We did it! Watch the Hoopathon on Vimeo - http://vimeo.com/75682348. Thank you for all your support. We raised £40 in the bucket on the day!

I read a book called 'Five Past Midnight in Bhopal' by Dominique Lapierre & Javier Moro about an Indian Family who moved from their farm to better their fortunes in a slum in the Indian town of Bhopal. They were fortunate to live in a community that looked out for each other and offered employment and the chance of a secure future in the nearby pesticide plant owned by Union Carbide. The factory was seen as a God send for the people of the slums looking for employment. However the factory's success was short-lived and a recession and poor sales led to the demise of the factory and mass redundancies. Unfortunately for the people of Bhopal, Union Carbide also lost interest in safety and, on the 2 December 1984, tonnes of highly toxic 'MIC' were released into the atmosphere killing thousands of people within minutes. The effects of the gas were lethal. There were not many survivors and those who did survive were very ill with permanent health issues, such as Tara Bai who was three months pregnant and lost her baby at the time of the accident as she fled the lethal cloud. The gas burnt her lungs, she has been unable to get pregnant since and suffers permanent respiratory deficiency, partial blindness and neurological troubles. She later became one of the protesters to stage hunger strikes and march six hundred miles for Bhopal to Delhi to lobby the Government to hold the new owner of Union Carbide (now known as Dow Chemical) to assume the responsibility regarding medical treatment of the victims and the liability of damage done to the environment.

To this day Dow Chemical have not taken over responsibility since taking over the defunt Union Carbide. Meanwhile the plant continues to rot into the Indian landscape and pollute the water causing women to give birth to severely deformed babies - the heritage of the disaster continues for future generations.

Meanwhile the CEO of Union Carbide, (at the time of the disaster), resides in the NY suburb of the Hamptons. All the time he stays in America he is protected from punishment by Indian law. 

Dow Chemical were also sponsors of the London 2012 Paralympics...

Not many people know about the Bhopal disaster and they should. Not many people know about the continued suffering of Indian families living in Bhopal and they should.

Which is why Kirdford Powerhoopers are going to Hoop for Bhopal to raise awareness of the Bhopal Medical Appeal and the disaster that went largely unnoticed by the Western World despite having caused so much pain and suffering to humanity en masse.

If you would like to read the book 'Five Past Midnight in Bhopal' please visit Amazon. Click on this link to find out more about the Bhopal Medical Appeal.

The Hoopathon will take place on Saturday 28th September where we will be performing a Power Hoop routine to music in busy locations in Guildford City Centre. To find out more about Powerhooping, click on this link.

Amnesty is on a mission to force Dow Chemical to accept liability - read the latest news on the court proceedings here.

Thank you for your support