Awareness Wednesday :: Are You Aware of Water?

water - Mormon Women for Ethical Government

Water is the essential compound that sustains our lives. Our bodies are 60% water, but without replenishment of water we die in about three or four days. We rely on water to clean our homes and bodies. Water is so vital that in the scriptures we find it used to represent ideas such as salvation and eternal life. The Bible contains many powerful images of water. “With joy you will draw water out of the wells of salvation” (Isaiah 12:3). “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit” (John 3:5). Water signifies remission of sins through baptism and the protection and comfort of the Holy Spirit.

In Flint, Michigan, and Newark, New Jersey, water has lost its innocence. These are the systems that have received the most notoriety in the recent past. However, they are not alone. In 2018 a Chicago Tribune study found 70% of Chicago homes had lead in the tap water — and 30% of samples had levels that exceed the level the FDA allows in bottled water. New York City has not yet removed lead lines from all water fountains in their public schools. Portland, Oregon, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, also have large-scale lead issues in their water. Nearly 75% of schools in Detroit, Michigan, have lead in their water. There is no safe level of lead.

Lead causes various ailments to children and adults who ingest it. The list of symptoms and conditions that can develop from lead poisoning includes: behavior problems, learning disabilities, lower IQ, hyperactivity, stunted growth, hearing problems, and anemia in children. In extreme cases, there can be seizures, coma, and death. In pregnant women, there can be premature birth and low-birthweight babies. Those children, if not treated, can develop all the conditions above. Lead can also be transmitted through breastmilk. Adults exposed to lead can develop high blood pressure, kidney disease, and sterility.

In 2012, a young man named Michael was killed by a police officer in Newburgh, New York. He had brandished a knife at the officer and was subsequently killed. The local newspaper wrote a retrospective of his life. Michael had learning disabilities. The most striking statement in that article was, “Michael don’t know how to read. Michael is in the sixth grade.” This was a statement made in a deposition given prior to a lead poisoning lawsuit by his mother. Michael and five of his siblings had lead poisoning.

Michael had behavior problems. In 2004, Michael suffered minor injuries in a scuffle with police officers. His uncle said Michael had ADHD. He was ticketed or arrested for driving offenses 11 times in four years. He was pepper-sprayed by the police when evading arrest for having open alcohol in public. The mother of one of his children filed a menacing complaint against him. The family reports that he smoked PCP.

I often wonder if Michael’s life would have been different if he had not been lead poisoned. There is a picture of Michael in which he appears so very angry. He is shirtless and displaying the scrapes he received in the scuffle with police. He is only 15 years old in the photo. His uncle said he had a hard time “shutting his mouth when challenged.”

In Flint, the number of special needs students has increased by 56%. Of those students — more than 20% of all students in the district — how many have behavior problems, are unable to read, or will have a hard time shutting their mouths and controlling their impulses? The symptoms of lead are a recipe for poverty and conflict with the law. There is data that shows 44% of all inmates have not completed high school. There are many studies that show a positive correlation between lead levels and the rates of criminality. We also know that high rates of incarceration have a direct and causal relationship to poverty.

Please think about water. Think about Michael. Think about all the people who have lead-contaminated water all over the country.