Dr. Mona returns to campus

By Catherine Engstrom-Hadley
Staff Writer

Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, the pediatrician who helped expose the lead crisis in Flint, returned to WCC to give a speech to a packed crowd at Towsley Auditorium. She visited campus earlier this year in March, too, for a Women’s History Month event.

Hanna-Attisha’s book “What The Eyes Don’t See” is a first-hand account of the water crisis. She discussed her book, experience and how the city is doing now.

“Lead is probably one of the most well-studied neurotoxins,” said Hanna-Attisha. “It impacts cognition and alters a child’s entire life-course trajectory.”

In 2015, when Dr. Hanna-Attisha discovered that lead was in Flint’s water and began actively exposing the truth, the state denied all wrong-doing and tried to invalidate her claims.

“I knew that if I was going to make a difference in Flint’s story, I had to protect these children,” said Hanna-Attisha.

During the Flint water crisis, over 9,000 children under six were exposed to lead.

“Parents were coming to us with brown water, saying ‘it tastes weird, it looks weird’ but the State was saying it was fine,” said Hanna-Attisha.

When asked about the current state of the people of Flint, she said: “For many people in Flint, justice delayed very much feels like justice denied.”

“Restorative justice is critical; the trauma is raw. Without the notion of justice, it is hard for people to heal,” said Hanna-Attisha.

In January of this year, prosecutors dropped all criminal charges against eight of the people in the Flint water scandal and pledged to start again from scratch.

“There needs to be accountability, the criminal charges need to be refiled,” said Hanna-Attisha.

“This should have ended when the first jug of brown water was held up, it should have ended when we knew there was lead in the water, but anyone who raised any concern was dismissed and denied.”

Although the Flint’s water system was switched back to the Detroit water system in 2015, the damage had already been done and the city’s service lines will have to be replaced over time. Five years later, Flint residents can now use tap water with a filter.

“We are the richest country in the world, we can fix this,” said Hanna-Attisha.

To view our article on Dr. Mona’s previous visit, click here.

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