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Chapter 17
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in What the Eyes Don’t See, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Racism and Environmental Injustice
Truth vs. Corruption
Community Values and Collective Duty
The American Dream
Family, Tradition, and Strength
Summary
Analysis
A representative from Ananich’s press office called Mayor Walling to confirm that he was aware the deadline had passed. In response, the mayor’s office declared that Mona and her team would receive no support or cooperation from them. So, Mona and her team pressed on. The Hurley press office helped Mona put together a press conference while other members of Mona’s team gathered support from the professional health and medical worlds. Kildee and Ananich’s offices were behind them, as were Marc Edwards and some of his “EPA buddies,” such as Miguel Del Toral.
Without the support of their government behind them, Mona and her team pressed on for the sake of their community. They knew that if they didn’t bravely bring the truth to light, the government would continue engaging in its massive coverup—and that thousands of lives would be affected by the slow burn of lead poisoning.
Themes
On Wednesday night, Mona struggled to calm her nerves—her press conference was in the morning, and she was abuzz with emotion. She was excited and nervous, but there was also a deeper worry “eating away at” her. Aeb, an Arabic term that loosely translates to the imprecise word “shame,” denotes the idea that no one is ever acting independently of their family or community. Aeb is a reminder that one’s actions always reflect back on those one is closest to. Though Mona has never liked the “debilitating and ugly concept” of aeb, she knew that to get the press conference wrong and embarrass her family, her colleagues, and her clinic would be “the most colossal aeb of all.”
In this passage, Mona introduces the concept of aeb. Though aeb seems like a frightening concept at first, the idea that one is always acting because of and within a family or community can also be seen as an empowering one. After all, Mona wasn’t acting alone—her actions were a result of her upbringing, and they were a reflection of her values. Mona had told herself before that she was on the right side of history—so even though doubt was creeping in, she was trying to stay strong to bring honor and pride to her family.
Themes
As Mona fought to fall asleep, she looked back on her childhood: her parents used to send out yearly Christmas cards, newsletter-style, to their friends and family members near and far. The letters combined Mona and Mark’s personal accomplishments at school and in their community with notes from Jidu and Bebe about how it felt to watch the Iraqi people struggle from afar. The normally quiet and restrained Jidu wrote each year about the situation in Iraq with great intimacy and emotion.
When Mona was a young girl, she had to watch her parents suffer and mourn their homeland—she couldn’t do anything to help them. But now, she had the chance to draw on their sorrow over human rights injustices—and their faith in the power of sharing the truth—and do something to actually help people in her community.
Themes
With the press conference looming, Mona was at last able to look back on these memories and realize that her parents’ journey through loss, displacement, and longing was what had given her a desire to fight for the right thing. Leaders, Mona learned at a young age, must be held accountable; it is up to everyday people to stand up for what is right in their communities. Mona knew that her whole self was in the fight. She was drawing on the tenacity and optimism not just of her family, but of her heroes: Alice Hamilton, Nuri, John Snow, and Paul Shekwana.
In this passage, Mona finally takes a look back at the road that has brought her to this point. She realizes that she’s been drawing on a desire to embody her parents’ values, to fight for her community, and to stand tall alongside her greatest heroes and other public health activists.
Themes
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Mona rose in the middle of the night to email Jenny about redoing one of the graphs in the presentation—Mona wanted everything to be perfect. She knew she needed to capture and keep her audience’s attention, so she called Hurley and asked a nurse on the night shift to put a can of powdered formula in her office. Then she texted Allison, who had a newborn baby, and asked if Allison could bring a bottle to the hospital in the morning.
After drawing strength from her memories of her parents and her favorite stories about her ancestors and heroes, Mona felt revitalized and renewed. She was ready to throw herself into her mission with a new fierceness—regardless of whether or not the government would stand behind her.
Themes
