From the People’s Tribune: On March 24, 2024, residents of Flint, Michigan marched to City Hall as part of the “Ten Years After the Water Crisis” commemoration, chanting,”Water for the People, Not for Profit!; Clean our water; Show me What Democracy Looks Like; No Justice No Peace.” Flint is still broken. The three-day commemoration saw marches, vigils, testimonies, healing ceremonies, resource tables and updates on the class-action lawsuit settlement and pipe replacement. People spoke to their pain and anger at the still unfixed toxic pipes, fear about the safety of the water, its price being the highest in the nation, long-term illnesses from the poisoning and insufficient health care. Concern continues for the children of Flint whose lives have forever been changed once the city’s water source was switched for private gain. To this day, not one public official has been held responsible for their role in the water crisis. “Today marks a milestone in our journey. For 10 long years, we stood shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, fighting for justice in the face of adversity,” said Lashaya Darisaw, member of the 10 year Commemoration Committee, and lead organizer of the March. Below are excerpts from some of the many powerful voices who spoke at the march and events. We thank these media for documenting the voices and photos from the Flint March: Out Of The Mud Media/Flint After Dark Podcast, and Fly City Blackout; and photos from Sister Audrey Young, Sunset Desire, and Valerie Jean who thanked the organizers, saying, “Today gave me hope!”
VOICES FROM FLINT: (EXCERPTS):
“What a day! Although I missed the in-person parade, Claire McClinton, Bethany Hazard, Bishop Jefferson, Joelena Freeman, George F. Grundy II, Virginia Nolan, Claudia Perkins, Carroll M. Kinkade and all of those involved with yesterday’s commemoration of 10 years, we still broken in Flint! What an event! We still need your prayers and assistance to help make us whole.”
— Sister Audrey Young, Facebook
“The universe gave us a beautiful day for a very solemn occasion of the 10-year commemoration of the Flint Water Crisis. So proud to walk with my community especially Claire McClinton, Bishop Jefferson, Christina Sayyae, Lashaya Darisaw, Keishaun Wade, Bethany Hazard, Ms. Elizabeth and People’s Church, and many friends + media who have walked alongside us for a decade.” —Sunset Desire, Facebook
“The commemoration helped the people express themselves, and sparked some new hope. It let people know they are not forgotten, and that we are well aware the problem is not fixed yet. At the Resource Fair we had one of the attorneys speak about the people’s case that settled for $626 million. One-third of those millions goes to the attorneys for legal fees. Not one red penny has reached the people! So everyone wanted to know where are they with the money?” [See more from Bishop below] — Bishop Jefferson, Flint Democracy Defense League
“What the judge did is just say, here is some money, take it and distribute it. But they are not compensating the people for what they damaged. Some of these kids are going to have problems for the rest of their lives. The ACLU went to court in Genesis County, saying, ‘We can’t keep these kids normal because they have lead in their system.'”
—Nathan Jefferson
“This [water] came out of a faucet on the North side of Flint, Michigan, YESTERDAY!!! April, 2024. So, tell me again . . . the water is fixed, right?”
[See more comments from Mari below]
— Mari Copeny, AKA Little Miss Flint. Photo/Sunset Desire Facebook page
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“My pipes inside my house haven’t been fixed. I can’t afford that. I’m disabled. [The city only pays for the pipe going to the house.] We live paycheck to paycheck. We get a little bit of food stamps, that’s it. It was somebody else’s decision [to switch the water]; if we knew, we could have tried to protect our families. They got away with murder because they’re officials. If I was to do something like that to even one person, I’d be in prison.” —Ronda Thornton, (Mid-Michigan Now)
Former Flint Mayor Karen Weaver (Seattlemedium.com): “We were under an emergency manager at the time, basically a dictatorship . . . [Ten years later] many residents still don’t have access to clean, affordable water. The internal plumbing damage in homes also prevents clean water access despite external pipe replacement. No one has received compensation from settlements yet, and no one has been held accountable for the criminal activities that led to this crisis.”
