As a child in Mission, Texas, curiosity caused me to watch cars trapped up to their axles in the old mud pit that is now the highway loop around Mission.
I noticed the white powder that never melted in the mud. After many years of research, I learned that the white powder was toxic chemical dust from the Hayes Sammons plant where pesticides and Agent Orange used in the Vietnam war were created.
I learned that the chemicals would not break down for many years, and meanwhile polluted the air and water table, causing endless illnesses to families living in the area.
My family was one of the damaged families. One sister has severe problems with colitis and bladder issues. She was told she could not be in the case because she was "just a child."
Another was born with one normal kidney and one "baby" kidney. She was developing "in utero" while our mother lived in the area. However, this sister was told she could not be in the case "because she did not live there."
Another sister has head traumas from epileptic seizures.
My personal history includes breast cancer with mastectomy, pneumonia, severe sleep apnea, asthma, eczema, scoliosis, reproductive issues and hair loss.
This listing is only the "tip of the iceberg" for our family. Four of us have fibromyalgia and constant pain.
EPA states that there is no "latency" problem or passing on toxins to the next generation. I have documentation stating the opposite.
The Environmental Working Group which produces the "Dirty Dozen " list of contaminated fruits and vegetables each year, has published evidence of the research done on umbilical cord blood of newborns, which identifies toxic chemicals passed from the mother's blood into the newborn baby.
Any pregnant woman knows that doctors are very strict about prescribing medications for them because of side effects on the unborn child. Mothers will CHOOSE to go through pregnancy without medication relieving their illness to protect the health of their unborn child. They made a choice. What choice did Hayes Sammons victims have? NONE!
Meanwhile we are having a Silver Anniversary. Twenty-five years in the court system! Is this cause for celebration?
For many victims, NO!
Another letter has gone out with another promise of a settlement check soon, and I'm wondering if we wait for another twenty five years. That would make it a Golden Anniversary.
I'm afraid there will be no one left to celebrate!
Happy Anniversary Mission, Texas pollution victims!
P.S. When the telephone system was being started in the Rio Grande Valley, each city had a special designation at the beginning of each phone number. The designation for Mission was JUSTICE. The passing years have shown a desire for that elusive justice. Where did our justice go?
The above guest column was penned by Charlotte Ramsey, a resident of Mission, Texas. The column appears in The Rio Grande Guardian International News Service with the permission of the author.
