Murky liquid flowing from the faucet of a residential home in Mississippi underscored the serious water crisis plaguing the state. (Photo via twitter)
Jackson, May 23 (RHC)-- Anger is boiling over in the U.S. state of Mississippi amid deteriorating drinking water crisis due to poor infrastructure, with locals saying the US government spends billions of dollars on wars and weapons while ignoring its own citizens. Hundreds of thousands of residents have been left with muddy water running from taps, leaving citizens with no choice other than resorting to bottled water.
According to human rights groups, African Americans are expected to be hardest hit by the current crisis, as these populations live in low income areas plagued with poor water infrastructure and insufficient funding.
Because of a failure to improve its aging infrastructure, residents in the majority black city have lived for years with service disruptions and periodic boil water warnings, as well as issues related to contaminants such as lead and E. coli bacteria. According to reports, the ongoing crisis is the the result of under-investment in water infrastructure in the past decade.
In 2021, Congress passed the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, sending about $4.46 billion to Mississippi over the next five years with the White House releasing a preliminary breakdown of where and how the money will flow to Mississippi.
However, the project has continued at a slow pace whereas the state has not only failed to fund infrastructure assistance, but recently enacted a $524 million income-tax break that has constrained the state budget, including for infrastructure funds.
As Americans are struggling with limited financial resource last month, U.S. President Joe Biden has recently announced a new $375 million package of military aid to Ukraine despite warnings from Russia.
The United States and its Western allies have kept feeding Ukraine with massive amounts of arms since the start of the Ukraine war last year, which according to Russia is the sole reason that the conflict is not coming to an end.
Russia has repeatedly warned the United States against arming Ukraine and fanning the flames of war.
