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The House of Representatives of United Teachers Los Angeles, the union representing 48,000 teachers and health and human service professionals in the second largest school district in the country, passed the following resolution (below and attached at its meeting on October 29).
In support of Victims of Agent Orange
Moved, that United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) calls on the U.S. Congress to appropriate and deliver to Vietnam sufficient funds to provide health care, education, vocational education, chronic care, home care and medical equipment, including support for family members who are caregivers for Agent Orange victims; to clean up the "hot spots" where dioxin remains in the environment; and to provide other services that may be needed.
AND further moved, that we call on the U.S. Congress to provide for health care and related services for the children and grandchildren of American veterans exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam and provide assistance to Vietnamese Americans affected by Agent Orange;
AND further moved, that UTLA calls upon Dow Chemical and Monsanto to assume their responsibility by allocating funds to make a significant contribution to meet the needs of victims of Agent Orange in Vietnam;
AND finally moved that UTLA support The Vietnam Agent Orange Relief & Responsibility Campaignwith a donation of $500 and to work to gain U.S. government and corporate assistance for the victims of Agent Orange and to build solidarity with the Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/dioxin, by carrying this resolution to its affiliate organizations.
Rationale:
The U.S. government, in violation of international law, waged massive chemical warfare in Vietnam, including the use of Agent Orange and other herbicides containing dioxin, the most toxic chemical known in science. The U.S. government, in violation of international law, waged massive chemical warfare in Vietnam, including the use of Agent Orange and other herbicides containing dioxin, the most toxic chemical known in science. Chemical companies, including Dow Chemical and Monsanto, knowingly produced Agent Orange with the toxic by-product dioxin, which could have been eliminated, but would have necessitated an additional manufacturing process.
More than three million people have been sickened, disabled or died from the effects of Agent Orange/dioxin in Vietnam from various forms of cancers, reproductive illnesses, immune deficiency, endocrine deficiencies, nervous system damage, physical and developmental disabilities and emotional problems. More than three million people have been sickened, disabled or died from the effects of Agent Orange/dioxin in Vietnam from various forms of cancers, reproductive illnesses, immune deficiency, endocrine deficiencies, nervous system damage, physical and developmental disabilities and emotional problems.
Agent Orange continues to poison the people and environment of Vietnam through residues of dioxin that remain in the land, water and food in several"hot spots" located around the areas of former US military bases. Several generations of Vietnamese children are now suffering from disabilities due to their parents' exposure to Agent Orange from living near "hot spots;" Agent Orange continues to poison the people and environment of Vietnam through residues of dioxin that remain in the land, water and food in several "hot spots" located around the areas of former US military bases. Several generations of Vietnamese children are now suffering from disabilities due to their parents' exposure to Agent Orange from living near "hot spots;"
The U.S. government has refused to recognize its responsibility and its commitment made in the Paris Peace Accords to heal the wounds of war and has failed to provide assistance for the serious health, economic and environmental devastation caused by Agent Orange that continues through to the present day. Dow Chemical and Monsanto and the other chemical manufacturers have refused to recognize that Agent Orange is deleterious to human health and have refused to recognize their responsibility to compensate their victims in Vietnam. The U.S. government has refused to recognize its responsibility and its commitment made in the Paris Peace Accords to heal the wounds of war and has failed to provide assistance for the serious health, economic and environmental devastation caused by Agent Orange that continues through to the present day. Dow Chemical and Monsanto and the other chemical manufacturers have refused to recognize that Agent Orange is deleterious to human health and have refused to recognize their responsibility to compensate their victims in Vietnam.
The Vietnam Agent Orange Relief & Responsibility Campaign, a project of Veterans For Peace, is leading a national campaign to hold the U.S. government and chemical companies accountable to the victims of Agent Orange in Vietnam as well as to their U.S. veteran and Vietnamese American victims.
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