>>> YOU THINK YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED IN THE FLINT WATER
CRISIS?
CRISIS? YOU DON’T.
YOU DON’T. BUT YOU WILL SOON.
BECAUSE OF THIS.
IT’S CALLED "WHAT THE EYES DON’T
SEE" A STORY OF CRISIS,
RESISTANCE AND HOPE IN AN
AMERICAN CITY.
AMERICAN CITY. DR. MONA HANNA ATTISHA IS A PED
PEDIATRICIAN IN FLINT.
SHE SHOOK THE DENIAL OFF THE
FLINT STORY AND MADE PEOPLE FACE
WHAT WAS GOING ON THERE.
CONGRATULATIONS ON THE BOOK.
THANK YOU FOR BEING HERE.
>> THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME.
IT’S GOOD TO BE BACK.
>> I WANTED TO ASK FIRST OF ALL
ABOUT WHY YOU WANTED TO WRITE A
BOOK ABOUT THIS?
THE REASON I WANTED TO ASK YOU
IS YOU ARE BUSY.
NOT ONLY WERE YOU BUSY BEFORE
FLINT SINCE THEN YOU GOT A LOT
OF NATIONAL ATTENTION AND A BIG
PLATFORM YOU’VE BEEN USING FOR
GOOD BUT YOU’RE STILL TRYING TO
FIX FLINT.
FIX FLINT. >> I’M STILL A PEDIATRICIAN IN
FLINT.
FLINT. I DECIDED TO WRITE IT FOR THREE
REASONS ONE WHEN I STARTED TO
WRITE THE BOOK, I KNEW WE WOULD
NEED A VEHICLE TO SHINE THE
SPOTLIGHT BACK ON FLINT.
THE NATION’S ATTENTION WOULD
FADE BUT OUR CRISIS AND NEEDS
WOULD BE ONGOING.
WE NEEDED A REMINDER THAT FLINT
IS STILL HERE.
IT’S STILL ON BOTTLED WATER.
YOU NEED TO PAY ATTENTION TO
FLINT.
FLINT. THE SECOND REASON IS I WANTED AN
IMMIGRANT STORY OF AN
ARAB-AMERICAN THAT WASN’T ABOUT
WAR AND TERRORISM.
IT WAS ABOUT IMMIGRANT COMING TO
THIS COUNTRY FOR FREEDOM AND
OPPRESSION, I WAS THAT LITTLE
BROWN GIRL AND I ACCLIMATED TO
THIS COUNTRY AND ACHIEVED THE
AMERICAN DREAM, WHAT ARE WE
LOSING OUT OF RIGHT NOW.
AND I ALSO WANTED TO WRITE THE
BOOK AS A WAY TO GIVE BACK.
PART OF THE PROCEEDS GO TO OUR
FLINT KIDS FUND.
WE HAVE A LOT OF LONG TERM WORK
TO DO AND I WANT TO MAKE SURE WE
CAN DO THAT.
>> I THINK OF THE IT RATION OF
MUSLIM BAN AND IRAQ WOULD BE ONE
OF THEM --
>> I WOULDN’T BE HERE.
>> AND LORD KNOWS WHAT WOULD
HAVE HAPPENED TO FLINT BY NOW.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. >> IN TERMS OF WHAT’S HAPPENING
IN THE CITY RIGHT NOW.
THERE ARE A LITTLE BIT OF BURST
OF NATIONAL PUBLICITY RECENTLY
WHEN THE STATE ANNOUNCED IT
WASN’T GOING TO SUPPORT BOTTLED
WATER.
WATER. WHAT’S GOING ON NOW?
>> IT’S BEING SUPPORTED BY
NONPROFITS, SOME CHURCHES.
BUT THE RECOMMENDATION IS STILL
TO BE ON BOTTLED OR FILTERED
WATER.
WATER. WE’VE REPLACED ABOUT 6,000 OF
OUR LED PIPES WE HAVE ABOUT
9,000 TO GO.
UNTIL THE INFRASTRUCTURE WORK IS
COMPLETE, PEOPLE NEED TO STAY ON
FILTERED AND BOTTLED WATER.
>> THE WAY WE GOT TO THE STORY
IN THE FIRST PLACE ON THIS SHOW
WAY BACK IN THE DAY, WAS THAT WE
HAD BEEN COVERING THE EMERGENCY
MANAGER LAW IN MICHIGAN WHERE
YOUR LOCALLY ELECTED OFFICIALS
CAN BE PUSHED ASIDE, TAKEN OUT
OF ALL DECISION MAKING PROCESS
AND THE GOVERNMENT, THE GOVERNOR
SPECIFICALLY CAN SAY WE’RE NOT
GOING TO RECOGNIZE THE RESULTS
OF YOUR LOCAL ELECTIONS ANYMORE,
WE’RE GOING TO DO IT OUR WAY
BECAUSE WE KNOW WHAT’S BEST.
THAT’S PART OF THE FLINT WATER
CRISIS STORY BECAUSE IT WAS AN
EMERGENCY MANAGER WHO WAS IN
CHARGE WHEN THE SWITCH WAS MADE.
HOW’S DEMOCRACY?
HOW’S DEMOCRACY? THAT’S A BIG PART OF HOW YOU
TELL THE STORY ABOUT WHAT WENT
WRONG.
WRONG. >> ABSOLUTELY.
>> ABSOLUTELY. KUDOS TO YOU, RACHEL, YOU WERE
THE FIRST TO ELEVATE THAT ISSUE
OF DEMOCRACY.
OF DEMOCRACY. YOU WERE ON THE STORY BEFORE IT
WAS A WATER CRISIS STORY.
SO THANK YOU WE WOULD BE NOWHERE
WITHOUT YOU.
WITHOUT YOU. IN 2011, FLINT LOST DEMOCRACY
OVERNIGHT.
OVERNIGHT. WE HAD A STATE APPOINTED
EMERGENCY MANAGER IN CHARGE AND
THEIR ONLY JOB WAS TO SAVE
MONEY.
MONEY. NO MATTER WHAT THE COST.
AND IT WAS TOO EXPENSIVE, I
GUESS, FOR US TO GET GREAT LAKES
TREATED WATER.
TREATED WATER. INSTEAD WE GOT IT FROM THE FLINT
RIVER AND IT WASN’T TREATED
PROPERLY.
PROPERLY. ALL OF THIS HAPPENED BECAUSE OF
YOU
YOU USURPED DEMOCRACY.
USURPED DEMOCRACY. AT ONE POINT IN MICHIGAN HALF OF
OUR AFRICAN-AMERICAN POPULATION
WAS UNDER EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
COMPARED TO 2% OF WHITES.
>> WHICH MEANS YOU DON’T HAVE
POWER TO ELECT YOUR LOCAL
OFFICIALS.
OFFICIALS. >> YOU CAN’T HOLD THEM
ACCOUNTABLE EITHER.
ACCOUNTABLE EITHER. >> SHE’S THE AUTHOR OF A NEW