Erin Brockovich has identity crisis

CHICAGO — Erin Brockovich, whose fight against pollution in a California town inspired a movie bearing her name, says she's having an identity crisis.

"Everyone, and I do mean everyone, now comes up to me and says, 'So, you're the real Erin Brockovich?''' she said at the Anti-Defamation League Women of Achievement dinner Thursday, where she was the keynote speaker.

"I guess my name now is 'The Real' Erin Brockovich,'' she said.

Brockovich, who was portrayed by Julia Roberts in the Oscar-nominated movie, was a legal researcher when she discovered a massive cover-up of water pollution by the Pacific Gas & Electric Co. in Hinkley, Calif. The utility was eventually forced to pay more than $330 million in damages.

She said the movie has turned her life upside down.

"It's hard to accept this attention for being honest and doing the right thing,'' she said. "That makes me uncomfortable.''

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