Total Denial
D: Milena Kaneva
The evils of oil companies go much deeper than we can imagine. Milena Kaneva's poignant Total Denial tells the horrific story of the construction of a gas pipeline in Myanmar (Burma) by a company conglomerate comprised of American oil giant Unocal and France's Total. Led by human-rights advocates Ka Hsaw Wa and Katie Redford, an unprecedented lawsuit has been filed in California against Unocal on the basis that their actions have enslaved, tortured, and raped millions of Burmese at the hands of the military dictatorship. Heart-wrenching and utterly disturbing, the corporation mouthpieces vehemently deny any wrongdoing and, furthermore, turn a cold shoulder to the atrocities occurring in Burma calling them fabrications by the plaintiffs and saying that the lawsuit is nothing more than a publicity stunt. When the Bush administration steps in to help out yet another friend with deep pockets, the justice system is challenged. It's frightening what humankind will do to its own. – D.S.10/19, 7:30pm, Hideout; 10/25, 7:15pm, Dobie
