How To Create Change – Not a Lobbyist, Not an Attorney But a Widow and Mother Who Cares

We are proud of the work the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) has done to bring a voice to the victims of asbestos, raise awareness about the severe and fatal dangers of asbestos exposure and prevent asbestos diseases like the fatal cancer, mesothelioma, through education. We are also proud of the incredible work ADAO is doing to help bring about a global ban on asbestos – a ban that could in turn prevent future suffering from asbestos-related diseases, diseases that are just as preventable as they are incurable.

ADAO was founded in 2004 by two individuals who lost their loved ones to mesothelioma. These people were not lawyers, they were not lobbyists -they were individuals who used their grief in the face of losing their loved one to make a positive difference: a difference that would help future families avoid the suffering they had. That this organization has been able to help so many individuals through awareness and education and working tirelessly to help put a global ban on asbestos is a testament to the power each individual has to make a positive difference.

At Baron and Budd we often talk about how important the civil justice system is – we are lawyers after all. Without a doubt, our civil justice system aids and supports our citizens and protects our national conscience. Many of our clients tell us, in fact, that one of the biggest reasons they chose to take legal action was not for their own financial compensation but for the hope that their action would help prevent future harm. People are good. That is something we believe in. People are good and all citizens have the power to make a difference. No organization represents this better than ADAO.

As a revision to the 1976 Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA) is being written, ADAO has pushed for asbestos to be included on the bill. As a known carcinogen that is responsible for the preventable deaths of 3,000 Americans each year who die from mesothelioma, ADAO, Baron and Budd, countless doctors and scientists believe that asbestos should be banned. What is so special about ADAO is that they have been able to bring a voice to the victims of mesothelioma and, by making the threat of asbestos better understood, are bringing to light the hard facts that support a ban of asbestos – hard facts that for whatever reason many people in our country are not aware of.

To bring some inspiration to your day, we offer you this quote from Linda Reinstein, co-founder and head of ADAO. While testifying at the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee Hearing on behalf of the victims of asbestos and their families, Linda said: “I want to make it clear: I am neither a lobbyist nor an attorney, I am a mesothelioma widow. I co-founded ADAO back in 2004 and we have become the largest, independent non-profit organization in the United States dedicated to eliminating asbestos caused diseases.”

There she was: not a lobbyist, not an attorney, but a widow and mother who used her grief to protect the lives of others. Through hard work and dedication, Linda has gone all the way to Congress.

Now we wish to help Linda and ADAO go all the way to banning asbestos in the US.

Linda’s powerful testimony to the U.S. House Subcommittee hearing.

To donate to ADAO, visit http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org/donate

To learn more about asbestos and what you can do to help Linda and ADAO ban asbestos, http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org