed enough in the social media by exploring how the media portrayed the ALS ice bucket challenge, how little people are aware of the lack of water in America and the horrible living conditions cause by the water crisis.
The ALS ice bucket challenge is one of the most effective fundraisers ever – it has raised over one hundred million dollars for research for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Millions of American’s have participated in this cause, an opportunity to show
Furthermore technology contributes money and awareness for organizations. In the past there was an ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which is where people pour buckets of ice cold water on their head in order to spread awareness for ALS. “2.2 million twitter
The ALS ice bucket challenge is one of the most known movements in the US. It raised more money than they even imagined. The ALS association raised over 115 million dollars over two years. The movement is one of the most successful movements in the US as well. The movement made a legacy over the US and other countries spreading almost worldwide
Flint is a recovering city. Arches that line “the bricks,” or the main street that runs through the downtown section, proudly proclaim it to be “Vehicle City,” but the Vehicle City took some of its hardest punches as GM shuttered their factories in the area. It is finding its footing though, redeveloping and rebuilding. Now however, Flint is going through another crisis. This is the Flint water crisis, where lead has leached out of the pipes and into the water supply. The water is considered unsafe to drink, with the worst of it being so contaminated that it is considered hazardous waste (Lurie). The governor and the emergency managers that he appointed to the city have taken most of the blame for the elevated lead levels. They have taken this blame because the laws designed to ensure the public’s health were undermined by a lack
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was when an individual throws a bucket of ice water on his or her head to publicize awareness and raise funds for research on the disease known as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (alsa.org/fight-als/ice-bucket-challenge.html). The Oxford English Dictionary defines awareness as “The quality or state of being aware, consciousness; also the condition of being aware (of something or that something is)” (“awareness”). While it is important to some degree to actually have knowledge about the disease and how it affects society, it does not directly assist in the advancement in finding a cure. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral with videos that did help raise awareness of the disease.
Globally, over seven hundred and eighty-three million people do not have access to clean water (The Water Project, 2016). Millions of people have to struggle endlessly to fill up pails of water for themselves and their families; however, this does not happen in America. Water contamination and access, or lack thereof, is a third world issue. The United States is a global empire, wealthy, and the land of opportunity; Flint, Michigan became a local cesspool, impoverished, and without basic drinking water. The visual of desolate villagers walking miles for water is not the universal or unique image anymore. The ordinary town of Flint became a national icon for water scarcity and paranoia. Water contamination, disease outbreak and widespread panic
The citizens of Flint were met with empathy and compassion through the testimonies given by mothers of children who are now suffering from short term memory loss, chemical workers who have been affected by miscarriages, and families whose children are now victims of pneumonia due to the water’s contamination. Because such atrocities pertaining to water occur so close to Iowa, heartache and empathy are expected to be felt towards the citizens of Flint. However, why do individuals suddenly become aware of the vast problems concerning water quality, quantity, and availability only when it directly affects their quality of life? Countries in Africa, specifically Ethiopia, have been suffering from lack of water on a catastrophic level, though it does not seem to invoke such heartfelt reactions in US citizens, perhaps due to the fact that Africa is an entirely different
Imagine that you just ran 5 laps around the track, you're so tired that you absolutely need a tall, cold glass of water. When you go to fill up the glass, you find the water to be a disgusting color of yellow, and contaminated with excessive amounts of lead, with other harmful toxins. Your first thought would probably be,¨What? What’s happening! This isn’t possible!¨ WRONG! This is 100% reality, and it happened in the small town of Flint, Michigan. All the residents who lived in Flint, Michigan were involved with the terrible water crisis because they drank the contaminated water. The reason this crisis arose was because the Flint Government wanted to save money by switching from the Detroit
The problem stated in this video is the water-crisis in the southwest region of the United States of America. The southwest region of America is rapidly growing and booming, which makes the water crisis become more significant than ever before, because of the mass population heavily relying on the Colorado river and other water resources like groundwater. Therefore, leads to depletion of the water resources, which is bad because life depends on water. I believe this water crisis is happening because of cities in the southwest region of America relies on pumping water from the Colorado river and not being very self-sufficient with the water. Potential solutions to this problem is to be more self-sufficient with water by recycling water such
Everyday, billions of people use water all over the world. They use water in drinks and food. They use water for bathing and hygiene. They use water in agriculture and industry. They use water for so many things. However, there are many problems with the usage of water around the world. In his editorial, “Our Water System: What a Waste”, Michael E. Webber explains how America has a water problem, and how that problem can be solved.
