The library at Starms Discovery Learning Center has cheerful peach and blue walls, and squat wooden shelves filled with books wrapped in thick plastic jackets to protect them from the touches and smudges of many small hands. On Monday, the library became a place to exchange other stories, too – darker stories. These were stories of stressed mothers and anxious kids, of graduating fifth-graders missing out on end-of-year celebrations. The stories were about families with a dangerous toxin – lead – in their homes and now in their public schools. Those families shared stories about brain damage and learning disabilities, and about a federal government that has denied them help. “I am here to elevate your stories,” said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Madison who is the junior senator from Wisconsin. Baldwin, flanked by officials from the city’s health department and school district, had come to Starms to meet with families and community activists and to hear more about their lives since the discovery that a child had been poisoned by peeling lead paint in one of the city’s aging and poorly maintained school buildings. The city’s health department ordered the school district to remediate the hazard, but the scope of the problem turned out to be much larger than a single building. So far, the district has closed six schools for cleaning and repainting, displacing roughly 1,800 students. Over the summer, the district’s efforts will kick into high gear. It has a goal of visually inspecting all school buildings by September 1. The district, which is the largest in Wisconsin, has 144 buildings. All but 11 were built before 1978, when it was still legal to use lead in paint. The average age of an MPS school is 82 years. A few blocks away, Starms Early Childhood Center, the sister campus to the elementary school, is one of four that remains closed. It was built in 1893 and its preschool and kindergarten students and their teachers were moved into the elementary school. Though the city has cleared the building to reopen, many families said they’d prefer to remain where they were through the end of the school year to minimize further disruptions. Friday is district’s last day before summer break. Several students in the district have been found to have elevated levels of lead in their blood. One case has been definitively linked to deteriorating paint in the basement of a school building, Golda Meir elementary. Two other cases involved students at Trowbridge and Kagel schools. Investigations determined that the source of the lead was most likely a combination of exposures from home and school. Other cases have been investigated and the schools were cleared as the source, said Caroline Reinwald, a spokesperson for the Milwaukee Health Department. Since the crisis started, Reinwald said, about 550 children have been screened for lead at clinics run by the health department and Novir, a company hired by the city to assist with screening. That doesn’t include kids who might have been tested through their primary care doctors. “We need to test many more kids for lead,” Milwaukee Health Commissioner Dr. Michael Totoraitis said on Monday. The City of Milwaukee Health Department had been working with experts in the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Branch when the entire team was laid off in the federal government’s Reduction in Force cuts in April. The city had requested that the CDC dispatch disease detectives to help mount a wide-scale blood testing campaign of kids in city schools. That request was also denied, citing the agency’s loss of its lead experts. Families who attended the meeting with Baldwin said they were outraged by the Trump administration’s apparent lack of support or interest. “We need our children to be protected right now,” said Tikiya Frazier, who has nieces and nephews at two of the closed schools. “We need them to understand that and come and help us. This is a state of emergency for us.” On Monday, Baldwin issued an open invitation to US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to visit Milwaukee to see and hear the issues for himself. She has twice before pressed Kennedy about the denial of federal aid. Both times he gave mollifying answers. “Do you mean to eliminate this branch at the CDC?” Baldwin asked him in a hearing in May. “No, we do not,” Kennedy responded. But he has yet to reinstate the fired experts or reopen the lead program under his planned Administration for a Healthy America. He’s also given no timeline for when federal lead poisoning prevention activities might continue. When Baldwin asked Kennedy about Milwaukee’s situation in a budget hearing a week later, he responded that “We have a team in Milwaukee.” The team was a lab technician who had briefly come to help calibrate a machine in the city’s public health lab. Although the city had requested and needed that help for years, officials said it was not the work they had recently asked the CDC to tackle: helping get more kids’ blood tested for lead exposure. “Either he was lying, or he didn’t know what was happening in his own agency. Either one is unacceptable,” Baldwin said after Monday’s meeting. Kennedy has also failed