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Wilson Library Exhibit: “We Birthed the Movement: The Warren County PCB Landfill Protests, 1978-1982”
September 15, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Information from Wilson Library’s website:
“Forty years after activism in Warren County, North Carolina launched the environmental justice movement, a new exhibition at UNC-Chapel Hill’s Wilson Special Collections Library tells the story through the perspectives of those who lived it.
“We Birthed the Movement: The Warren County PCB Landfill Protests, 1978-1982” examines how a coalition of concerned citizens, civil rights leaders and environmental activists fought state plans to relocate 60,000 tons of carcinogen-laced soil to the majority Black community of Afton. The four-year effort culminated in seven weeks of protests and more than 500 arrests before the state dumped 7,000 truckloads of contaminated soil in the community.
Visitors to the exhibition in the North Carolina Gallery can view 63 photos from the protests, as well as 24 original documents including correspondence, flyers, and pamphlets. “We Birthed the Movement” will be on view through December 22, 2022.
An official opening event will be held on Thursday, September 15. It includes an exhibition viewing at 1 p.m. followed by a 1:30 p.m. program featuring a video presentation about five images from the exhibition and comments by members of the Warren County Environmental Action Team.
The event is free and open to the public. Masks are encouraged.”