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This article was signed by several parents whose names are listed below.
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We are parents of young children who attend Círculo de Amigos Child Care Center (CACCC) in the East Phillips neighborhood of Minneapolis. We chose Círculo for its unique, nature-based, child-development-focused Spanish immersion program. The warmth and care our children receive there makes CACCC feel like an extension of our families. So when we noticed the acrid odor of toxic fumes coming from Smith Foundry across the street, we were deeply concerned.
For generations, parents like us have lost sleep worrying about the air their children breathe, the toxins they might be exposed to and the long-term health consequences of living near Smith Foundry. We know that air pollution is harmful to human health, especially to the developing brains and lungs of young children. This would be bad enough, but many of our children already have health challenges. One of the undersigned parents has twins born 14 weeks prematurely, whose lungs are particularly vulnerable, while others, like many in East Phillips, have asthma linked to air pollution.
Some families, understandably, would have changed day cares if they were able. Instead, we chose to stay and defend our community. Our children were thriving in a loving and nurturing environment. So, like those before us, we fought relentlessly for our children’s right to clean air. Alongside CACCC staff and many others, we organized protests, attended community meetings and advocated to our elected officials.
Our fight was not easy. Zynik Capital, the Canadian private equity firm that has owned Smith since 2022, claimed it was “committed to being a good neighbor,” despite a surprise EPA inspection in May 2023 revealing multiple Clean Air Act violations. These violations included emitting nearly twice the allowed air pollution, having a malfunctioning baghouse resulting in unfiltered emissions and not notifying the state about equipment failures. Zynik also proclaimed it “did not use lead” at Smith Foundry, yet air monitors consistently showed lead emissions from the site. Furthermore, the leaders of Zynik noted they “wish[ed] there was more we could do” to support their workers, even though OSHA found “serious” violations of Zynik exposing its workers to toxic levels of chemicals and not providing them with proper training or protective equipment as recently as March 2024.
