This morning, Bill Schuette tried to rewrite history. In a social media graphic posted to his Facebook and Twitter accounts, Schuette said, “Had government leaders listened sooner to real people, we could have slowed or stopped crises like Flint…As governor, I will meet and hear from real people to make sure this doesn’t happen.”
There’s only one really, really big problem: Flint did reach out to Bill Schuette asking for help — and he ignored them.
After Schuette’s message went up online, Flint water activists Nayyirah Shariff and Melissa Mays tore into Schuette’s hypocrisy.
Flint Rising also put out a statement, where Shariff said, “If Schuette wants to blame ‘government leaders’ for being slow to respond to the crisis, he needs to count himself among the guiltiest.”
Below is Schuette’s message, followed by Flint activists’ response:
Had government leaders listened sooner to real people, we could have slowed or stopped crises like Flint or MSU. As governor, I will meet and hear from real people to make sure this doesn’t happen. #ethics https://t.co/kO0vzAwsSs pic.twitter.com/q3hspybuz6
— Bill Schuette (@SchuetteOnDuty) February 8, 2018
#Flint residents contacted your office about our poisoned water and you did nothing #flintwatercrisis
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
Also you continue defend what undergirded the Flint Water Crisis, the anti-democratic Emergency Manager Law, in court. If Flint didn’t have their democracy stolen, we wouldn’t be in this situation. #FlintWaterCrisis
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
Your office received at least 15 complaints about Flint’s water quality #FlintWaterCrisis https://t.co/3UvCcUiOf5
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
In September 2015, @SheldonNeeley asked your office to investigate the #FlintWaterCrisis
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
In December 2015 your office responded, “As the Attorney General explained, given the multiple reviews by federal and state agencies, and the pending and potential federal court actions, we do not believe it necessary to conduct an additional investigation”
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
Yet 3 weeks later, your office announced an investigation #FlintWaterCrisis https://t.co/gUkf1VWVIh
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
You flipped flopped on the Flint water crisis. It was only after the national media wouldn’t go away that you launched your investigation. #FlintWaterCrisis
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
Flint residents’ trauma isn’t a talking point or a launching pad for your political campaign. Stop exploiting us for your political career #FlintWaterCrisis
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018
LISTEN TO US IN FLINT:
1. Settle our lawsuits so we can start to RECOVER
2. ABOLISH THE EMERGENCY MANAGER LAW
3. CHARGE THE GOVERNOR— Melissa Mays (@FlintGate) February 8, 2018
If you listened to us in Flint, you would NOT be defending the Governor & those who poisoned US in Flint. YOU ARE DENYING US JUSTICE IN FLINT
— Melissa Mays (@FlintGate) February 8, 2018
@SchuetteOnDuty behaves as if the internet doesn’t exist. Archived articles hold the history of your flip flopping
— nayyirah shariff (@nayyirahshariff) February 8, 2018