Toxic exposures: contested illnesses and the environmental health movement

Alternatives Journal, August, 2009 by Kate Davies

Toxic Exposures: Contested Illnesses and the Environmental Health Movement, Phil Brown. Citizen activism, argues Brown, is the single most important ingredient in effective advocacy on toxic exposures. He examines the role of several factors, including the strength of the scientific evidence and public involvement, in combating three "contested illnesses" that could be caused by environmental contaminants: asthma, breast cancer and Gulf War Syndrome.

Although his conclusion is not Earth-shattering, the author validates it by using sound and detailed socio-ethnographic methods. In doing so, he makes an important contribution to understanding the need for an engaged citizenry to create social change.