VOICES FROM THE MARCH TO CITY HALL (EXCERPTS)
Reverend Smith, Senior Pastor of People’s Church of Flint: “We’re happy to be hosting this march. We’ve worked with this coalition for the past 10 years and it is my honor to welcome us here. We want to thank every one of our coalition sponsors. We thank the Flint Democracy Defense League, People’s Church, Michigan United, Black Lives Matter, Flint Rising, Environmental Transformation Movements, and every one of you who are here today and who should be here today. I wish we saw more churches out here today because this is TRULY what sins look like. Amen.”
Rev. Threlkeld: “We just want to say thank you, Lord. We need healing here in Flint, Michigan. We need healing in our nation. We need healing all around. We need change. We need pipes changed, and this mayor of this city, the elected officials throughout the land, need a change in power that they may become more concerned about the people. It’s FOR the people. That’s what’s needed here. We pray Almighty that you continue blessing these people that organize and that are on the battlefield to make this thing get right. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”
Lashaya Darisaw, member, 10-year Commemoration Committee and Lead Organizer of March:
“Today marks a milestone in our journey. For 10 long years, we stood shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, fighting for justice in the face of adversity. And today, as we commemorate this decade of resilience, we add a new demand to our chorus of voices. A demand born of of the necessity of survival, and born out of the love for our community and those like ours. For too long we have borne witness to the exploitation of our resources, the degradation of our environments and the marginalization of our people. And for too long we have seen our water, our most precious resource, fall victim to the insatiable greed of those who will seek to profit at our expense. But today, my friends, we say no more. Today we stand united in our resolve to prohibit the sale of our water assets to private investors and businesses. Did y’all hear what I just said? Well, we know that our water is not just a commodity to be bought and sold, but a sacred lifeline that sustains us, nourishes us, and connects us to our ancestors and to each and every one of us. We’ll not stand by as it is plundered for profit. But our fight is not just about protecting what is ours. It’s about building a future where water is a right, not a privilege. It’s about reclaiming our power, our autonomy, and our dignity and faith of those who will seek to exploit us. It’s about standing in solidarity with communities across the world who are facing similar struggles, who are rising up and demanding justice. My friends, the road ahead will not be easy. We will face resistance, but we will not falter, for we carry within us the spirit of Flint. A spirit that has been forged in the fires of adversity. A spirit that will carry us through even the darkest times. And so on this 10th year of this struggle, let us stand firm in our conviction that another world is possible. A world where our water is clean, a world where our communities are thriving and our voices are heard. A world where Black Lives Matter, where environmental justice is a reality, where dignity and humanity of all people are respected. So let us march forward together, my friends with love in our hearts, fire in our souls and justice on our side. We’ll walk together hand in hand until victory is ours.”
Claire McClinton, retired UAW member, member Flint Democracy Defense League; member 10-year Commemoration Committee: “You all know the demands! We want clean water. We want affordable water. We want the culprits to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law for the harm they caused our city, the deaths they ignored, the long-term illnesses which we still live with. The indignity that your government poisoned you and your government won’t fix it. It’s an indignity on humanity that we have the highest water rates in the nation. We can’t deal with that no more. So we’re going to all have to ratchet up our game. We going to have to ratchet up our unity. We going to have to be Flint, right? We going to have to be Flintstones. We are Flintstones. We have big hearts. We have courage. We have a strong sense of social justice. We made history around the world in 1937 when the UAW was recognized. We made history in 1968 when the Fair Housing Act was passed. We made history when we were the first largest city of size to get an African American mayor. We did that Flint. We got some greatness in us. And now last December they put the final nail in the coffin with their, ‘Merry Christmas. Charges Dropped.’ We’re not going to stand for that. So I appreciate each and every one of you being here. You are the right people to be here. You’ve got a strong sense of consciousness and awareness, and I thank each and every one of you. And please, let’s stay in touch. Let’s move this struggle forward to save our city.”
Terry: “Hi, I’ve been walking [for clean water] since the first march in Lansing, and I walk outside my Granny’s house. I used to write about my struggle. We want clean water. We want it now. The water has affected my family very hard. I watched my brother get sick a couple of times. A couple of my dogs died from the water. We aren’t getting better. We want clean water now.”
