For decades, Chicago has turned a blind eye to a silent epidemic that has harmed generation after generation: Lead contamination in drinking water. The science is settled — no level of lead exposure is safe. Lead damages brain development, stunts growth, and causes serious problems with learning, behavior, hearing, and speech. Studies consistently link lead exposure with lower IQ scores, reduced attention spans, and diminished school performance.
A 2024 analysis by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health estimated that 68 percent of Chicago children under age six live in households with tap water containing detectable levels of lead. Their findings, based on 38,000 home water tests conducted between 2016 and 2023, underscore how widespread this crisis truly is.
Researchers have also found compelling connections between lead exposure and violent crime. Economist Rick Nevin’s landmark 2007 study revealed strong correlations between childhood lead exposure and later violent offenses across nine Western countries. A 2012 review in *Environment International* confirmed this trend, showing that declines in airborne lead emissions have consistently aligned with reductions in urban violence. Amherst College economist Jessica Wolpaw Reyes credited the U.S. phaseout of leaded gasoline during the 1990s with reducing violent crime by more than 50 percent.
While we cannot attribute all social ills to one toxin, it would be equally irresponsible to ignore overwhelming evidence that environmental remediation directly improves public safety and community well-being. Clean air and clean water are not abstract “costs” of government — they are the foundation of public health and opportunity.