Pearl Jam, Big Sean And Other Celebrities Donate Money To Fight The Flint Water Crisis

On January 5, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency to help rectify the preventable water crisis that is ravaging the city of Flint. On January 16, President Obama declared a federal state of emergency in Flint. Now, Pearl Jam as well as other musicians are stepping up big time to help the citizens of Flint, Michigan.

On Friday, Pearl Jam pledged $300,000 to the United Way of Genesee County to assist the Flint community.

The rock band also launched an online fundraising campaign on CrowdRise to help with the emergency, where they have already raised over $20,000.

The contributions will be used as follows:

Monetary donations will first be used for the purchase of water filters, bottled water, emergency support services and prevention efforts in Flint, Michigan. After the short-term need of Flint residents has been met, any remaining funds will be directed to the Flint Child Health and Development Fund. This fund will provide aid to children and families with interventions that support positive health outcomes.

Earlier this week, Big Sean also launched a CrowdRise campaign to help those suffering in Flint, which has raised nearly $20,000. The rapper also made a personal donation of $10,000 through his charity The Sean Anderson Foundation.

“I am devastated by the water crisis that has put the entire city of Flint in a state of emergency,” Big Sean, who grew up an hour away from Flint in Detroit, said in a statement. “It is my hope that we can help by raising the money needed to ensure that the children who have been hit the hardest receive the care that they need today and well into the future.”

Detroit Lions defensive end Ezekiel Ansah traveled to Flint, where he provided 94,000 bottles of water to help.

“I am thankful to be in a position to do something about this,” Ansah said in a statement. “I can only hope this helps as a more permanent solution is being determined. It speaks volumes that my teammates were happy to jump on board and support as well.”

Cher teamed up with bottled-water company Icelandic Glacial to give 181,440 bottles of water to Flint residents.

“It was nothing—I mean, it wasn’t nothing because it was so fucking hard to get accomplished, but I felt like I needed to do something,” she told Billboard. “It’s such a gigantic problem, and the government is doing the wrong thing.”

Meek Mill donated to the Flint Child and Family Health Development Fund, and he sent 60,000 bottles of JUST Water to the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.

Nearly two years ago, the city of Flint switched from using water piped in from Lake Huron of the Great Lakes to using toxic water from the Flint River because it was cheaper. The city stopped treating its water for lead and pumped up the amount of chlorine to dangerous levels in an effort to kill bacteria. Flint is a poor city, where 41 percent of the 100,000 residents live at or below the poverty line.

Immediately, there were complaints that the water smelled, tasted and looked funny. Not long after, some Flint residents developed health ailments such as rashes and hair loss. Officials responded to the fears by consistently assuring the Flint residents that the water was safe to drink.

Evidence of the problem slowly were revealed out when an Environmental Protection Agency memo leaked. The document stated that independent studies found high levels of contaminants, E. Coli and lead in the water. It also said that research by a pediatrician showed that the percentage of the city’s children with elevated lead levels had doubled since water sources were switched.

Lead is a powerful neurotoxin, and lead poisoning can produce lifelong health effects. Lead poisoning can lead to stunted mental development, brain damage, learning disabilities, behavioral issues and physical growth, which are all irreversible.

The water was so contaminated that the local General Motors engine plant stopped using Flint’s water in October 2014 because they worried the high levels of chloride would corrode metal parts.

At his State of the State address on Tuesday, Michigan’s governor said, “To you, the people of Flint, I say tonight as I have before, I am sorry and I will fix it.”

Approximately $5 million in federal aid has been directed to assist the citizens of Flint.

If you’d like to help the people of Flint, Michigan you can donate to the Crowd Rise campaigns or to The Salvation Army of Genesee County, The United Way of Genesee County and The Community Foundation of Greater Flint.