Jake Ashman is a BA History Student at the University of Lincoln. In this post he discusses the documentary The Devil We Know, and the drastic effects Forever Chemicals have on human health and the environment..
Ralph Weir, Senior Lecturer, Lincoln School of Humanities and Heritage
On Wednesday 19th March, LSHH history lecturer Pietro Di Paolo alongside the University of Lincoln Film Society, hosted a screening of the documentary The Devil We Know. The film investigates the contamination of Forever Chemicals (PFAs) within the small town of Parkersburg, West Virginia, where the American chemical company, DuPont, manufactured their line of products called Teflon. These products featured the synthetic chemical polytetrafluoroethylene, (PTFE) also known as C8, a chemical used to create household items such as frying pans and other non-stick cookware. The chemical was invented by DuPont in 1938, and was in use by the company for decades until a class-action lawsuit by the citizens of Parkersburg brought the chemical and its effects to worldwide attention.
The documentary features interviews from former workers of the DuPont facility as well as citizens of Parkersburg, who discovered that their water had been polluted by the company. The DuPont company was aware of the chemical’s health risk to humans, with C8 even being known to cause cancer. Despite this, workers were instructed to dispose of the chemical into nearby waters and to handle C8 with barely any protective gear. The chemical also caused significant birth defects in children, with two out of eight female employees who handled the chemical, birthing children with noticeable issues.
The most poignant and touching element of the documentary was the life of Bucky Bailey, son of former DuPont employee Sue, who had worked extensively with C8 during her time at the facility. The documentary opens with Bucky and his mother, where we gradually learn their life story and how Bucky has learnt to live with life changing birth defects.
Personally, this section of the documentary had the most profound effect on me, especially the scenes where Bucky is fearful that his baby, like him, could have similar birth defects. During the film, we see Bucky struggle with the joy of bringing a child into the world and the dilemma of that child possibly having the same defects as him. We also meet other former employees of DuPont who discuss how many of their colleagues have died from an array of cancers at an alarming rate. These scenes are a tough watch and they bring into question the humanity of those who worked for DuPont, as those who ran the facility knowingly used this chemical despite its dangerous health risks.
The film ends with the harrowing information that almost 99.7% of Americans have C8 in their blood. Scarily, there is almost a 100% chance that you and I also have ‘forever chemicals’ in our bloodstream too. This is because similar events have occurred here in the UK.
Prior to the screening of the documentary, we were greeted with a video call from Mat Young the chair of Cleaner Bentham. Mat, is a resident of Bentham, North Yorkshire, a small town that lies on the River Wenning, just west of the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The town is home to company Angus Fire Ltd., who have been polluting local lagoons in Bentham with PFA’s used to manufacture firefighting foams. The residents of Bentham were alerted to the town’s issues via a report from The Guardian in early 2024. And, since the report, Mat and the group at Cleaner Bentham have made it their mission to provide awareness of the health risks associated with ‘forever chemicals’ and the effects they have on the environment.
I would like to thank Pietro, the University of Lincoln Film Society, and Mat, who have opened my eyes not only to the health risks of ‘forever chemicals’ but also to the events that have taken place in Parkersburg and Bentham.
You can follow Cleaner Bentham on X at https://x.com/cleanerbentham and visit their website https://www.cleaner-bentham.co.uk/ to learn more about the group and the great work they are doing.