Lucine Jarrah, Executive Director, Arab American Heritage Council, a 43-year-old local nonprofit based in Flint: “As we stand here today and listen to the speeches of my fellow community members and leaders, we are reminded not only of the challenges our own community continues to face as a result of longstanding government neglect and disinvestment. We also stand with a call to action to broaden our solidarity efforts beyond local confines and to stand alongside those globally fighting for their rights and liberation . . . the injustice of denied access to clean and safe water persists in places like Gaza, where millions endure the daily struggle for basic necessities. And where more than 90% of the drinking water is undrinkable. When we examine the parallels between Flint and Gaza beyond the water crises, they reveal a shared struggle for justice, self-determination, and liberation . . . Now more than ever, it is crucial that we come together as one community united in our commitment to justice and liberation for all. I want to end with a letter below written by the MECA [Middle East Children’s Alliance] staff in Gaza on International Women’s Day in 2016, addressed to the women of Flint.” (Read the letter at: https://peoplestribune.org/2024/03/from-the-women-of-gaza-to-the-women-of-flint/)
Bishop Jefferson, Flint Democracy Defense League: “We are here to talk about the Emergency Manager and what it is has done to us. Not only in Flint, but in Michigan. I think we are one of the hardest hit. Here we are 10 years later. We are not celebrating nothing. We’re commiserating. We are taking back our power and our authority. They took our water. They took our voice. But we’re taking it back. We will not be silent anymore. We are not going to be quiet. They can’t take our power. This is our City, our City Hall, our State. They came up with a Law, Public Act 4. They took it and put one person in charge. That’s called dictatorship to me. But we have Democracy. And because we have Democracy, we are taking back our power. We going to use our voice. We going to use our vote to make a difference, to bring change. We’re going to put somebody in office that’s going to have a voice for us. That’s right. That stands up for us. We ain’t going to take a back seat to the powers that be, or take money under the table. But, they’re taking it on top of the table in our faces, and we say we’re not taking it anymore from City Council, the Mayor, the Governor, or the State Representative. Come on. That’s right. Wherever it is, if you are not going to speak for us, work for us, act for us, bring healing to us, bring deliverance to us, make us whole again, [we won’t take it]. Release the monies to repair our houses.”
Mari Rose Copeny, [AKA “Little Miss Flint”]. “The people of Flint worked together to make sure that their family and neighbors had bottled water. Not only did we work together to ensure we had the resources we needed to survive, we organized time and time and tried to hold those in charge accountable for what they they put Flint through. We know the service lines are being changed, but we also know the city moved so slow on these changes. They were held in contempt of court. We know that Flint still needs significant infrastructure upgrades. People still need the pipes in their houses fixed from all the damage of the toxic water costs. There is no reason 10 years after one of the worst man-made water crises in America, that Flint residents still are paying the highest rates for water in the country. There is no reason it should have taken nine years to finally get a cancer study here when clearly there are many health issues here related to the water. There is no reason that there was an entire class action lawsuit, but not a single dime has been paid to the residents here, but the lawyers already got their check. There is no reason that not a single elected official responsible for what happened here has been held accountable for their actions. Every single charge that was dropped was a slap in the face of everyone in this city. We have an entire generation of kids here that don’t know what it’s like to live with clean, safe water. Kids are not only dealing with the physical effects of the water, but also dealing with the psychological effects. The people of Flint deserve so much better. We deserve to have elected officials that behave like they work with people who elected them. Instead, our leaders act like oversized toddlers, throwing constant temper tantrums and attack each other and their constituents. We have been failed repeatedly by all levels of government to the elected officials, to the elected leaders. Stop playing in our face to do your job. Flint was on track for being the blueprint of how to handle a water crisis. But the only thing that serves as the blueprint for the others now is how our community came together to save ourselves. As far as the way public officials and leaders go, and how you guys behave here, it serves as a cautionary tale to everyone of how not to act in a crisis. 10 years later. And it breaks my heart to say the water crisis is still not over. And I have no idea if it will ever be over or when it will be over.”
