The Silicon Valley of Dreams: Environmental Injustice, Immigrant Workers, and the High-Tech Global Economy

by David Naguib Pellow, Lisa Sun-Hee Park

Examines the environmental racism at the foundation of the Silicon Valley economy

Next to the nuclear industry, the largest producer of contaminants in the air, land, and water is the electronics industry. Silicon Valley hosts the highest density of Superfund sites anywhere in the nation and leads the country in the number of temporary workers per capita and in workforce gender inequities. Silicon Valley offers a sobering illustration of environmental inequality and other problems that are increasingly linked to the globalization of the world's economies.

In The Silicon Valley of Dreams , the authors take a hard look at the high-tech region of Silicon Valley to examine environmental racism within the context of immigrant patterns, labor markets, and the historical patterns of colonialism. One cannot understand Silicon Valley or the high-tech global economy in general, they contend, without also understanding the role people of color play in the labor force, working in the electronic industry's toxic environments. These toxic work environments produce chemical pollution that, in turn, disrupts the ecosystems of surrounding communities inhabited by people of color and immigrants. The authors trace the origins of this exploitation and provide a new understanding of the present-day struggles for occupational health and safety.

The Silicon Valley of Dreams will be critical reading for students and scholars in ethnic studies, immigration, urban studies, gender studies, social movements, and the environment, as well as activists and policy-makers working to address the needs of workers, communities, and industry.

Genres: Nonfiction, Technology, Social Justice, Environment

303 pages, Paperback

First published December 22, 2002

Reviews

[Rissa (rissasreading) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 - This was a very informative and necessary read considering the latest increased push for technology and the environmental impacts we are already seeing from AI because of the data centers huge water consumption rates. This book highlights more specifically how the tech industry is harming their workers and how Silicon Valley is not as "shiny and perfect" as it tries to frame itself to be. People who live and work in the Silicon Valley area have experienced adverse health affects from the chemical pollution in their environment. Women are more specifically the ones of the front line of this exposure as women are often hired more for the lowest paying jobs as they are seen as "easier to control". This exploitation of women has led women to have reproductive issues and their babies tend to be born with health issues due to the pollution. Not only does it do irreparable damage to humans it destroys environments. The Tech industry is responsible for dumping heavy metals and sewage into water systems impacting the health of the animals living in the ecosystems.

This can all be seen as a direct result and key characteristic of a capitalist economy and the effects of colonialism. Environmental control and destruction is a major aspect of both. Colonizers historically ignored previous Indigenous land rights and property rights and even worse, in a religious way, they viewed it as their "God-given right" to take this land. The tech industry is also linked to continued rising poverty rates, economic volatility, ecological devastation, and social inequality around the world. Especially when considering how much of the work at the lowest end of the production chain has been offloaded to poorer countries for further exploitation. Industry officials also see the high exposure limits as a "non-issue" since there are less American workers facing exposure, but it simply offloads that problem onto other countries. An example is a Japanese company that poisoned the ground water underneath 4 of their factories.
So the tech industry is being framed as something clean, conscious, connecting and even as a way to free poor people because of their "new found ability to connect". Ironically however, it's mostly poor immigrants working these dangerous jobs.

[sdw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhere a worker right now has cancer as a consequence of the computer that I sit at to type this book review. On some level, we know that computers are a toxic technology, and that workers are paying the price. This book gives voice to their stories.

The Silicon Valley of Dreams provides a social and ecological history of Santa Clara Valley,situates immigrants at the center of EJ struggles, considers the workplace as a central site for Ej struggles, and provides a transnational framework by examining the colonization across the world resulting from the global technological industry.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

An essential read for students of sociology, environmental studies, urban studies, etc., but ABSOLUTELY REQUIRED for current stakeholders of the tech industry in Silicon Valley. There are a lot of truths exposed in this read that we have institutionally ignored and suppressed. It is refreshing to hear another perspective that does not portray the hype of technology "as the answer to the myriad economic and environmental challenges around the world" and discloses the few trade secrets made available. It is interesting to see how Silicon Valley was in its beginnings; now there is much less hard industry, but I would still be interested in how much of this applies to the present-day situation.

I honestly can't believe that some of the things I learned in this book wasn't already common knowledge. That Palo Alto has two Superfund sites, that Santa Clara County has the densest cluster of Superfund sites in the country that the USEPA has predicted will take 300 years to superficially clean up, prior connections between the military, economy, and Stanford, and the nature of the land of Moffet Field should be taught in sixth grade earth science classes, or at the very least in A.P. Environmental Science.

I could connect the concepts of this book to almost every concept I learned in my Environmental Sociology class last semester: treadmill of production, ecological modernization, environmental justice, environmental health, the HEP and NEP, science and manufactured doubt, environment as the place where citizens work, live, and play, etc. etc. The major point of contention is how the authors treat the behaviors of the original inhabitants of the land, the Ohlone tribe. Even the last paragraph of the text brings the concepts "full circle" by saying that the Ohlone knew how to use the local natural resources sustainably and held the land sacred, i.e. the ecologically noble savage paradigm. While I don't profoundly disagree with the author's points, I wonder how this could best be presented. I also saw a bit of the traditional women's environmental justice narrative when talking about women activists campaigning for better employment conditions and I wonder if the authors could have looked into that better to make fewer sweeping generalizations.

But other than that 4/5 stars.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good history of economic development in California, and the effects these developments had on minorities in particular. The authors are part of the Environmental Justice movement, decrying the dumping and pollution that disproportionately impact minorities and impoverished neighborhoods. Silicon Valley has the highest density of superfund sites (29) in the entire country, largely the result of electronics industry and defense contract work. My only criticism is that there is really only one chapter of original sociological research here, the rest is a historical lit review.

[Justher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely a great situationer on how Santa Clara County's continual aim for growth has led to environmental destruction and human exploitation. I really appreciated the insight from immigrant workers in the area. The "lit review" portion of the text was very helpful in understanding the roots of the issues in the county. However, given the rise of the on-demand economy in the region, the book currently feels a bit dated - but still, provides helpful background into the exploitation, destruction, and history of resistance in Santa Clara County.

[Kari · Rating 1 out of 5]

We read just chapters 6 and 8 of SVD, but those sections exhibited extreme bias and I felt unable to fully trust the information they presented.

[Taylor Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

slightly outdated, but a great read to educate yourself on a topic that needs to be talked about more in our society!