Smith captured a mother with her deformed daughter sitting in a bath for this piece. The daughter, Tomoko, was poisoned in the womb from pollution in the water of Japan. Methyl mercury was in industrial wastewater from a factory and the disease killed and affected many. The government did very little to prevent pollution, until Smith released this photo, causing social change. Smith was attacked by several employees at the factory that created the pollution, which led him to become a figure on the news. The photos from Smith led the government to take more direct actions and the company to pay compensation.
S.Za. (2017, January 22). Tomoko Uemura in her bath. Retrieved April 26, 2021, from https://iconicphotos.wordpress.com/2009/05/06/tomoko-uemura-in-her-bath/
This is a good summary of the events surrounding Eugene Smith and the image of Tomoko.