The Poor of Flint Were Left Under the Cover of Darkness
The Poor of Flint Were Left Under the Cover of Darkness
Disaster in poverty-stricken areas often lack public attention
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The Michigan National Guard has been helping to distribute bottled water to residents of Flint, Mich., during the water crisis. (Photo
ale G. Young/AP)
“Them that’s got shall get. Them that’s not shall lose” —Billie Holiday
It was in April of 2014 that the water turned bad. Residents of Flint, Mich., reported that the stuff smelled. It was yellowish brown. You drank it and your hair fell out. Or you developed a rash. Or you were nauseous.. Again, this was in APRIL (2014, emphasis and addition, mine).
According to a computer search, it was not until the following January that the Detroit Free Press, just an hour down the road, took note. It wasn’t until March that the New York Times began reporting the story. It wasn’t until Jan. 5th of this year — almost two years later — that Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder saw fit to declare a state of emergency and nine days afterward that he asked President Obama to declare the city a disaster area. And it is not until this week that yours truly is writing about it.
There are many points of outrage in the story of Flint’s ill-fated attempt to save money by switching its water supply to the filthy Flint River.
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So yes, this slow-rolling disaster offers many causes for anger. But one of them is the very fact that it has been a slow-rolling disaster. It is inconceivable that it would take so long for public officials to respond or media to notice if the water became unsafe in New York, Miami, Charlotte, Chicago, Atlanta or L.A. But Flint is none of those places.
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http://www.commondreams.org/views/2016/01/24/poor-flint-were-left-under-cover-darkness