Letters to the editor

Congress must pass the Ensuring Justice for Camp Lejeune Victims Act

To the editor:

In 1972, after my former husband reenlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, we moved to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, where my two sons were born. While I was pregnant and as we raised our boys, we drank, bathed in, and prepared food in the water supplied to our home on base, completely unaware that it was poisoning us all.

My oldest son was born with liver issues and a club foot, which required surgery at 8 years old. Developmental delays and cognitive issues have plagued him throughout his whole life, while doctors struggled to come up with a clear diagnosis. My second son, who seemed healthy at birth, has since had a stroke, been diagnosed with a brain deformity, and developed kidney issues. He struggled with learning all through his school years. Both are on disability.

In the early 1980s, I was diagnosed with systemic sclerosis, and my own health issues began piling up. I’ve had a hysterectomy after a scan showed numerous tumors; I suffer from kidney disease and hypertension; I’m on oxygen and struggle to walk any sort of distance. My former husband died of Parkinson’s disease last year.

The U.S. government knew that the water we used every day at Camp Lejeune was toxic, but they never told us. Now, veterans, spouses, and our children are paying the price.

This isn’t the life I wanted for myself or my two sons, who are being punished for simply being born and raised at Camp Lejeune. The time for justice for my family and so many like us is well overdue. The government needs to be held accountable.

This fall, Congress must pass the Ensuring Justice for Camp Lejeune Victims Act. The bill would give us that opportunity to have our stories heard by a jury and give us a fair shot at the compensation we deserve. It would finally give the victims of Camp Lejeune's toxic water the recognition we deserve and prove that this country cares about the men and women who put their lives on the line to protect it and the families that stood by them.

I hope that our entire Alaska Congressional delegation will support this bill and push for its quick passage. My sons and I are counting on you.

Janice Roberts,

Wasilla