Pilsen neighborhood school kids ingesting toxic lead

Alderman Solis, supported by Rahm, is taking big bucks from polluters

Today's Trib reports highly toxic levels of lead found in schools in Chicago's heavily Mexican Pilsen neighborhood.

Residents in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood complained for years about metallic-tasting smoke rolling down their narrow streets but had little evidence it was harmful. Now they have proof.

Perez Elementary and Juarez High School sit in the middle of one of the city's most toxic areas where lead is being poured into the air by polluters like: H. Kramer & Co., Crawford Power Plant, Fisk Power Plant, United Scrap Metal, Ames Metal, and yes-- UIC.

Why is all this only now coming to light after years of school children being poisoned by toxic lead? Part of the reason is that there's a hotly contested aldermanic election  taking place with challenger Cuahutemoc "Temoc" Morfin taking on incumbent and Daley machine operative Danny Solis. Solis enjoys the backing of Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel who has opened his war chest to pay for Solis' TV ads.

Morfin, an underdog who garnered enough support to force the heavily-funded Solis into a runoff, has been out front in exposing the lead polluters and pressuring Solis to do the same.

Problem is, Solis is virtually on the payroll of at least the three biggest toxic polluters. Can he now suddenly pretend to bite the hand that's feeding him?

BTW, Morfin has won support from the Chicago Teachers Union.