Coinciding with the tenth anniversary of the Flint water crisis, Chariton uncovers new evidence that sheds light on the miscarriage of justice and corruption that led to the poisoning of Flint's citizens. Most people perceive the Flint water crisis as a tragic failure, long in the rearview mirror, born from terrible government decisions to cut corners and save money. However, an active cover up is stillvictimizing Flint residents nearly a decade later. From crooked Wall Street financial schemes to illegal political payoffs, destruction of evidence, witness tampering, perjury, and threatened whistleblowers, We the Poisoned: Exposing the Flint Water Crisis Cover Up and the Poisoning of 100,000 Americans will, for the first time, reveal the real story behind the government's full involvement in the Flint water crisis. As the coverup continues today, innocent residents have been arrested, surveilled, threatened, and made to feel like they are crazy. With more immune-damaged residents slowly dying every year, Flint's lead levels again on the rise, and a deadly pandemic thrown on top of it, it is time for the true story of the Flint water cover up to be told. Based on eight years of reporting, thousands of confidential documents from the criminal investigation, and the former Governor of Michigan's own words under oath, Jordan Chariton takes readers on the road to crisis before the Flint River switch--when government officials blew through blinking red stop signs and orchestrated a financial scheme that allowed a nearly bankrupt Flint to borrow $100 million dollars for a new water system. As brown, smelly water flowed to the homes of Flint and residents grew sick, politicians intentionally and knowingly allowed Americans to drink poison for years as they prioritized their own political ambitions and survival. Readers will be shocked by the stunning scope of injustice unveiled. We the Poisoned is a cautionary tale about "take charge" leaders who come to power with no real understanding of the workings of government and a willingness to make moral compromises to pursue their own path to power. Perhaps even more important, given the growing issue of water and environmental contamination surging across the US, Chariton provides information that could help prevent this tragedy from happening yet again in any other community.
Jordan Chariton is an independent investigative reporter known for reporting on-the-ground across America on significant stories that often fall through the cracks. Chariton has made 20 reporting trips to Flint since 2016 investigating the water crisis and cover up; he also covered the indigenous-led protests at Standing Rock in North Dakota against the Dakota Access Pipeline, the United Auto Workers strike across the Midwest, the 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, and has reported across the US on union drives, poverty, homelessness, and protest movements. He is the CEO and lead reporter for Status Coup News, an independent news outlet. His work has been featured in The Guardian, VICE News, The Intercept, CNBC, The Hill, and more. He lives with his wife and daughter in the New York area.
