We Are the Guinea Pigs

In March 1979, an accident occurred at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant near Harrisburg in the US state of Pennsylvania that resulted in a partial meltdown and the release of radioactive gases and liquids into the environment. The authorities downplayed the incident and denied there was any danger to people’s health; only days later were pregnant women and small children evacuated. In conversations with the director, locals are full of fear and anger; the statements of experts, government representatives, supporters and critics of nuclear energy comprise assessments, knowledge and observations and paint a comprehensive picture that leaves no doubt about the ruthlessness, with which this “safe” energy source is used despite the potentially deadly consequences. The general public’s opinion of nuclear energy in the US changed after the accident, but this did not prevent one of the nuclear plant’s reactors from returning to operation in 1985. It was decommissioned for economic reasons in 2019. WE ARE THE GUINEA PIGS, which was shown at festivals around the world, was an important point of reference for the anti-nuclear movement that gained strength after the Three Mile Island accident.