What the Eyes Don’t See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City

Dr. Mona, understanding that they would need a coalition of support to force the local, county, and state governments to acknowledge Flint had a lead problem, convinced Elin to connect with Edwards and his team. Similar to Dr. Mona, Edwards was also trying to access the blood-lead data from Detroit, Flint, and Genesee County. They agreed to lunch when Edwards was back in town. Dr. Mona needed to meet Edwards “to figure out whether he was trustworthy and legit” (164). Mona also shared the blood-level data from Hurley with Elin. They had proof that “Flint kids are being poisoned” (168). Elin cautioned against Mona sharing the results with Edwards and believed that Jordan from Representative Kildee’s office should be the first to see the results.

Dr. Mona began to add other individuals to the coalition, including Melany Gavulic and Dr. Lawrence Reynolds. Melany was Hurley’s CEO and Dr. Mona’s boss. She was also a Flint native. Dr. Lawrence Reynolds was a pediatrician, friend, and CEO of Mott Children’s Health Center, a nearby facility that also treated Flint kids. Dr. Reynolds advocated for underserved children and reducing racial disparities, and he had served on a childhood lead-poisoning committee.