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Celebrating the life of Rachel Carson
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MAY 27, 1907 - APRIL 14, 1964
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Greetings!
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106 years ago today, Rachel Carson was born on a small family farm in Springdale, PA. Years later, she would be remembered as the woman who launched modern environmentalism. Her book Silent Spring led to nationwide bans on many pesticides and an environmental movement that resulted in the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Carson continues to inspire and influence our work as breast cancer advocates and as caretakers to our precious ecosystem at the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition (MBCC). This is how we try to emulate Rachel Carson:
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INVESTIGATE THE LINKS BETWEEN THE ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH
Carson devoted the majority of her life to investigating the consequences of widespread pesticide use. Through her research, she found evidence supporting a connection between pesticides and cancer. Her work spurred the campaign to ban the use of DDT, an insecticide that was previously widely released into the environment with minimal testing on its safety.
Inspired by Carson's book Silent Spring, MBCC founded Silent Spring Institute in 1994 to study elevated rates of breast cancer on Cape Cod. Today, Silent Spring Institute is one of the only organizations dedicated to breast cancer prevention research. They have conducted influential studies and measured the presence of many emerging contaminants for the first time in scientific history. Together, we create scientific data and use it to educate the public and advocate for political solutions. Read about Silent Spring Institute's research here.
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BECOME AN ADVOCATE
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Rachel Carson testifying at a
Congressional hearing in 1963
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In 1963, Rachel Carson testified in front of a Congressional U.S. Senate committee about the consequences to human and ecosystem health resulting from the widespread use of synthetic pesticides.
We follow in these footsteps with trips to the Massachusetts State House, and even Washington D.C. to support regulation of harmful chemicals and advocate for funding for our sister organization, Silent Spring Institute, to investigate environmental contaminants. An example of our advocacy work includes a 2011 visit to members of the U.S. Congress in Washington D.C. to increase support for the federal Safe Chemicals Act.
Rachel Carson was met with much resistance when she advocated for national pesticide reform, and unfortunately so is MBCC today. Carson would be horribly disappointed to learn that the recent request for funding for Silent Spring Institute's drinking water research was ignored. Their previous work shows that endocrine disrupting compounds, pharmaceuticals, industrial pollutants, and consumer product chemicals are present in drinking water, groundwater, and ponds on Cape Cod. In honor of Rachel Carson, and in the interest of your own health, join us in taking a stand for environmental justice. Sign the petition to urge legislators to rethink their dismissal of potentially life-threatening contaminants in public drinking water.
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EDUCATE THE PUBLIC
 Rachel Carson wrote the book Silent Spring to educate the public about the risks of widespread pesticide use. First published in 1962, this pivotal work was the first of its kind. Rachel Carson presented the big picture and major consequences of the use of synthetic pesticides. She took it upon herself to share her observations with a wider audience. MBCC follows in Carson's footsteps by educating our supporters in every program, campaign, and event we organize. To boost our reach, we are soon launching MBCC Research Updates, a video series summarizing existing environmental health research and translating it into actionable items to reduce individual exposure and spur advocacy. Our first video will be released in the June/July eNewsletter. Visit our Be Informed page to learn more in the meantime.
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How will you follow in Rachel Carson's footsteps?
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