Bird like me is a film that displays the historical devastation of Mississippi City. The devastation is not just about human activities but also the negligence that the state has been exposed to. Compared to other cities of United States, Mississippi had not been given the attention that it required to make it environmentally safe. The issue that has been raised and is responsible for negligence is racism, which is widespread in the city. There were no measures to minimize on illegal dumping of waste products as well as land grabbing by private developers. The people in the city have been neglected, as they have to face other uncontrollable environmental phenomena like the hurricane Katrina. The best that could be done to save the city was the concern that the government had towards birds. If people have to be appreciated and taken care of in Mississippi, then they had to form alliances with bird conservatives otherwise there was no room for them to live in a safe environment.
Despite the pain that is depicted in the movie, the most interesting part is how the town dwellers decided to think over the issue to obtain the attention they needed. They had reached a level where they were hungry for change. This required desperate measures of which they finally had their way. Environmental conservation is not just about nature but also the creatures in it. It should be noted that what causes environmental degradation are human activities. This implies that humans can never be left out of the efforts to conserve the environment. This is however contrary to what most environmentalists’ target. Their cause is towards protecting animals and that is the reason they will be more willing to intervene in cases that involve birds, rather than human safety.
In relation to the class readings, we realize that environmental conservation and preservation goes beyond cultural inclination. This is because of the environmental effects, which affects the generations to come. Even though the degradation is done, is one area, its effects affect a wider environment which calls for the need for an entire region to be concerned. An example is the current crisis of global warming which is due to human activities done many years ago. Even though they were considered harmless at the time, we are now facing its consequences. This therefore calls for the Mississippi issue to be considered a global issue rather racial.
Conclusion
Environmental conservation should be taken at a personal level rather than looking at a bigger group. When it comes to dumping waste matters, it is an individual decision. If a person took it upon them to put waste at their correct place, then we will not wait for the waste to heap up and then seek the help of the government in clearing it. If this is done without employing other personal measures, it is likely that after the dump is cleared, another one will be piled up.
