 |
| |
|
Empowered, Invested & Committed to Reproductive Justice
|
|
|
SisterReach and Memphis Artists Unite for Flint Crisis
(MEMPHIS, TN) APRIL 1, 2016 - Today, SisterReach and some of Memphis' most talented artists come together to bring awareness and raise water for residents in Flint, MI, in lieu of the ongoing lead poisoning crisis.
"Memphis and Flint are identical not only in demography, but have many of the same economic, health and public policy disparities we face here in Memphis," says Cherisse Scott, Founder & CEO of SisterReach, a Memphis based reproductive justice organization, and organizer of the event.
"Due to the extensive lead poisoning, we are now seeing similar infant and maternal health disparities comparable to what we have in Memphis including low birth weight pregnancies, miscarriages, and preterm births. Jackson, MS residents are now facing a similar reality and pregnant women are some of the most vulnerable exposed to their growing lead water crisis. For SisterReach, the common denominators are poverty and a disinvestment in the reproductive health, wellness and safety of Black and other poor people's lives," says Scott.
"When we look at who overwhelmingly represents our most disadvantaged population nationwide, we are looking at poor women and their babies. In Flint, more than half of its current population is Black and more than half is female[1]. Poor mothers and their children are those most likely to live in areas where government officials are least likely to care about the environmental conditions. Areas much like our own North Memphis and South Memphis with plants and warehouses, past and present, leaving behind numerous environmental toxins leaching into the ground and polluting the air of our most vulnerable residents. The high levels of lead being leached for years into the local water supply in Flint, Michigan has been exacerbated by the fact that its residents are predominantly the working poor[2]," says Terri Lee-Johnson, Founder of Zoleka Birth Services and volunteer Sexual & Maternal Health Educator at SisterReach.
The event, Soulful Justice, an arts and culture initiative of SisterReach's Arts-In-RJ program, aims to make connections to human rights injustices and uses performance as a tool to convey education and raise awareness to various issues hindering the reproductive justice of all persons. Artists performing tonight include Tonya Dyson, Tyke T, Tameka 'Big Baby' Goodman, Carmen Hicks, Artistik Approach, and Will Graves. The fundraiser will be held at 1524Events, located at 1524 Madison Ave., Memphis, TN 38104. Doors open at 6:30pm and the show will run from 7:30pm - 10pm. Admission is water a monetary donation.
There will also be community vendors including The FightFor15 (Memphis) Campaign and Zoleka Birth Services offering community information and opportunities for engagement.
Cherisse Scott is available for interviews upon request at 901.310.5488 or [email protected]
SisterReach is a 501c3 grassroots organization which educates and advocates for women and girls of color, poor women and rural women through the human rights framework of Reproductive Justice. SisterReach works to empower women to be advocates for themselves, lead healthy lives, have healthy families and in safe and sustainable communities. www.sisterreach.org
-----------------------
[1] Quick Facts, Flint City, Michigan. http://www.census.gov/quickfacts/table/PST045215/2629000
[2] Davis, Benjamin A. "Flint and Katrina: Poor People, Poor Treatment and Water." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 17 Jan. 2016. Web. 26 Mar. 2016.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
