29 Days of Black History, Day 18

Sheila Holt-Orsted is a former aerobics instructor and fitness trainer. She was also named Miss Tennessee Bodybuilding Heavyweight and Mixed Pairs Champion in 1991. Unfortunately, she was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer in 2003 after a manufacturing company dumped deadly chemicals near her family's farm...chemicals that eventually contaminated her family's water supply.

After Holt-Orsted, her father, aunt, and two cousins were all diagnosed with cancer, she did some investigating and discovered that the company had sent letters to white families in the area warning them about the potentially hazardous water.

Holt-Orsted filed a lawsuit against the company, which eventually went bankrupt. After hearing about Holt-Orsted's story, Hillary Clinton invited her to speak at the United States' first environmental justice meeting. Today, she travels to different college campuses speaking about environmental racism. Hit the read more link to watch a video about her story.


Shout out to my big sister for the heads up about this story!