For many of us, when the TV cameras are turned off and the headlines are no longer on the front page, we have a tendency to forget the importance of certain news stories. A few years ago, the Flint Water Crisis was front-page news for many media outlets. Now, many of us have moved on to the next crisis. Yet, there is a population in Flint, Michigan that needs us to remember that the Flint Water Crisis isn’t over; it’s just moved from the waterways to the classrooms.
Backstory
In September of 2015, some doctors in the Flint area began to notice a spike in lead levels in children. They urged the city and the state to cease using the Flint River as its water source; yet, the state insisted that the water was safe. Less than 4 months later, then-Governor Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency in Flint. This was the beginning of a comprehensive legal, ethical, and health battle that would result in lawsuits, terminations, and, unfortunately, the deaths of innocent citizens.
Lead poisoning, as many doctors argued at the time, is particularly problematic because the effects may not be immediate. According to the mayoclinic.com, “Even small amounts of lead can cause serious
