Blackwell Reference Online

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Nobuko Iijima, a pioneer of environmental sociology both in Japan and internationally, applied her notion of the social structure of victims to the multidimensional and multi-layered nature of the damage caused by pollution ( Iijima 1976, 1979, 1984 ). The physical damage done to victims is relatively easy to discern, but this is only one aspect of pollution damage. Equally costly is the mental and social damage that occurs in the wake of the physical impact. Iijima attempted to describe comprehensively the complex structure of the suffering of victims, from physical suffering to worsening relationships between family members and neighbors who may be indifferent to the pollution problem or wish to keep it hidden. This approach reveals the flow-on effect of the physical damage. In fact, Iijima demonstrated how such suffering affects every aspect of a family's daily life, including loss of income and an increase in medical expenses, and often leads to family breakdown or the destruction of a family's living conditions. Through her research on Minamata disease, mercury poisoning of Canadian Indians, and drug-induced Subacute-Myelo-Optico-Neuropathy (SMON) disease, Iijima discovered that the structure of victims was very similar whether the damage was caused by a labor accident, a drug-induced disease, or an environmental hazard. The source of the pollution that caused Minamata disease ... log in or subscribe to read full text