From Detroit to Bhopal
Floor Speech
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, from Detroit to Bhopal, we have a right to breathe clean air. This week marks 40 years since the Bhopal chemicals disaster in India, and the survivors are still sick and waiting for justice.
Union Carbide, driven by corporate greed, caused one of the worst chemical disasters in history, poisoning the residents and communities.
I was honored to meet some of the survivors and proud to join them in their fight for justice. I joined Senator Merkley and Representative Jayapal to introduce a resolution reaffirming the need for stronger laws to prevent these tragedies and keep communities safe.
Many of our communities in Michigan's 12th District live in shadows of corporate polluters, so this fight is personal to me. We are tired of greedy corporations poisoning our communities and getting away with it.
In the Bhopal chemical disaster, around 20,000 people were killed when poison gas was released into the air. Nearly half a million people have suffered illnesses and premature death after the initial incident.
Of course, the U.S. refused to extradite the CEO of Union Carbide, the company that owned and ran the Bhopal facility, to face criminal charges.
We need and deserve a better world, not a world where the color of your skin, your income, or your neighborhood where you were born puts you at a higher risk of being exposed to pollution that causes disease and death.
We see it in places like Detroit and Dearborn's Southend communities where there are higher rates of cancer and asthma. We cannot tolerate a world where corporations take all of the profit and none of the liability.
Dow Chemical knowingly took responsibility for this disaster when it bought the company. Yet, they still refused to compensate the survivors. Dow was headquartered in Michigan, and if they think their actions are just going to be lost in history, well, I am here to say they have got another thing coming. Dow must pay what is owed to the people of Bhopal.
Michigan Education Compliance for Students with Disabilities
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, this is a plea on behalf 182,000 families who will have students with disabilities in Michigan. Year after year, we continue to fall short on the promise to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which many call IDEA.
Failing to help our students to obtain the services they need to learn is, again, years that we cannot get back for our children. With this shortfall, we continue to undermine our students with disabilities.
The education gap is continuing to widen. There is currently a 22 percent drop-out rate for students with disabilities in Michigan, where, for nondisabled students it is only 8 percent.
Schools use assessments to measure student proficiency and achievement, and under the IDEA, students with disabilities are expected to participate in State assessments.
However, every year between 2017 and 2022, the State of Michigan has requested the Department of Education to approve a waiver to increase the 1 percent gap required by the Federal Government for the number of students with disabilities who can take Michigan's alternative assessment. It is because we are at double.
We often don't do enough to support our kids who need to go through this, nor do we advise our parents properly. Budget cuts often shortchange individualized learning, plans that are crucial for students with disabilities.
However, according to the Autism Alliance of Michigan, the dropout rate for students with disabilities is double the amount. Disparities are even worse for students of color with disabilities.
We need to fully fund IDEA, and we know that will help Michigan serve our students. It will help reduce the amount of inappropriate assessments and improve access to information and support for our school districts.
It is disheartening to see the State of Michigan's Department of Education now before an administrative hearing judge because they are not in compliance with the Federal laws. This is the first time in 27 years that our U.S. Department of Education had to drag a State through an administrative hearing process. It is shameful that we are at this point after over a year of negotiations.
We have to do better. These are our children, and again, we cannot get these years back for them. We have to do right. Trump Tariffs Would Be Devastating
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Ms. TLAIB. Mr. Speaker, Detroit is not only the most beautiful, Blackest city in the country, but it also houses the most important trade corridor in the Nation. Mr. Speaker, 27 percent of trade comes through our amazing city.
Tariffs are one tool, but they have costs and benefits that must be considered regarding trade. Used strategically, we know they can help new industries, support resilient supply chains, and even promote high- road labor as well as environmental practices.
However, the cost of Trump's tariffs proposal would be devastating for our families--take our auto industry, for instance. The U.S. relies on $97 billion worth of auto parts and millions of finished vehicles from Canada and Mexico, but Trump's tariffs, as it is now, would raise the price of new cars by $3,000. Our families cannot afford that cost.
What about our grocery costs? More than half of our fruits and vegetables come from Canada and Mexico. My residents are already struggling to cover the rising prices of groceries. Again, we cannot toy with our residents' ability to put food on the table or provide for their families.
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