Lila Nordstrom was a senior at Stuyvetson High School in Lower Manhattan on September 11th, 2001. She and her classmates were sent back to school having been told the air near Ground Zero was safe. It wasn’t. She spent her 20s watching friends get sick and die from 9/11-related illnesses and face the same healthcare obstacles as 9/11 responders and other survivors. She became a voice of the less-told stories of 9/11 and a fierce advocate for her fellow students and for 9/11-related women’s health issues, overlooked as they often are. In 2019, she spoke before a congressional subcommittee with comedian Jon Stewart and a group of 9/11 survivors and responders to secure funding for the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund and health bill through 2090, ensuring the youngest survivors will be taken care of for the rest of their lives.
Lila is the author of Some Kids Left Behind: A Survivor's Fight for Health Care in the Wake of 9/11. You can find her at lilanordstrom.com
Find out more about the World Trade Center Health Program at cdc.gov/wtc and StuyHealth.org
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