@article{1479594,
      recid = {1479594},
      author = {Dietrich, Alexa S., },
      title = {The Drug Company Next Door : Pollution, Jobs, and  Community Health in Puerto Rico /},
      pages = {1 online resource},
      abstract = {"This fascinating and most timely criticalmedical  anthropology study successfully binds two still emergent  areas ofcontemporary anthropological research in the global  world: the nature andsignificant impact of multinational  pharmaceutical manufacturers on humansocial life  everywhere, and the contribution of corporations to the  fast-paceddegradation of our life support system, planet  Earth. . . . Focusing on apharmaceutically-impacted town on  the colonized island of Puerto Rico, Dietrichably  demonstrates the value of ethnography carried out in small  places inframing the large issues facing humanity."-Merrill  Singer, University of ConnecticutThe production of  pharmaceuticals is among themost profitable industries on  the planet. Drug companies produce chemicalsubstances that  can save, extend, or substantially improve the quality of  humanlife.However, even as the companiespresent themselves  publicly as health and environmental stewards,  theirfactories are a significant source of air and water  pollution--toxic to peopleand the environment. In Puerto  Rico, the pharmaceutical industry is thebackbone of the  island's economy: in one small town alone, there are over  adozen drug factories representing five multinationals, the  highestconcentration per capita of such factories in the  world. It is a place wherethe enforcement of environmental  regulations and the public trust they ensureare often  violated in the name of economic development.The Drug  Company Next Door unites the concerns ofcritical medical  anthropology with those of political ecology,  investigatingthe multi-faceted role of pharmaceutical  corporations as polluters, economicproviders, and social  actors. Ratherthan simply demonizing the drug companies,  the volume explores the dynamicsinvolved in their  interactions with the local community and discusses  thestrategies used by both individuals and community groups  to deal with the consequencesof pollution.The Drug Company  Next Door puts a human face on agrowing set of problems for  communities around the world. Accessible and engaging, the  book encouragesreaders to think critically about the role  of corporations in everyday life,health, and culture.},
      url = {http://library.usi.edu/record/1479594},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.18574/nyu/9780814724996.001.0001},
}