Sick children. Adults. Neon-colored water. Sounds like something out of a horror movie, right? Except this is taking place right now in the United States. And? This is not the first time this has happened. Today, I learned that in 2004, lead poisoning also contaminated the municipal water supply of an American city. Which one? Washington D.C.
So what happened? When officials were first notified of the water crisis in the nation’s capital, their response was speedy and thorough, right? No. In what was eerily echoed in Flint, MI in 2015, officials first denied there was a problem and then falsely claimed there was no health risk. Every single person in those municipalities was poisoned with lead for years longer than necessary.
We all make mistakes. Some errors have greater ramifications than others. The right thing to do? Is to own them right away. Apologize. Do our best to fix them. That is NOT what happened in either Washington D.C. or Flint.
Why am I so passionate about this issue? Because I have experience with lead poisoning. A routine blood test turned up elevated lead levels in one of my children. The kid had been sucking on magazine pages. And magazine ink? Contains lead. You can be sure I instantly cut down on the access to reading materials for all three of my kids.
There is no safe minimum for lead exposure. Also? Lead stays in your body for the rest of your life. My kid has undergone annual lead testing as a result of that early reading – fortunately the lead has not impacted neurological development. My heart goes out to the thousands of parents in Washington D.C. and Flint, MI who will be dealing with the ramifications of their children’s poisoning for the rest of their lives.
How can you help? Raise your voice. Contribute your time and money to something that is a nationwide crisis waiting to happen.
Join me in stopping children from being poisoned.https://t.co/xxC7nQEzZi#FlintWaterCrisis #SpeakUp pic.twitter.com/0EKVOWAr5b
— Kathy Zucker (@kathyzucker) January 31, 2016
Why? Because your town could be next.
RT @virginia_tech: From @HuffPostPol: Flint's not the only place with lead pipes — they're everywhere, says expert https://t.co/HqquHpWJUA
— Virginia Tech CEE (@VirginiaTechCEE) January 31, 2016
Kathy Zucker is an international social media Shorty Award winner, mother of three and a startup founder at companies including the Metro Moms Network®.
