Creative PSP Assignment #2 - Shipbreaking in Bangladesh

        This picture is in response to the pictures of the shipbreaking practices in Bangladesh. To me, it represents quite a few things. First of all, the line of Bangladeshi people hauling a rope, pulling a ship on to shore. This line not only represents the perverse levels of hard labour that these people continually suffer through but also the fact that they have banded together to aid one another. This idea reflects that the world can work in harmony with one another, despite the hardships we face.

        This ties into the next aim of my drawing which is in relation to the smudging. I smudged the graphite to acknowledge the dirty and harsh conditions that the Bangladeshi people work and live in. It is a muddy, cruel and environmentally unstable community exposing toxic chemicals such as arsenic into not only the physical environment but into the physical systems of each person working on these sites.

        Finally, this ties into my last goal for the drawing. I intentionally crumpled part of the paper to represent political corruption. Most of the ships that are dumped on the beaches of Bangladesh originate from Western societies, particularly the United States. How can the US allow their ships to be deconstructed in this manner? There is a point where politics have to step in and stand up for the good of the people and the environment rather than for the good of the economy. It is hypocritical to allow such practices to occur elsewhere in the world when it is not permitted in the host's country. Just because it is out of sight, does not mean that it can or should be out of mind.