Political Quotes

“I want to talk again about the complete disaster, the catastrophe that has befallen a community in Michigan called Flint, MI, through no fault of their own. We assume that when we turn on the faucet, we can make coffee, take a shower, make breakfast, take care of our children or our grandchildren, and that we are going to have safe, clean water. That has been a basic right in America. If you own a business, a restaurant, you assume you are going to be able to turn on the water and make the food and serve your customers. If you are a barber, you can turn on the faucet and clean water comes out. That is basic in our country. For 100,000 people in Flint, MI, the dignity of being able to turn on a faucet and have clean water has been ripped away. It started 20 months ago. They were lied to. They were told the water was safe. Finally, we are told it was not safe. People told them that somehow this brown water that smelled was safe--clearly not. We now know that about 9,000 children under the age of 6 have been exposed in some cases to astronomical lead levels. There was one story about a home that was tested where the lead levels were higher than a nuclear waste dump. How would you feel if that were your house and somebody told you your children had been exposed to that? I can only imagine. I know how I would feel. A little while ago I met with some pastors from Flint who are here desperately trying to get beyond this.…”