A UK fashion designer is taking a stand against the Dow Chemical Company’s sponsorship of the London 2012 Olympics, by making special blindfolds for theUKpublic to wear in protest.
Narrinder Sandhu has designed his own ‘Bhopal Blindfolds’ to signify the blindness suffered by the thousands of victims of the Bhopal Chemical Disaster in 1984.
He objects to the sponsorship deal with the Dow Chemical Company, which in 2001 became the owner of Union Carbide Corporation, the firm that was responsible for the disaster. Narrinder believes that, in his opinion, the Dow Chemical Company is not doing enough to compensate the victims of the disaster.
It is hoped by Sandhu that the ‘Bhopal Blindfolds’ will raise further awareness of the issue and put pressure on the UK government to reject the sponsorship.
Designed by his own brand, Nancy Pop, the Bhopal Blindfolds are available for free on request from the company’s website, and for the more creative, there is a template and instructions to enable visitors to make their own.
Sandhu, who runs his business betweenIndiaand Leicester in theUK, says of the campaign:
“Accepting this money goes against the British ideals of fair play and doing the right thing. The fact that, in my opinion, very little has been done by the Dow Chemical Company for the blind, the homeless and the widowed victims of this disaster is shocking and the British people have a right to fully know the history of the company that is sponsoring their Olympics.
“£100m can be raised elsewhere and we should send this money back.”
Those wishing to wear a Bhopal Blindfold should visit www.nancypop.com to order one, or make one from the template provided. Interested parties can also add their support by following @bhopalblindfold on twitter or by liking the Bhopal Blindfold page on Facebook. Supporters are also invited to upload their own Bhopal Blindfold images on the social media channels.
