Last month, lawyers representing residents filed a class action lawsuit against Marathon Oil in response to pollution emitted by the company’s oil refinery in southwest Detroit. As Keith Matheny of the Detroit Free Press reports, “The lawsuit seeks in excess of $5 million, as well as a court order that Marathon cease the release of all contaminants into what it calls the ‘class area’ — residential neighborhoods within blocks of the factory.”

Residents of southwest Detroit are familiar with the smell of sulfur dioxide. In April 2014, Michigan Radio reported that southwest Detroit’s 48217 is the most polluted zip code in Michigan in part because of the pollution emitted by the oil refinery. Since then, Marathon Oil has claimed that it has reduced emissions significantly. In the last issue of The Mirror News, I reported that Marathon requested the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to revise its permit to allow Marathon’s southwest Detroit oil refinery to release more pollution in the air. Whether that permit is approved or not, Marathon may still be allowed under its existing permit to emit the amount of pollutants it is requesting, since the company has not exceeded its current limit.

Within blocks of the oil refinery there are homes and a play park. There are streets with boarded-up houses, interspersed with homes that are still occupied in full view of the refinery’s operations from their backyards. When I asked to speak with some of the residents, many were afraid and declined to speak against Marathon.

“I mean most of us left the area when we could,” an anonymous resident pointed to his sparse street. “There’s not many left that would want to talk about it, but we are all affected.”

Perhaps the residents were not permitted to speak to me since a lawsuit was filed on their behalf. The attorney representing the community is Chris Nidel who stated in the Keith Matheny Free Press report, “This community has been one of the worst — if not the worst — polluted communities in the entire country, and has suffered as a result of that for a long time now.”

At a nearby clinic, I spoke to Dr. Nazer Abdel Fattah of Park Urgent Care about the surrounding problem he faces. “We get a lot of asthmatics that come in but you have to remember that this area has a high smoking rate so it’s hard to blame Marathon.”

As reported by Jim Lynch of The Detroit News, Marathon Oil bought out homes around its refinery in 2014, with plans to expand the refinery. Emma Lockridge, a longtime resident, spoke against the oil giant by holding up a white medical mask at a public meeting in January where Marathon Oil explained its request to change its permit. As Lynch reported, Lockridge has to shield her face at night “because the odors are so strong, I get tired of putting the pillow covers over my head.”

Most of the refinery’s burning occurs at night, when the dark sky is lit up with its artificial light bulbs and huge clouds of white smoke. One establishment, Giovanni’s is a high end Italian restaurant blocks away from the multitude of factories. Walking in, the air was purely filtered and its greeting wall was covered with a framed group picture of George Clooney and Ryan Gosling. When I asked the owner and lead chef for comment about the air pollution and the pending lawsuit against Marathon Oil, he had no comment. Across the street was Gonella’s, a local popular sub shop that supported the efforts of stopping the pollution in the area. Pete, the owner of the store agrees that he doesn’t get it as bad.

“I don’t sleep here, so I’m not affected as bad as the people who do. But they have most of the problems you’re talking about.” I asked him if residents were suffering from health problems that may be connected to the pollution.

Inquiring with Mark Twain Elementary School, the counselors and staff worried that if negativity came from the community leaders, then parents would take their children out of the school and send them somewhere else.

“But don’t they already know?” I asked.

“They know but still, we can’t start anything,” said a staff member who chose to remain anonymous.

Upon leaving the school, however, I noticed a flyer from Gleaner’s Food Bank for a distribution happening that same week sponsored by The Marathon Oil Company. In fact, one can find many sponsored projects by Marathon littered around the city. I heard a similar response as the staff member of the school from a local resident, whose home is only a fence away from the refinery.

“We don’t want to start anything.”

Many churches on the other hand willingly speak out against the harmful effects from the factories. Pastor Perkins of Southwestern Church of God will hold a meeting with Mayor Mike Duggan next month.

This story will continue in the next issue. I will continue to reach out to Marathon Oil, which has yet to respond.