Residents of Flint, Michigan, are still without clean water, and one corporation is attempting to boost its public image through an ad campaign promoting its charity efforts in the city.
According to Deadline Detroit, Nestle released a television and radio ad campaign highlighting the free cases of water it has shipped to Flint. In the ad, a narrator states, "Some people had forgotten about Flint, but Nestlé Waters never did," over images of Flint residents picking up cases of clean water.
The campaign didn't sit well with many prominent Flint residents who believe Nestlé is being exploitative and insincere. Former Michigan gubernatorial candidate William Cobbs (D) wrote on Facebook, "Everytime [sic] I see that d**n Nestle commercial about Flint I see red."
Mari Copeny, also known as "Little Miss Flint," called out the company Wednesday on Twitter:
"Dear Nestle, running commercials bragging about how you donate 100,000 bottles of water a week to Flint is repulsive," the young activist tweeted. "Especially when one site can go through that amount of water in 3 hours."
Dear @Nestle running commercials bragging about how you donate 100,000 bottles of water a week to Flint is repulsive. Especially when one site can go through that amount of water in 3 hours. I should know I’ve been doing this all summer #FlintWaterCrisis
pic.twitter.com/iej8OJTgG0— Mari Copeny (@LittleMissFlint) November 14, 2018
As Science Alert points out, it was revealed Nestlé was given a contract allowing it to pump 100,000 times the amount of water an average citizen of the city uses per year at a site roughly 100 miles from Flint in April. The contract required the company to pay Michigan about $200 a year, the same amount the average Flint resident pays per month for tap water.
Flint residents weren't pleased with the arrangement, and not long after it was made public, Nestlé promised to provide free bottled water to the city.
"We understand water is an emotional issue, and we appreciate the passion people everywhere have about it," the company said in a statement defending the ads. "We engaged a number of community members and stakeholders in the process of creating the ads, and we’re proud of the work that we do every day to support many communities across the state.“
Now, check these out:
Why Flint Is Just The Beginning Of Black America's Water Crisis
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