Christina Sayyae: “People have been getting their water tested and it’s still 250 parts per billion in some houses. So as a mother, every day I worry, even though my kids have had some treatment, what new ailment might show up. My oldest daughter worries about dying a lot. That’s not normal for an 18-year-old. And my little daughter has memory loss and hasn’t been diagnosed officially yet, but could have adolescent dementia. And then my son, he was born with translucent skin. You could see through his skin and see his muscle tissue and the doctors didn’t even do anything about it. This has to stop. You can’t keep murdering us out here no more. You’re going to stop one way or another. But the community is staying together, checking on our elders, all that stuff we need to do….”—From Facebook post
George Grundy, Jr. II: “I was born and raised here. I drank the water. I went to the Marine Corps in 2008, came back 2012 and moved back to Flint in 2014 to turn it around. I founded an organization called Veterans are Now Here in the city of Flint, primarily to assist and help veterans. But it was during the water crisis so the organization ended up servicing over 10,000 residents and hundreds of veterans. At that time there were many, many veterans that wanted to take action. Not just talk. And I’m still of that energy. Because 10 years is way too long to not get anything. Nobody’s been prosecuted. No, nothing has happened. What is it that we plan on getting by keep on marching, and just talking? So whenever anybody’s ready to go beyond just talking, I’m for all that. I’m saying it live in front of the mayor and everybody, because you poisoned 10 times worse than toxic waste. When do you fight? When do you actually put hands to the pavement and get stuff done? So that’s just me. That’s my energy. And whatever those actions equate to, I’m willing.”
“I was in third grade when the Flint water crisis happened. I am now almost done with my first semester of college. 10 years is entirely too long. My little sister has never seen clean water at Flint. She’s only five. It’s always been poison her whole life. How is this okay? I thank our school to be here because I find this a very extremely huge issue. It’s no reason why we are still fighting and fighting for clean water. People have died, people have lost their kids, have rashes, edema, bone marrow testing, cancer, all because to save a few bucks to switch the water. I don’t think that’s right. That’s why I’m here today. And we are going to continue to fight until we get clean water. It is no longer ask. It’s a demand, it’s a necessary need. It’s a human, right. It isn’t something that we just want, it’s a human right and necessity.”
Barbara Biggs: “I have been fighting along with these groups since 2014, and we did bring Eric Mays here with all of us up here. Eric, thank you. I should have brought him with me on my body, on my back. This water crisis has become just too much. And it’s not just the water crisis, it’s the administration as well. So many people have so many complaints that somebody need to look into this and we all need to speak together. I took off work today to come here because I feel like it is very, very extremely important. Not just for me as being an elder, but my life is in jeopardy as well. This water crisis is too much. So I appreciate you giving us the attention that you need. I appreciate Claire, I appreciate everybody for coming.”
Yolanda Figueroa: “I was born in Flint, Michigan. I’m proud of Flint, Michigan. And I thank the people that have fought for us. I thank you for Eric Mays because he was bold enough to say and speak for the people. That’s who we want. We want people who are fighting for us, not fighting each other like they are in the White House. That’s why all these things are happening. If we had good leaders, it wouldn’t be like this. And most of all, I’m a Christian. I believe in God, and we need to get back to God. So if we start praying and coming together — we’re one nation under God. We’re United States of America. So please let us not forget that he made us all and we have to come together, Black, white, whatever color we are. It’s not about that. It’s about safe water. It’s about life. So we need to come together. Remember those that went before us, that fought for us, they brought us together, not separated us. There’s people in office that have tried to separate us. We have to come together. That’s life. So let us please do that and stop fighting each other.”
Hill Harper, Democratic candidate, U.S. Senate, Michigan: “I’m here to be in support of this commemoration and I will be putting out an op-ed of demands and actions. The court special report says there’s $46 million of accrued interest from the unpaid and unjust water settlement. It’s a shame. And each day folks are marred by the silent devastation of profound stress endured by residents and the uncertainty and fear that their loved ones become sick. We understand that if we are going to get the resources back, number one, we have to start electing elected officials that will actually fight to bring resources back to the community.”
Claire McClinton: “All these events are bringing up anger, and hurt, and grievance that’s come back up that we kind of suppressed . . . But it can also be an igniter to strengthen our movement and take the next steps.”
• • • The People’s Tribune has published voices from Flint before, during and after the water crisis. See links to some of our coverage over the years at: https://bit.ly/3UMKs5v •••••••••••••••
