Forever Chemicals. Forever Corporate Rule
On July 1, the Trump administration abandoned a proposed scientific risk assessment that could have led to stronger protections against spreading PFAS-contaminated sewage sludge on American farmland—even though these “forever chemicals” have poisoned water, contaminated food, killed livestock and been linked to cancer, and have been shown to damage DNA.
Follow the money.
During just the first six months of 2025, 17 corporations and industry groups connected to PFAS spent as much as $60 million lobbying the EPA and $12 million lobbying the Trump White House on PFAS-related issues. These interests included Dow, 3M, DuPont, Chemours, the American Chemistry Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Now protections for farmers, families and our drinking water are being discarded.
This is what corporate rule looks like: corporations manufacture toxic chemicals, spend millions influencing our government and leave ordinary people to carry the medical, emotional and financial consequences.
For my family, those consequences are deeply personal—and they are one reason I choose to work for Move to Amend. Overturning Citizens United alone is not enough. We must dismantle the entire constitutional framework that allows corporate power and concentrated wealth to override human rights, public health and our environment.
My six-year-old nephew, Michael—my little best friend—was born with an extremely rare extra copy of chromosome 22. He has severe speech difficulties and faces an uncertain future.
Michael must undergo heart surgery soon. But first, every one of his teeth must be removed because they developed without enamel and cannot be allowed to become infected before his operation.
I never thought to have Michael tested for PFAS.
Then a guest, Pat Elder, on Move to Amend’s Ecology Network Warrior Spotlight gave a presentation about these toxic chemicals—where they are found, how they accumulate in our bodies and the dangers associated with exposure.
Michael lives in Pensacola, Florida, an area with extensive PFAS contamination. After hearing that presentation, I knew we needed to have him tested.
The results showed high levels of PFAS in his system.
We do not know when Michael was first exposed or whether PFAS contributed to his condition. But PFAS can cross the placenta and expose babies in utero. Knowing that Michael now has high PFAS levels—and was born with an extraordinarily rare chromosomal abnormality—raises questions our family cannot ignore.
Is it merely a coincidence that a child born with chromosomal abnormality also has high levels of PFAS in his body—and lives in a heavily contaminated community?
How many families are living with PFAS in their bodies and do not even know it?
How many children must become sick before our government puts human life ahead of corporate profit?
Had I not heard that Ecology Network presentation, our family still would not know that Michael was carrying these chemicals. Families should not have to learn from activists that their children may have been exposed to toxins that corporations released while corporations' profit, politicians rake in campaign cash, and the government entrusted to protect us looks the other way.
This is why passing the We the People Amendment, H.J.Res. 54, is so urgent.
The amendment would do more than allow us to regulate money in elections. It would establish that constitutional rights belong exclusively to human beings—not corporations or other artificial entities. Corporations would no longer be able to use rights intended for people to challenge democratically enacted protections for our health, workers, communities and environment.
It would also affirm the authority of federal, state and local governments to regulate, limit or prohibit political contributions and expenditures. Money would no longer be treated as constitutionally protected speech, and corporations and billionaires could no longer claim an unlimited constitutional right to spend their wealth dominating our elections.
The amendment would not eliminate corporations or prevent them from conducting lawful business. It would make them subject to laws created by the people instead of allowing them to stand alongside human beings as constitutional rights-holders
We can continue fighting one poisoned farm, one contaminated community and one sick child at a time—or we can confront the system that allows corporate money to overpower human life.
Michael did not choose to have forever chemicals inside his body. None of us did.
The chemicals may be forever. Corporate rule doesn’t have to be.
Tell Congress to pass the We the People Amendment.
