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Photographing Bakersfield, "A Thick Brown Film Hanging Over Town"

Last month, the editors of Time Magazine featured an onlinepiece about the community which they say has the worst air in the nation - Bakersfield.

It showed pictures of residents struggling to breathe air filled with dust, pollution from refineries, and smog trapped by the Tehachapi Mountains. But unlike many national publications that document the ills facing the valley, this particular feature had a local connection - for the photojournalist who took the shots is herself a Bakersfield native.

Lexey Swall grew up in Kern County and is a Bakersfield College graduate. She later went on to San Jose State and has won numerous awards for her photography. 

"I remember my grandfather driving me home to Bakersfield from vacation when I was 15 years old," Swall says. "We came out of the foothills east of town and in to the valley. In the glow of the remaining light, I saw a thick brown film hanging over town. I realized this was the air I was breathing. This was my home, and it was toxic."

She now lives in Washington D.C., but returned to her hometown to document the human toll that air pollution takes on the residents of Kern County. 

"This is an ongoing project," Swall says. "I will continue to photograph Bakersfield and the surrounding areas in Kern County to show the complex relationship between the people and industry that makes up the identity of the place."

For more photos and details visitGrain Images.  

Joe Moore is the President and General Manager of KVPR / Valley Public Radio. He has led the station through major programming changes, the launch of KVPR Classical and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under his leadership the station was named California Non-Profit of the Year by Senator Melissa Hurtado (2019), and won a National Edward R. Murrow Award for investigative reporting (2022).
Ezra David Romero is an award-winning radio reporter and producer. His stories have run on Morning Edition, Morning Edition Saturday, Morning Edition Sunday, All Things Considered, Here & Now, The Salt, Latino USA, KQED, KALW, Harvest Public Radio, etc.
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