to respond to a letter that Baldwin and US Rep. Gwen Moore sent in April, urging him to reinstate the CDC’s lead team. On Tuesday, Baldwin and her colleague, Democratic Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, sent Kennedy another letter with detailed questions about the fate of the Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. They gave him until June 16 to respond. “We’ve got to hold the Trump administration accountable,” Baldwin said. “They could make the situation better today by rehiring these experts.” CNN reached out to HHS and the White House with questions about their plans for the Lead Poisoning Prevention Program and to get the administration’s response to Milwaukee parents. HHS did not respond by CNN’s deadline. “I’m angry because Wisconsin is always there for other states,” said Koa Branch, who has four children in Milwaukee’s public schools. When the tap water in Flint, Michigan, tested positive for high levels of lead a decade ago, Branch said, she remembers community members packing up food and supplies and going for support. But now, “where’s our help? Where’s help for us?” Branch had two sons at Westside Academy when it closed in early May. She was notified via a newsletter sent home with her children and later a phone call. “My anxiety hit the roof,” she said. The school district relocated classes to Andrew Douglas Middle School, about 3 miles away, or gave students the option to take classes online. Branch says her easygoing 5-year-old, Jonas, took things in stride, but her sensitive fourth-grader Jerell, 10, couldn’t handle the change. “I had to make a choice. I had to separate the two,” Branch said. Jonas moved with his class and teacher to the new campus, while Jarrell took classes online after Branch got home from work at night. “I can’t speak for everybody else, but it stressed my household,” she said. Branch said her kids have a vigilant pediatrician who has tested them for lead at each yearly wellness visit. So far, their test results have been normal. Still, she planned to take her youngest to a free clinic at a local church to get tested again. Santana Wells said she had a son and a niece attending fifth grade at Brown Street Academy, which closed May 12, about a month before school ended. Being at a different school caused her son to miss out on a lot of activities Brown Street had planned for its departing fifth-graders, she said. “Brown Street used to do a carnival every year. They do a picnic. They have a long list of what they were doing for their graduates,” Wells said. Now, she said, it was a pared-down field trip, which felt unfair. Wells said she “runs a tight schedule” at home to make it to work by 3 p.m. each day. With the change in schools, her son was arriving home later, which made her late to work, on top of everything else. Several parents said their kids had questions about the lead and felt anxious about going back to school in the fall, even though the city has tested their schools and deemed them safe to reoccupy. The stories told on Monday weren’t just for the ears of the federal government. Totoraitis said the questions from children were a light-bulb moment for him, too. The health department’s workers took great care to explain the lead situation to parents, but they hadn’t done as much to try to answer kids’ questions about what was happening. He said the department would work on that. He also hopes to temporarily hire at least one of the laid-off CDC lead experts for a few weeks to come review the city’s efforts and make sure they are on track. Baldwin hopes the federal government will rehire them, too. “These were the renowned experts on childhood lead mitigation and remediation, and the federal government needs to have that staff capacity to help, just as they did in Flint, Michigan,” she said. “That’s needed here, right now, in Milwaukee.” The US Environmental Protection Agency lifted its emergency order on drinking water in Flint last month — nine years after it was put into place.
‘Come and help us’: Milwaukee parents fire back at Trump administration for denying federal aid amid lead crisis in schools
TruthLens AI Suggested Headline:
"Milwaukee Parents Demand Federal Support Amid Lead Crisis in Schools"
CNN
7.0
TruthLens AI Summary
The Starms Discovery Learning Center in Milwaukee recently transformed from a cheerful library for children into a platform for sharing troubling stories from families facing a lead crisis in their schools. During a meeting with Senator Tammy Baldwin, parents recounted the anxiety and stress stemming from the presence of lead in their homes and schools. This crisis was prompted by the discovery that lead poisoning had affected a child due to peeling paint in one of the city's aging school buildings, leading to the closure of six schools and the displacement of about 1,800 students. With most Milwaukee Public Schools built before 1978, when lead paint was still legal, the problem is extensive. The school district has initiated a plan to inspect all its 144 buildings by September 1, but many families are left feeling anxious and unsafe, especially with reports of elevated lead levels in some students' blood linked to school environments.
