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20 Hum. Rts. 20 (1993)
Get the Lead Out - Brother and Sister Team up to Force Removal of Poisonous Paint

handle is hein.journals/huri20 and id is 118 raw text is: GET THE LEAD Brother and sister team up to force removal of poisonous paint By Anne O'Reilly Michael Monheit and Maryann Monheit Bell are brother and sister, partner and associate in the same law firm, and co- counsel in a class action lawsuit that could alter the future for thousands of America's poorest children. Lawyers with the Law Offices of Her- bert Monheit in Philadelphia, Monheit, 30, and Bell, 28, are spearheading a class action lawsuit against the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA), charging that poor families with young children were knowingly allowed to re- side in public housing contaminated with lead paint. Working with counsel from the New York law firm of Goodkind Labaton Rudoff & Sucharow, the two young lawyers are seeking injunctive relief for the thousands of families now living in Philadelphia's lead paint-contaminated buildings. The suit would force the PHA to provide medical screening, home testing, education, a lead-abatement program, and lead-free housing to its most needy citizens at a possible cost of tens of millions of dollars. Should the lawsuit succeed, it could set a precedent that would impel cities across the nation to act on the problem of lead-based paint in publicly subsi- dized housing. Lodged in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in July 1991, Hurt et al. v. Philadelphia Housing Authority alleges that the PHA has known since 1978 of the dangers its housing poses, especially to young chil- dren. While the class action suit seeks im- mediate remedy for all tenants of Philadelphia's public housing, Monheit and Bell will eventually file a separate action in state court seeking damages for the children that include the cost of medical care, special education, and compensation for the loss of potential earnings. Veronica Cooper, mother of one of three plaintiff families in the case, has tvo young children whose blood show elevated levels of lead that can be traced to the paint in the PHA apart- ment in which they live. Though her youngsters, as of yet, show none of the telltale signs of lead poisoning, Cooper wants a solution now. What I want is for them to clear the lead out of here, she says. No one should have to live this way.' Some 57 million U.S. homes built be- fore 1980 contain lead-based paint, ac- cording to a report by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Of most con- cern, say the authors of the report, Pre- venting Lead Poisoning in Young Chil- dren, are the 14 million homes that contain lead paint in a deteriorating condition. About four million of those homes have young children who are at special risk because lead affects child development and can cause mental re- tardation, learning disabilities, hyperac- tivity, attention deficit disorder, convu- sions, lack of coordination, kidney damage, and even death. At a relatively low level you have ef- fects on development, including prob- lems with hearing, growth problems, and-the best documented effect-the effect it has on IQ, says Carol Pertow- ski, medical epidemiologist for the lead poisoning branch of the CDC. Lead-based paint is particularly dan- gerous to children when it is in a deteri- orating condition because it is at this point that youngsters often ingest loose paint chips and breathe in paint-conta- minated dust. It was estimated by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1990 that 15 percent-or about 3 mil- lion-children in the United States have lead levels in their blood that exceed 10 micrograms per deciliter, a level that is known to cause detrimental effects in children. According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Philadelphia alone has more than 221,000 children between the ages of six months and five years who have lead levels of 10 or higher. Some experts claim minority commu- nities are often the hardest hit by the lead paint situation; some go so far as to label it environmental racism, Accord- ing to The Crisis, a publication by the National Association for the Advance- ment of Colored People, a 1988 study showed that black children living in urban settings faced about a 50 percent risk of being poisoned by lead. Lead remains in a child's blood- stream for 30 to 60 days until it is ab- sorbed by the bones. When the lead level rises above 45, a process called chelation can be used to remove the lead through drug therapy. Chelation, Human Rights Fall 1993

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