Jacob Lattig

27 September 2020

Writ 101

Flint Crisis 

In regard to major events and controversies in the United States of America, there have been many to say the least. At this point, it is almost synonymous to associate American politics with drama, controversy, and discord as it has become a near sport for media pundits and citizens alike. However, there have been few events that have generated the type of visceral and widespread amount of public backlash than that of the Flint Michigan water crisis. It is important to note that this was an issue that plagued the city of Flint for years on top of years. In What The Eyes Don’t See, Mona Hanna-Attisha delves into the inner workings of the crisis and the extent to which the federal government went to lie about the realities of the situation and mislead the general public. One of the biggest takeaways from reading this book was that although the problem in Flint, Michigan, was of sizable magnitude, it was the government trying to hide the truth from the public that amplified the problem and turned into something that could not be redeemed or forgiven. 

It is often expected that when something goes horribly wrong in a city or a state/region of the United States, the federal government is expected to come and use the resources of the country to solve the problem in a timely and effective manner. That is why reading Attisha chronicle the lengths to which the federal government went to hide the grim realities of the water crisis was so stirring and surprising. It was almost as if this entire book was a complete paradox as to what we, as a citizenry, have expected from our federal government. One of the most interesting quotes from Attisha that addressed this specific concept was when she said “If we stop believing that the government can protect our public welfare and keep all children safe, not just the privileged ones, what do we have left? Who are we as a people, a society, a country, and a civilization?” (Attisha) Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha was a pediatrician, political activist, and scientist. It’s fascinating because Attisha did not know a lot about the material that was found in the water, but through experience and strenuous research/trials, she found out more information about the metal that was found in the water which would ultimately prove to be crucial when she would be the reason that the problem was solved in the end. 

There were many instances in which Attisha was lied to or led astray. One of the times in which she was lied to was in 2014. The city’s leadership intentionally led her astray in telling her that it was completely safe for children to continue to drink the water in Flint, knowing all the while that it was dangerous for them to do so. When reading this for the first time, it did not seem as though it was a big deal from the way it was framed; but when learning about the deadly implications that this lie had on the state, it was almost impossible to grasp just how dangerous that one singular lie was. Dr. Attisha being a pediatrician helped to make her mission in solving this more personal for her. Additionally, she had two daughters of her own, so it was nearly impossible for her to not be drawn to wanting to solve this issue because she knew this could have easily been one of her daughters drinking that water through no fault of their own. 

Another instance in which the government or a governmental department lied or misled her was when she presented her findings from her research in front of a press conference. There was a lot of noticeable backlash with many not even acknowledging her findings and assuming that she did not know what she was talking about or that she was a conspiracy theorist. This was incredibly frustrating for Attisha because it seemed like all of her hard work had gone down the drain and that nobody was taking her concerns seriously even though she had spent months researching it and had data to back up her claims. Attisha’s efforts would prevail in the end. The federal government would eventually acknowledge that she was correct in everything that she had said, and President Obama then proceeded to declare an emergency in the city and state for the water. 

When looking at this story, there are many comparisons that I could make in relation to things that I see in real life.  One of the biggest times that I encountered consistent lying/misinformation was during the time of the Presidential Election in 2016. Every time I would go on social media, there would be an ad full of untrue and misleading claims about both of the candidates from either side. This made it difficult for me to come to a conclusive opinion on the candidates because although I knew what the facts were, when you are constantly being fed information based in conspiracy theories and lies, your brain begins to normalize it and that just makes the process of decision making even more complicated. This relates to the story because even though Attisha knew everything that she was saying was rooted in facts, the government had presented her with so many lies that it began to wear on her morale. Thankfully, she persevered. The same can be said about me when talking about the information spread during the last election cycle. 

When I think about a time that I was presented with misinformation, there are too many to count. An example I will use will be a small one. Once, my friend told me something that my other friend said about me. However, the way that it was presented was not representative of the way that it was actually said to me. This is important because it goes back to the fact that even the smallest misconception or mischaracterization can have large and impactful ripples.