The Federal Government鈥檚 Failure to Respond to the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥�
By: Amanda Williamson
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this post are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect views of the Journal, the William H. Bowen School of Law, or 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock.
. Ultimately, A majority of the blame for causing the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥� can be directly pinpointed to officials within the state of Michigan, but the blame for the continuing nature of the situation can be placed on the federal government for not appropriately responding to a national health emergency.
The Obama administration is the first culprit in failing to respond to the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥� at the federal government level. This classifies the city of Flint as a minority community. So, while the Obama administration advocated for growth in minority communities, Essentially, the Obama administration let the lives of many people fall through the cracks because they failed to adequately address the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis.鈥�
The 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥� happened under President Obama鈥檚 term and his administration bears a large part of the burden of the community continuing to struggle with their water supply. President Obama鈥檚 failure to swiftly declare a state of emergency is one major way in which he utterly failed the community of Flint. This means that the President鈥檚 declaration did not occur until almost two years after the water supply was switched. To wait nearly two years to respond to the situation in Flint is cruel. The aid that could have been provided by the federal government earlier would have made a huge difference in the lives of Flint residents. Government assistance was needed and it came too late. By the time the federal government provided aid to Flint the effects of lead poisoning were already rippling across the community. However, just as the Obama administration failed to take any substantive action to mitigate the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis,鈥� the Trump administration also failed to take action. But as we move on to the next American president, I wonder if the Biden administration will attempt to make strides towards amending a national health emergency that preceded the coronavirus. Or will another administration come and go without fully addressing the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥�?
As the state of Michigan takes steps to rectify this situation, I ask myself will the federal government ever do the same? Since it has been almost 7 years since the news of the 鈥淔lint Water Crisis鈥� broke and nothing has been done. I have little faith to believe that the federal government will ever acknowledge its part in the continuation of Americans being poisoned. However, since 2014, the desperate cries for help from the people of Flint have been muffled by the constant chaos of American politics. Here鈥檚 to hoping that one day the residents of Flint will get the justice that they deserve.