[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 74 (Tuesday, June 14, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 14, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                     THE ARMY OWES FULL DISCLOSURE

  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I rise to speak on the floor of the 
Senate about a matter that is of urgent importance in my State of 
Minnesota, but I think this may be a matter of urgent importance in 
many other States as well.
  This past weekend was one of the most painful times that I have had 
in my few years in the U.S. Senate. Yesterday, I met with Diane Gorney, 
Carol Thomas, and Linda Wait. These were three women who, when they 
were younger, were schoolgirls attending Clinton Elementary School in 
south Minneapolis.
  What we now know, and the U.S. Army has confirmed, is that it sprayed 
zinc cadmium sulfide over Minneapolis in 1953, a chemical which is a 
potential carcinogen.
  These women and other women who have called our office who attended 
this school--one of the sites where the spraying took place--have had 
very difficult lives, Mr. President. Some have reported sterility. Some 
have reported abnormal childbirth. Some have reported other diseases 
and illnesses. So it is not just a question of what has happened to 
them, but also what has happened to their children as well.
  I am not a doctor, and I am not a public health expert. But I ask 
anyone who is listening to me how they would feel if you had been 7 
years old in the second grade, the Army did this spraying as a part of 
figuring out what the effects would be of chemical warfare, never 
consulted you, never consulted your parents, never told anybody about 
it, and then, later on, your children were born with serious defects, 
serious disabilities. How would you feel? You would be convinced that 
that spraying is what caused your problems and, in any case, you would 
want to know what happened.
  Mr. President, we all owe a great debt of gratitude to the 
exceptional work of Melody Gilbert at KTCA who has done this 
investigative work. The Army has now confirmed that they did this 
spraying and it has been reported--and I want my colleagues to listen--
that this spraying may also have taken place in other cities throughout 
the country, including Dallas, TX, Raleigh, NC, Columbia, SC, San 
Francisco, CA and, as it turns out, in Rosemount, MN, and also in the 
Chippewa National Forest in Minnesota as late as 1964.
  (Ms. MOSELEY-BRAUN assumed the chair.)
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Madam President, I cannot answer Minnesotans and other 
citizens when they ask me why this spraying took place. Presumably, it 
was to determine how chemicals used in biological warfare would 
penetrate various structures in different neighborhoods. But I can tell 
you this, whether it be Minneapolis or Rosemount or the Chippewa 
National Forest, or other communities in other States, the Department 
of Defense and the Army owe the people full disclosure.
  Tomorrow, Congressman Sabo and I will be meeting with the Department 
of Defense people, and we want answers to questions. We want to know 
where, when, and how much the Army sprayed. We want to know what are 
the short- and long-term health effects, if any, caused by exposure to 
zinc cadmium sulfide. We want to know what the environmental effects 
are to the water supply, to the topsoil, to the air. We want to know 
what records the U.S. Department of Defense has relating to the 
spraying and its effect on the health of humans and the environment. We 
want to know, Madam President, whether or not the Department of Defense 
plans to release this information and, if so, we want to know the time 
line and the plan for doing so.
  An Army spokesman reportedly stated last week, and I quote:

       It is virtually impossible to determine any medical 
     relationship between the testing in 1953 and any current 
     health adversity experienced by citizens in the area.

  We want to know what medical or scientific proof the Army has to back 
up such a claim. And, finally, Madam President, we want to know how 
many residents in Minneapolis and Rosemount and in northern Minnesota, 
and in other cities throughout the country have come in direct contact 
with zinc cadmium sulfide as a result of this spraying, and how many of 
those citizens are now suffering from what might very well be related 
health care problems.
  Madam President, I say to my colleagues, this was done in 1953. 
Secretary O'Leary has done, I think, a wonderful job of beginning to 
insist on full disclosure of radiation experiments on human subjects. 
Those people never knew it was being done to them.
  I also have been doing this heartbreaking work with atomic veterans. 
They went to Mercury, NV; they went to ground zero. They measured the 
radiation. They were in harm's way. Nobody ever told them about the 
danger, but what happened to them, their children, and their 
grandchildren is heartbreaking, and they are still waiting for some 
kind of justice and compensation.
  This was a period of time in our country where I guess the end 
justified the means, and maybe it was all done in the name of national 
security. But, Madam President, you know what is interesting, in the 
last several days as this story has broken in Minnesota, everywhere I 
go, people come up to me and say, ``Paul, is this being done now?'' The 
only honest answer I can give is: ``I don't know. I certainly hope 
not.''
  I cannot believe that would be the case, but the one way we can be 
sure that we do not continue to do this is to hold Government 
accountable and, for God's sake, at least provide full documentation 
and full disclosure of the extent of these tests, where they took 
place--in my State and other States--and what the effects were on the 
people.
  Madam President, no one asked these elementary schoolchildren whether 
or not they would be willing to be guinea pigs in these experiments. No 
one asked their mothers or fathers. No one asked the people in 
Minnesota. Nobody told people in Minnesota that they were in harm's 
way.
  Now we know more about cadmium. We now know that it is probably 
carcinogenic, but we knew in the 1930's that it was possibly unsafe. 
When the Government does not know for sure, what side does it err on? 
Do you not err on the side of caution and protecting citizens? Do you 
ever, ever in a democracy have the right to conduct such experiments, 
spraying chemicals, without letting people know? I think the answer is 
clear.
  So, Madam President, we will be meeting tomorrow with the Department 
of Defense. As more information comes out and I have further 
information about spraying in other cities--and I listed some cities 
where I have been notified this probably took place--I will be talking 
to other colleagues as well.
  I cannot even explain to you the emotion of this past weekend, and I 
will do everything I can to find out what happened. If it turns out 
that this spraying was the cause of these illnesses, then I will do 
everything I can to make sure the Government pays for the damage that 
it has caused.
  We do not know what damage there is. We do not even know exactly what 
happened. One step at a time. First, full disclosure. I certainly hope 
the Department of Defense and the Army will cooperate. I am sure this 
administration will. I think it has become much more open in terms of 
releasing records. Then maybe congressional hearings. Then 
understanding the full extent of what has happened, and at the very 
minimum the people in Minnesota and around the country are entitled to 
know.
  I yield the floor.
  Several Senators addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from California.

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