Educational Media Reviews Online

Is access to water a basic human right? According to the Highland Park Human Rights Coalition it is. In the heyday of the automobile industry Highland Park was a bustling community. Problems in the auto industry led to a population drop and the resulting tax base can no longer finance necessary city services, including access to water. The state of Michigan hired outside consultants to manage city services. Those consultants, in turn, attempted to turn the water treatment facility into a revenue stream and planned to turn management of the facility over to a private company.

Miller uses thorough, well-edited interviews with all interested parties to tell her story. The film contains eighteen chapters touching on the politics of city management, the potential problems associated with privatization of utilities and the global scope of the water problem. Utility cost recovery measures in Highland Park resulted in a nearly sixty percent increase in water bills, and a large number of delinquent but disputed accounts. Many residents faced losing access to city water. Viewers learn how this can ultimately impact human welfare on a number of fronts. The Highland Park Human Rights Coalition was successful in their fight against privatization of the city water treatment plant and their story is inspirational.

The Water Front has received a number of awards, including “Best of the Festival” at the Hazel Wolf Environmental Film Festival and “Community Empowerment Award” from the National Council for Community Reinvestment. This film is suitable for classroom use and a study guide is available from the Bullfrog website. In addition to the award-winning 7 minute short version of the film the DVD contains three additional interview segments. Recommended for school, public and academic libraries.