Still littering after all these years – WHY?

Last week, Donna and I were heading out to the northwest section of Connecticut. Our mission was to drop off some scuba cylinders for hydrostatic testing. It was an absolutely spectacular Friday morning as we made our way across the state. Donna was driving, and that allowed me to take in the scenery. I am normally driving and my focus is on the road as opposed to the surroundings. It was a welcome change. At least I thought so until I observed the trash that was strewn across the landscape. There was so much debris. The paper bags and containers from the fast-food restaurants dotted the highway. Bottles and plastic bags gathered in the storm drains. We couldn’t travel more than a hundred yards without more trash coming into view. This was not an accident. It was a conscious decision to litter. The situation is sad, disappointing, and it got me down right upset to think that we are still littering after all these years.

The Crying Indian – 50 years later

When we returned to the dive shop, I thought back on a commercial from the early 1970s. If you are of a certain age, I am sure you will remember the commercial that has become known as the Crying Indian commercial. It featured the actor known as Iron Eyes Cody. The commercial shows him paddling his canoe down a stream strewn with trash and then into an industrial harbor. Trash also covers the shore as he walks toward the highway. As a car pulls by, an occupant throws a large bag of trash that lands at his feet. As Iron Eye Cody turns, you see a tear running down his right cheek. The voice-over message states, “Some people have a deep abiding respect for the natural beauty that was once this country; some people don’t. People start pollution; people can stop it”. That commercial premiered on Earth Day 1971.

That commercial had a powerful effect on me when I first saw it. I never remember my being a litterbug, but seeing Iron Eyes Cody crying at the pollution that was affecting the land made me aware. To this day, I cannot imagine throwing anything out of my car window or onto the street. I wonder what persuades an individual to just throw trash and garbage out the car window to be blown across the landscape? Is it ignorance or apathy? Or maybe it is irresponsibility. Or perhaps it is just a lack of awareness. I find lack of awareness hard to believe.

Stop littering – then think cleanup

Today, we face even more challenges. Plastic pollution is covering the planet and destroying ecosystems around the world. There are many organizations around the globe trying to fight this one type of litter. But the relentless production of onetime use plastics permeates our everyday life. I am reminded of a TED Talk by David Katz, founder of the Plastic Bank. He starts by stating that the last thing we need to be doing right now is to clean the ocean. What we need to do is stop putting more trash into the ocean. We need to stop littering.

Time for Iron Eyes Cody’s return

Back in 1971, the Crying Indian public service announcement was one of the most successful PSA campaigns in history. The Keep America Beautiful organization and the Ad Counsel sponsored that commercial. Keep America Beautiful formed in 1953 to combat litter. The battle rages on and from my trip across the Connecticut countryside, it seems it still has a long way to go. Yes, some people do have a deep abiding respect for the natural beauty that was once this country, but from my vantage point, there are far too many people who don’t. We are still littering after all these years. I wonder if bring back the Iron Eyes Cody public service announcement could help. Why not give it a try?

Please let me know your thoughts by replying below or emailing me.