PHOTO/VERACITY IN DEFIANCE
EAST CHICAGO, IN — The West Calumet housing community was once home to a lead refinery center. This community was built between the late 1960s and early 1970s, and mostly houses African and Latino Americans. Unfortunately, due to low regulations on the refineries, the people were exposed to the hazards of lead seeping into the soil. The ground itself was poisoned affecting people who for over 40 years lived with this dangerous amount of lead poisoning. No official at any level of government did their job in informing the people of the danger that was literally right at their doorstep.
The crisis of toxic manmade disasters are leaving a scar on our country. The U.S. government has had a laissez faire approach to big industry because many industrial businesses donate to our elected officials and these large industries are given tax breaks. If there is a disaster at one of these industrial facilities, they are given low fines and the business is allowed to continue its practices. Should an industrial center be torn down, what was made in that facility can still remain, affecting the environment for years to come. My fellow co-founders of Veracity in Defiance began covering a story in the East Chicago community of West Calumet, where people were poisoned.
When we started interviewing the people and community leaders we were informed that letters were sent to people stating they needed to move out as it was deemed a hazard zone. Unfortunately, many of the people are either underemployed or unemployed. If they moved out, they still needed to pay rent, and if they didn’t have the right paper work when moving, the vouchers to help them relocate could be denied. There was fear amongst the people in West Calumet. No one could really inform them on what was going to happen to them or even explain the long-term effects of the lead poisoning they were exposed to.
We made three more visits to West Calumet and received information in regards to the blood tests for the children. The result was that the lead in many children was at high levels, with many parents saying their children have headaches, breathing troubles, and other physical ailments. Lead can cause developmental problems in young children that in the long run can prevent them from progressing forward in their education.
Indiana has for years been an area for large industry, especially on the lakefront. Thomas Frank, an organizer helping the people, made it clear there is more to this problem. He said, “Indiana has some of the most relaxed environmental laws in the country. That’s why a lot of these industries locate here. That’s why we have the largest tar sands refinery here. That’s why the largest blast furnace is located here. The environmental regime is more conducive to their interests and not to the people.” There are more dangers out there and from what we have seen with the toxic tour that Thomas Frank took us on, it is evident this is only the beginning. Stories such as this go unnoticed but it is only a matter time before it is at your doorstep or your favorite Chicagoland/Indiana beach.
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Thanks for this. It’s a long long overdue that the region around chicago in Northwest Indiana is exposed for it’s environmental disaster and the impact on those who live around one of the most polluted areas of the US. Indeed, as Frank says, this area and these cities–East Chicago, Gary, Hammond, Michigan City, Whiting, and the neighborhoods on the south east side of Chicago are sacrifice zones. I’m a friend of Sandy and Lew and our beloved Nelson Peery.