The problems with the water caused death and disease. The problems with the water affected the colonists by causing drought, disease,and death. It states (Blanton 55) , “Filth introduced into the river tended to fester than flush away.” That means that they put their filth in the water and it just stayed there and floated around in the water. That would definitely cause disease and death(Blanton 55). It also states (Blanton 55), “ Rivers and creeks became brackish as water levels rose.” This means that the rivers started to rise and the water became salty and undrinkable. They also dug shallow wells, but these didn't last very long because these were in danger of drought(Blanton 55). This is why so many colonists died because of water problems.
Water is a privilege. Living in the 21first century America, many individuals including myself have forgotten this. Many families all over the world are forced to walk miles for water just to find that it isn't even clean. Water shortage is a problem all over the world, but especially in poor countries like Africa. Because individuals all over the world have to get their water, my class did a water walk to understand their pains, but I would change it by making it longer, carrying more water, and having harsher conditions.
In today’s society, the idea of a limited resource is not a foreign concept. Most people understand that eventually humans will use up many of these resources, such as fossil fuels, and they will cease to exist. However, very rarely does a conversation about limited resources get started over the water. While water itself is not a limited resource, clean drinkable water is becoming scarcer as people continue to use excess water. The documentary “Last Call at the Oasis” highlights how precious water is to survival and just how much miss use of water occurs in the United States alone. Even though the United States has gone down the wrong path with its water consumption methods, it may not be too late to recover. With the proper systems and education in place, the chances of delaying a water crisis increase exponentially.
What is the one thing that all humans can agree on? Clean water. Then why are roughly 844 million people around the world living without access to clean water? (UN Water) As simple as it may seem, there are complex layers that have overlapped for generations, leading to an endless cycle of poverty. The scarcity of water contributes to issues in health, education, and poverty. Water impacts nearly every aspect of life; however, the most shocking fact is that we already have the solutions to provide safe water. The first obstacle that we must overcome is the allocation of resources. Now, more than ever, we have access to the world’s finest research and technology that could very easily end the water crisis. The solution to the water crisis starts with spreading awareness and reaching out to generous donors. Proper funding can be raised to reach the goals of charities across the globe. Sustainable clean water technology can be distributed to some of the most poverty-stricken countries in the world, such as Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which all have populations of over fifty percent living without improved drink water sources. (Africa Development Information) I believe we have the means to provide solutions to put an end to the water crisis, but it will require effort from donors and local communities alike. It is possible within the decade that no one will need to drink unsafe water again if we are united by this cause.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a campaign that was started in the summer of 2014 by the ALS organization to help raise money and awareness for treatments and hopefully one day find a cure. ALS is a disease that slowly takes over your body overtime by affecting nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Currently today ALS is 100% fatal to everyone plagued by this disease. The ALS foundation raises money to help in many different ways. They hold walks, accept donations, hold challenges through athletic events, and they also hold the ice bucket challenge. This challenge asks people to accept this from a friend and decide to either donate to the ALS foundation or record themselves pouring a bucket of ice water on their head as a consequence for not donating. Then the participant uploads it to social media and tags others in their video to nominate them to complete this challenge just like they did. There are two very important concepts they hope from the community to get out of this. One overall purpose of the challenge is to raise awareness to the community of how ALS patients feel every day as they lose feeling through out the nerves in their body. Another very important part is to try to raise money for the organization to help people that are currently suffering
The ice bucket challenge seemingly drenched the world back in 2014. It involved dumping a bucket full of freezing ice water on oneself in order to bring about awareness for the disease ALS. One would then nominate others to do the challenge as well, whilst giving a monetary donation of their choice to the ALS association for research funds thereafter. The challenge is basically broken down into three steps: accepting the challenge from nomination, uploading a video of the person doing the challenge, and giving a donation on that person 's behalf. Even after the ice bucket challenge craze, many people nationwide are unaware of what the disease is actually about.Informed individuals know that ALS is a life-devastating disease that can immediately turn a person 's life in a completely different direction. This disease can cause immense amounts of heartache on those that are part of the patient’s life, especially on the own patient. A strong, independent, and healthy being can turn into an incapacitated and no longer self- sufficient person in only a matter of few years. Control of the body gradually becomes irretrievable, but the mind is always aware; as a whole, it can be thought of as being mentally imprisoned in a dysfunctional and foreign body, only being able see life pass away like water through their fingers. Given that there is a boundless range of information on the subject in terms of ALS, only so much can be covered to be able to be considered an overview. There are