Linda’s Story
Over the past 20 years, Linda Reinstein has stood up for the millions of voiceless asbestos victims and fought on their behalf to see justice done.
Linda never set out to be an activist, but life had other plans.
[Linda is] a tireless champion for countless Americans suffering from asbestos-related diseases and fighting for a TSCA program that actually works to protect people from toxic risks.
Representative Paul Tonko (NY-10)
Linda’s Path to Asbestos Activism
“In 2003, after enduring nine months of symptoms and multiple visits to doctors, my husband, Alan, was diagnosed with “mes•o•the•li•o•ma,” a disease I had never heard of, couldn’t pronounce, and learned doctors couldn’t cure.
We were a typical American family – trusting that our government would protect our air, water, and soil from toxins – but that’s false. Because of Alan’s asbestos exposure, our then-10-year-old daughter had to watch her father slowly die from a preventable disease. Sadly, our experience is a common one.
Alan spent his last year tethered to supplemental oxygen, like a dog on a leash. I want him back – he was my soul mate and my daughter’s father, but resurrection is not an option.
Instead, I must and will use my voice with the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) to end the deadly legacy of asbestos. It is reprehensible that the United States imports hundreds of metric tons of chrysotile asbestos yearly.
For each life lost from an asbestos-caused disease, a shattered family is left behind.”