The Crisis in Flint
The Flint water crisis is a story of environmental injustice and poor decision making. In 2014, the city switched its drinking water supply from the Detroit system to the local Flint River to save money. Insufficient treatment and testing of the water led to a series of health issues for residents that were simply ignored or discounted by government officials for 18 months. Long before the debacle, Flint had been similarly struck by water woes. The Flint River historically has served as a waste disposal site by many local industries, including lumber and later car factories. Unsurprisingly, the water quality has been marred. The devastating decision of a cash-strapped state government to switch the drinking supply in 2013 to the Flint River until a new pipeline could be built from Lake Huron led to a host of problems when the aging pipes leached lead into thousands of homes.
Central Michigan University responded to the crisis in a variety of ways. Professor Cedric Taylor of the Department of Sociology wrote directed and co-produced a documentary on the experience of Flint residents. Nor Any Drop to Drink: The Flint Water Crisis explores factors leading up to the crisis and its impact and social inequity. The documentary itself was screened nationally and internationally. When asked by CMLife reporter Sydney Smith what made him interested in creating this documentary Dr. Taylor responded: "Water has been ones of those issues [economic difficulties]. After having gone to Detroit and speaking with some activists, we realized the water issue was pretty bad...Pretty soon I realized this water issue expanded beyond Detroit." Dr. Taylor went on to say that, "When I heard about people not having access to a basic human right, I couldn't understand." When Smith asked about what stood out, Dr. Taylor responded, "The idea of young people being poisoned is revolting. Being there and talking to families who have been drinking the water and seeing some of the health issues, that is heartbreaking." Later in 2017, Dr. Taylor stated to CMLife that "The Flint water crisis is one of the most significant man-made disasters in the United States. We can learn from this crisis, and if we pay close attention, as future leaders we can avoid making the same mistakes."
CMU students have also participated in trying to mitigate the circumstances for Flint residents. Responding to the crisis, CMU students registered the "Flint Water Crisis Task Force" and took 150 volunteers to Flint to help the community. The President Crystal Pendergrass stated that "helping the people of Flint is not just about the opportunity to volunteer but the people students can help in the process."
Several water drives took place on campus throughout the period of the crisis. In February 2016, the women's basketball team, under the leadership of Junior guard Jasmine Harris, organized a water drive for residents of Flint. The team made a pledge to the Mount Pleasant community urging them to help with the crisis. The fundraiser responded by donating 7,298 water bottles for Flint residents. When talking to CMLife, Harris commented that "[i]t's the best feeling knowing that we're really going to help people, and I'm so happy with the community support." Harris had brought up the idea to coach Sue Guevara after hearing about the hardships from friends in Flint. The event at the basketball game was a great success, and people who donated water received a voucher for a future basketball game. Cash donations were also collected.
Following the women's basketball team's efforts, Phi Alpha Delta pre-law fraternity, the Student Government Association, and Phi Alpha Theta fraternity also participated in providing relief for people in Flint. The three organizations held an event to raise money for the Flint Water Fund. When asked about their goals by CMLife, SGA president Chuck Mahone stated "Our goal is to truly create some tangible relief for the people of Flint, whether that's through water filters, (or) whether that's through water, and Phi Delta Theta has already done a great job of that in their efforts alone." Phi Alpha Theta partered with Sam's Club and were working to distribute water at the stores' Flint location. The water drive was not alone—at the same time, two other drives were taking place in the Office of LGBTQ Services and the Mary Ellen Brandel Volunteer Center. The CMU medical school also participated in a water drive in 2016.
In July 2016, students volunteered along with faculty and staff to provide free health screenings for the Flint community. Mobile Health Central provided 100 residents of Flint over the age of 50 with free treatment. The volunteers administered blood pressure screenings, tested vision, body mass indexes, screened for skin cancer and more. One student volunteer stated that, "I like dealing with patients, so anytime we can get out to the community...it reminds us why we're in medical school." When speaking to CMLife, program director Tracy Speier said collaborations between universities, government departments, and organizations were an important part of helping those in need.
