Sharmila L. Murthy

Assistant professor, Suffolk University Law School

Municipal water service is so essential for public health -- and for life itself -- that it should not be treated as merely another budget line-item.

A resident of Flint, Mich., holds up water from Flint and hair pulled from her drain, during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Feb. 3, 2016. (Molly Riley/AP)

We need to create a financial safety net so that municipalities faced with slash-and-burn budgeting are not forced to compromise the health and welfare of their citizens.

A Flint resident and her son are pictured at the Detroit to Flint Water Justice Journey rally in Flint, Michigan, July 10, 2015. (Courtesy of the author)

Lessons From Flint’s Water Crisis

In this Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2015 photo, a Flint resident carries free water being distributed at the Lincoln Park United Methodist Church in Flint, Mich. Since the financially struggling city broke away from the Detroit water system in April 2014, residents have been unhappy with the smell, taste and appearance of water from the city's river as they await the completion of a pipe to Lake Huron. They also have raised health concerns, reporting rashes, hair loss and other problems. (Paul Sancya/AP)


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Economy

Opinion

Politics

policy

A person should not have to choose between putting food on the table, buying needed medicines or paying the water bill, but many in our country do.

Water fills the boiler room at the former Frederick Douglass Academy in Detroit. The cost of such lost water is passed on in higher rates to water customers. (Paul Sancya/AP)

While we have national programs designed to make energy, food and housing affordable, we have no similar program for water.

Opening The Taps: The Case For Water Affordability Legislation

Sharmila Murthy: "This World Water Day, there is an urgent need to re-examine the domestic laws that protect access to safe, affordable drinking water." Pictured: Demeeko Williams, left, of the Detroit Water Brigade, talks into a megaphone during a rally outside federal courthouse in Detroit, Monday, Sept. 22, 2014. The city of Detroit shut off water to customers for unpaid bills. The move disproportionately affected low-income residents and was greeted with widespread condemnation. (Carlos Osorio/AP)

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Health

Life

…waiting until nighttime to urinate or defecate is not only dehumanizing, it makes women vulnerable to sexual assault, as vividly illustrated by the appalling events in India.

Why is it that more people around the world have access to cellphones than to toilets?

In India, Dying To Go: Why Access To Toilets Is A Women’s Rights Issue

In this Saturday, May 31, 2014 file photograph, members of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) shout slogans during a protest against the gang rape of two teenage girls, in New Delhi, India. Beyond highlighting the rampant sexual violence in India, the horrific crime is drawing attention to a glaring and fundamental problem across the country that threatens women’s safety: the lack of toilets. The placards read: "Arrest all accused in the gang rape." (Altaf Qadri/AP)