What if you lived by the largest body of fresh water in the world but could no longer afford to use it?
In Liz Miller’s video documentary, The Waterfront, residents of Highland Park, a struggling community on the shores of Lake Michigan are shown looking with distress at water bills totalling between 3 and 9,000 dollars.
One woman sits on a porch with her children and grandchildren and explains that on a fixed pension she will be unable to pay her bill, and since the city has decided to attach water bills to mortgages she faces eviction and foreclosure on her property.
The Waterfront deals with growing global concerns over water as a human right by following the lives of Highland Park residents as they struggle to overcome exploitative water pricing by the municipal government, and debate a proposal to privatize their water - the one public asset left in the economically-gutted community, on the shores of lake Michigan.
I had the opportunity to interview Liz yesterday, and if you are interested there is an audio file available for download here. (Click on the file dated July 16th.)
The movie will be touring the great lakes region for the next six months to raise awareness on issues of water security and privatization. If you or your group would be interested in viewing or showing Miller’s video, please get in touch via the website.
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