Source: Teen Vogue

Excerpt:

My name is Kamea and I am 10 years old. I live in Sulphur, Louisiana near the Gulf Coast with my mom and my brothers and sisters. I love my home, but I’ve also learned that pollution from oil and gas is making me and the environment sick and it is also contributing to climate change. 

I had everything planned for my tenth birthday party. I had picked out the decorations and a cake. I was so excited. But one week before my party, everything changed. My skin started to burn, itch, and break out. We went to the doctor and they told me I had a skin disease that I can’t even pronounce. They told me that I couldn’t have my party, but that my skin would get better. It didn’t. The doctors ran more tests and they told me that my skin condition is caused by  my environment— the air around me is peeling off my skin. 

Read more: Cancer Alley: Pollution Is Making Louisianans Sick, and They’re Fighting Back