Today I am a proud member of the team at A Case for Women (ACFW), a women-owned organization that was founded in 2015 with a mission to empower women who have been harmed by corporate wrongdoing, be it by a defective birth control device, a pharmaceutical, or a harmful product (to name a few), find their inner power and fight back through civil legal action. Such an honorable mission, don’t you think?
Before my employment with ACFW, I worked at a mesothelioma law firm in Dallas, Texas, Baron & Budd P.C., for almost nine years. The realization that I would be working at a TOXIC TORT law firm and what that actually meant didn’t hit me the day I was hired. I looked up the word “toxic” in the Merriam-Wester dictionary and learned that “toxic” meant: “containing or being poisonous material especially when capable of causing death or serious debilitation.” This definition opened my eyes that this plaintiff law firm meant business.
I was working for this leading mesothelioma law firm, with deep roots in victim advocacy, that represented thousands of workers and their family members who had been exposed to asbestos while working as shipyard workers, construction workers, pipe fitters, insulators, mechanics, veterans and others, and then contracted malignant mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, and/or other insidious diseases by simply working and being exposed to asbestos. It was surprising to me that asbestos is made up of microscopic mineral fibers that are airborne and can be inhaled into the respiratory system or ingested and migrate to the digestive system. As I perused files and prepared lawsuits I realized that these clients were real people who often died before their cases were resolved. It was heart-wrenching to me that a client’s deposition had to be taken in order to secure the facts because he might be too sick to attend a trial or even be deceased.
These people had trusted their employers and been assured that the materials they worked with were not dangerous. They were kept in the dark and lied to, as was the public, that working with asbestos was safe. Years before, asbestos companies actually covered up the negative information about asbestos. For me, when I learned that workers were not made aware of the dangers of asbestos, and factoring in the “people” connection, people being real human beings who were hurt by a toxic substance, I became a believer in helping right the wrongs done to these workers.
I learned that wives and children, even infants, often contracted diseases caused by asbestos because they were exposed to the asbestos dust their husbands and fathers unknowingly brought home on the clothes they wore while working. Women are now being diagnosed with mesothelioma, sometimes as a result of second-hand exposure.
A project that I was involved in that was especially meaningful to me was writing personal notes to grateful widows and clients who had thanked Baron & Budd for helping them (by obtaining much-needed settlements or just for lending a listening ear). Writing hand-written notes is a dying art in this day and age, but, to me and the recipients, it was a wonderful and meaningful experience.
What Most People Get Wrong About Asbestos
Asbestos has been around for a long time. It was first discovered in a Greek quarry around 4,500 years ago. Cloaks, tablecloths, handkerchiefs, and theater curtains were spun into textiles because they were resistant to fire. It was called the “magic mineral.” From the 1800s to the 1900s and during World War II, asbestos was in high demand. By the late 1950s, asbestos was considered a “service to humanity” because of its numerous uses. The late 1970s showed peak production.
Although asbestos has been around a long time, many people have misconceptions about it. One misconception is that only older men or blue-collar workers or those who worked closely with asbestos are affected by the effects of asbestos. Women and children are also affected and could have been exposed secondhand and become ill. Anyone who has been exposed to asbestos directly or secondhand is at risk, regardless of age, gender, or anything else. People also think that there are other causes for mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is only caused by exposure to asbestos.
During the time that I was employed with Baron & Budd, P.C., I was surprised to learn that even famous people had been diagnosed with mesothelioma. The actor Steve McQueen died at age 50 of mesothelioma, having been exposed while working in shipyards and around naval vessels when he was in the U. S. Marines. Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Former U. S. Chief of Naval Operations, was diagnosed with mesothelioma in 1999 and died in 2000. He was exposed during his naval career.
The Persistence of Asbestos
Linda Reinstein, co-founder of Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) said,
“The persistence of asbestos in our homes, schools, workplaces, and even in everyday products like cosmetics and baby powder is not just a regulatory failure, but a glaring example of how corporate interests, armed with money, power, and politics, have systematically prioritized profits over human health.”
The Talcum Powder Connection
It’s a fact that asbestos caused harm to workers and their families who were exposed to the harmful effects of asbestos. But women have suffered, too, because women have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer due to their use of baby powder containing talcum powder which was randomly contaminated with cancer-causing amphibole and chrysolite asbestos (spike-shaped particles that cause cancer). Asbestos and talc were mined in the same areas.
Women religiously and trustingly used talcum powder (most often Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder) for personal hygiene in their intimate areas or genitals for odor purposes. But published studies since 1970 have affirmed that the talcum powder was present in Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder and contaminated. Shockingly, Johnson & Johnson knew about the risk as early as 1957-58 when the link between asbestos particles and ovarian cancer was first reported by a consulting lab.
How many women remember the commercial jingle on TV for Johnson & Johnson’s Shower to Shower Powder? “A Sprinkle a Day Keeps the Odor Away.” This was marketed to women, especially African-American and Hispanic women who were taught to do so by their mothers and grandmothers. These women were concerned about smelling bad, so they used talcum powder for decades thus exposing them to cancer-causing asbestos and developing ovarian cancer.
Receiving an ovarian cancer diagnosis is devastating. Realizing the cancer was caused by the talcum powder you used for years to be fresh and could have been prevented is doubly devastating. The risk was known but Johnson & Johnson kept it quiet for nothing more than profits. Fortunately, Johnson & Johnson has replaced talc with cornstarch in their baby powder products, but still insists the product was always safe.
I only really learned about the connection between asbestos and talc during my employment with a mesothelioma law firm and then with A Case for Women. Whether workers who confronted asbestos years ago and contracted mesothelioma or more recently by women who used talcum powder for freshness, asbestos is deadly. My father died young and was on a ship during World War II. I’ve often wondered: Was he exposed to asbestos? I have a loved one who “sprinkled” talcum powder daily for years, and I worry about her future.
Why All of this Matters to Women
Asbestos didn’t belong in talcum powder that women used on their most intimate parts. Many women may have received an ovarian cancer diagnosis because of asbestos lurking in talcum powder. That’s SO WRONG! But it is amazing what happens when women come together who have been harmed in one way or the other. They realize that the parties responsible for manufacturing the talcum powder that injured so many unsuspecting women need to be held accountable in a court of law. That means filing a lawsuit. Lawsuits bring about trials that expose the wrongdoing and punish the wrongdoers. The bold women filing the lawsuits are vindicated in a positive way (usually monetarily) and others have been protected. Women standing up for themselves in turn encourage other women to stand up, and the result is that women are protected from future suffering!
What Next?
Most women want to make a difference in the lives of others. They do it every day by taking care of their families. But often women neglect themselves while caring for their husbands, children, or parents. Receiving a devastating diagnosis like ovarian cancer can stop them in their tracks. “Who do I call?” “I can’t afford a lawyer!” “I don’t understand how to navigate the court system!” A Case for Women is a safe place to learn about lawsuits and lawyers and about how strong you really are. You will be encouraged and empowered and find out the connection between asbestos and talcum powder. A Case for Women will answer your questions and connect you with an experienced and passionate lawyer to file your case. The first step when receiving a diagnosis like ovarian cancer is to not remain silent and to contact A Case for Women which is answered 24/7. Your call will be forwarded to a kind and compassionate team member who will guide you through the process. MAKE A DIFFERENCE – IN YOUR LIFE AND THE LIVES OF OTHERS!
