Anyone who is familiar with MCS America knows the good work of this organization and Lourdes Salvador. This is always the first organization and website I direct people to when I am asked questions about MCS. I just really can't say enough to express my appreciation and admiration for MCS America. All of us with MCS have experienced negative reactions from people who somehow feel threatened by us and our disability. Yet, I was dismayed to receive the following statement in my email this morning. For now, I am just putting it on here so people know what is happening. Within the next couple of days I will post some ideas for what we can do to positively react to this.
A personal attack was recently launched against me and MCS America, in which many inaccuracies were published on Facebook for the sole purpose of stirring up controversy and tarnishing my reputation. This “controversy” is nothing more than the continuance of a longstanding, unsubstantiated smear campaign based on falsehoods and innuendo about me and MCS America.
The person or persons who launched this attack contacted the National Health Information Center (NHIC) to demand that the annual MCS Awareness and Education Month be removed from the National Health Observance Calendar due to MCS America, which was the contact organization for the event, being “a fake organization.” NHIC complied with the demand. The listing allowed schools, hospitals, employers, and other members of the public seeking information for awareness events on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity/Environmental Illness to contact MCS America for brochures, studies, posters, and other informational materials. The loss of this listing is a tragedy for our entire MCS/EI community.
The MCS/EI community is defined by empathy, support, sharing, and working together to find healing and to stop pervasive chemical pollution. We are not about personally attacking others within our community even if we disagree on an issue. That type of activity does not foster our cause, but rather promotes division and strife. Many members of our community work tirelessly to have MCS/EI officially recognized and to educate the public-at-large. The listing in the national calendar was another important step toward educating the public about MCS/EI and bringing us closer to having our illness fully recognized. It is astonishing that anyone would actively pursue the removal of MCS information in a national publication.
MCS America stands behind its mission to gain medical, legal, and social recognition of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity as a disorder of organic biological origin induced by toxic environmental insults; to provide support and referral services to individuals with MCS, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and other environmental illnesses; and to ensure that environmental toxicants are identified, reduced, regulated, and enforced through lobbying for effective legislation. MCS America will continue to work toward these goals through whatever means available.
Informational materials about MCS Awareness and Education Month, which is scheduled for May 2010, are available through our website at http://www.mcs-america.org.
Thank you for your support!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment