Hooker Chemical Corporation's full-page newspaper ad on Love Canal: 'A lot of what's being said it makes me angry'
Title
Hooker Chemical Corporation's full-page newspaper ad on Love Canal: 'A lot of what's being said it makes me angry'
Subject
Hooker Chemicals & Plastics Corp.
Advertising, Newspaper
Mass media and propaganda
Posters, American
Description
This newspaper advertisement displays a Black man wearing a hard hat labeled "BILL CROCKETT" at the center, flanked by blocks of text in a testimonial-style format. The headline at the top reads in large bold letters: "A LOT OF WHAT'S BEING SAID... IT MAKES ME ANGRY." The footer of the poster reads "HOOKER CHEMICAL" with the tagline "Listen to the people who know." The layout is visually structured to deliver a persuasive corporate message defending the company, presented as a personal statement by an employee.
Creator
Ploughman, Penelope, 1955-
Source
State University of New York at Buffalo. University Archives
Publisher
State University of New York at Buffalo. University Libraries
Date
1979-09-04
Rights
Format
image/jpeg
Type
Image
Identifier
MS100.501
Date Created
2009-01-28
Is Part Of
Love Canal Images
Penelope D. Ploughman Love Canal Collection
LIB-UA003
Is Referenced By
Medium
Newspapers
Text
“A lot of what’s being said… it makes me angry.”
“I’ve worked all over the plant. I’ve worked with all those chemicals you’ve probably been reading about in the paper.
“A lot of what’s being said about Hooker…it makes me angry. Much of the talk of today concerns what perhaps may have happened 25 years ago.
“I remember when I first joined Hooker. It was a prize plant to work in. When I was a kid, you want to work at Hooker ‘cause it was a good plant. And today it’s even better, much better. Because of the things they’ve learned. I question the way people do some of these tests with chemicals. They give a rat a gallon of the stuff and then they say it’ll give you cancer. Well, you drink too much water and you’ll drown yourself. That’s the way I look at it.
“Most people don’t realize they couldn’t survive without the products that Hooker makes. They all go into things people want and need. Like cars. Like electrical wiring. Like detergents. And all the beautiful things we have at home. A lot of ladies wouldn’t like it if they couldn’t have light at home, things that go into toasters or microwave ovens. They wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t have chemicals. We use chemicals in steel, a lot of acids. The whole society is based on chemicals as I see it, especially today. Plastics, drugs, everything.
“Forget about chemicals? If you do, you forget about living.
“Ignorance is what makes people afraid of anything, I don’t care what it is. And the people that are talking about chemicals and Hooker are ignorant as to what is really happening inside the plant.
“I’ve always questions why more people from Hooker haven’t gone on TV and given their side, or our side, of what’s really going on inside the Hooker plant and explain to the general public what we’re doing now and have done. How do people find out? By just what we’re doing here now — you and me talking and explaining why people should be glad to have the Hooker plant here in Niagara Falls.”
William (Bill) Crockett, shift supervisor, Hooker Chemical
“I’ve worked all over the plant. I’ve worked with all those chemicals you’ve probably been reading about in the paper.
“A lot of what’s being said about Hooker…it makes me angry. Much of the talk of today concerns what perhaps may have happened 25 years ago.
“I remember when I first joined Hooker. It was a prize plant to work in. When I was a kid, you want to work at Hooker ‘cause it was a good plant. And today it’s even better, much better. Because of the things they’ve learned. I question the way people do some of these tests with chemicals. They give a rat a gallon of the stuff and then they say it’ll give you cancer. Well, you drink too much water and you’ll drown yourself. That’s the way I look at it.
“Most people don’t realize they couldn’t survive without the products that Hooker makes. They all go into things people want and need. Like cars. Like electrical wiring. Like detergents. And all the beautiful things we have at home. A lot of ladies wouldn’t like it if they couldn’t have light at home, things that go into toasters or microwave ovens. They wouldn’t be possible if we didn’t have chemicals. We use chemicals in steel, a lot of acids. The whole society is based on chemicals as I see it, especially today. Plastics, drugs, everything.
“Forget about chemicals? If you do, you forget about living.
“Ignorance is what makes people afraid of anything, I don’t care what it is. And the people that are talking about chemicals and Hooker are ignorant as to what is really happening inside the plant.
“I’ve always questions why more people from Hooker haven’t gone on TV and given their side, or our side, of what’s really going on inside the Hooker plant and explain to the general public what we’re doing now and have done. How do people find out? By just what we’re doing here now — you and me talking and explaining why people should be glad to have the Hooker plant here in Niagara Falls.”
William (Bill) Crockett, shift supervisor, Hooker Chemical
Collection
Citation
Ploughman, Penelope, 1955-, “Hooker Chemical Corporation's full-page newspaper ad on Love Canal: 'A lot of what's being said it makes me angry',” Digital Collections - University at Buffalo Libraries, accessed June 26, 2025, https://digital.lib.buffalo.edu/items/show/16744.