Compounding the issue, the Trump administration's denial of federal aid has left families feeling abandoned. Baldwin criticized the administration's lack of support, noting the recent layoffs of lead experts at the CDC, which has hindered efforts to address the crisis. Families expressed outrage and desperation for federal assistance, highlighting that they need immediate action to protect their children. Baldwin has invited Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to visit Milwaukee and witness the situation firsthand, urging accountability from the federal government. Parents voiced their frustrations about the lack of timely communication and support, as well as the disruptions to their children's education. Many are worried about the long-term effects of lead exposure and the psychological impact on their children, who are already feeling anxious about returning to school. Baldwin and local health officials are advocating for the reinstatement of the CDC's lead program to ensure the safety and well-being of Milwaukee's children.
TruthLens AI Analysis
The article highlights the serious lead crisis affecting schools in Milwaukee, focusing on the response of local parents and officials to the federal government's denial of aid. The narrative paints a distressing picture of families grappling with the dangers of lead exposure, emphasizing the psychological toll on children and their education. It serves as a rallying cry for community action and government accountability.
Community Sentiment and Reaction
The article captures the frustration and desperation of parents who are directly impacted by the lead crisis. By showcasing personal stories of affected families, the article fosters a sense of urgency and community solidarity. Parents are depicted not only as victims but as advocates demanding that the government take responsibility for the health and safety of their children. This emotional appeal aims to galvanize public support and possibly influence political action.
Government Accountability
The narrative emphasizes the perceived failure of the Trump administration to provide necessary federal aid. By spotlighting Senator Tammy Baldwin's involvement, the article suggests that local leaders are stepping up where federal authorities have fallen short. This framing criticizes the federal government's inaction and could lead to increased pressure on political figures to address public health issues more effectively.
Hidden Agendas or Oversights
While the article focuses on the immediate crisis, it does not delve deeply into the systemic issues that allowed the problem to escalate, such as historical neglect of infrastructure in urban schools or broader socioeconomic factors. The emphasis on personal stories may serve to distract from larger systemic failures that require comprehensive solutions.
Manipulative Elements
The article employs emotionally charged language to elicit sympathy and urgency, which can be seen as a form of manipulation. By personalizing the crisis through individual stories, the article may oversimplify complex issues, leading readers to focus primarily on the emotional impact rather than potential solutions or underlying causes.
Trustworthiness and Reliability
The information presented appears credible, drawing on firsthand accounts and expert opinions. However, the narrative's emotional framing could lead some readers to question its objectivity. The article seems to prioritize advocacy over detached reporting, which can compromise the perception of neutrality.
Societal Impact
The article could potentially influence public opinion and political discourse around education funding and public health. It raises awareness of a critical issue that may lead to increased advocacy for policy changes or funding allocations to address lead contamination in schools. The implications could extend to local elections and community organizing efforts focused on educational reform.
Target Audience
The piece is likely aimed at parents, educators, and community activists who are concerned about public health and education. It seeks to mobilize those who may feel powerless in the face of government inaction and encourage them to advocate for change.
Economic Considerations
While the article does not explicitly discuss economic implications, the lead crisis could have long-term effects on property values and local economies. Schools are critical to community stability, and ongoing health issues may deter families from moving to the area, impacting local markets.
Global Context
While the lead crisis is primarily a local issue, it resonates with broader global concerns regarding public health and environmental safety. Issues of lead exposure are not unique to Milwaukee, and the article could be seen as part of a larger narrative on environmental justice and governmental responsibility.
AI Involvement
There is no clear evidence that AI was used in crafting this article, but a model might have been employed in analyzing public sentiment or in data collection. If AI were involved, it could have influenced the article's tone or focus, steering the narrative towards more emotionally resonant stories.
In conclusion, this article serves to illuminate a critical public health crisis while also advocating for community action and government accountability. Its emotional intensity and focus on individual stories create a compelling narrative, though it risks obscuring the broader systemic issues at play. The reliability of the article is generally strong, but its advocacy-driven approach may raise questions about objectivity.