THE FLOW OF JUSTICE: BACKGROUND

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Setting the Scene

We use water to drink, grow food, and clean. It is incredibly interwoven into our lives.

Access to water means life. Limited water access stifles life.

Therefore, water must be considered a human right. To uphold access to safe and accessible drinking water is to defend life.

The Problem in California

Throughout California’s history, different groups have scrambled for water to support their unique interests.

In this scramble for water, marginalized communities are often left out of the bargaining table.

In East Orosi, for example, residents lack access to clean drinking water. The consequences are illnesses, birth defects, and lower life expectancies.

To alleviate this problem, residents must buy fresh water elsewhere or pay high rates for contaminated water.

At fault is a decentralized system of water boards that fails to take the initiative to provide community members with clean water.

East Orosi residents buy water jugs like these to have clean water | Kevin Cordova

Working Towards a Solution

California’s Community Water Center brings water rights into the spotlight.

The Center was created in 2006 and grew in influence with the hard work of its community members, notably the late activists Sandra Meraz and Jesus Quevedo.

Its activists meet the immediate needs of communities.

For example, Water Center members drive across California to deliver clean water directly to residents.

Additionally, they work toward long-term change by lobbying in Sacramento for bills that provide clean water to communities.

In 2012, they helped pass a law making California the first nation in the United States to recognize a human right to water.

Despite this, clean water access for all communities is still yet to be a reality.

This film highlights the work of the Community Water Center following the 2012 law. It also honors the influential work of Jesus Quevedo and Sandra Meraz. Lastly, it informs community members on how they can get involved in working toward real change.

Community Water Center members lobbying in Sacramento | Dakota Dean

Learn about the creation of The Flow of Justice Documentary