Many residents of the Pruitt-Igoe housing project and the nearby North St. Louis community witnessed strange things in the years of the 1950s and 1960s. Men in protective clothing often spray mysterious mists into the air from the tops of buildings and spouts connected to vehicles driving in predominantly black communities.

Documents issued by the US government in 1994 show that as part of military experiments, it has been spraying the toxic substance cadmium zinc sulfide in St. Louis and other cities.

A study commissioned by the Army three years later asserted that the experiment will not harm the health of the people of St. Louis, although the chronic health problems of the people living in the area have not been thoroughly analyzed.

Many St. Louis people who underwent the experiment had long suspected that it would make them sick. Lisa Martino-Taylor is now an associate professor at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Her research published in 2012 showed that the government may have added radioactive substances to this compound.

The survivors tell their stories in "Target: St. Louis Scroll." 1", a documentary filmed by actor and director Damien D. Smith, a native of the Mark Twain community in northern St. Louis. This film can be shown at the St. Louis International Film Festival until 11 On the 21st.

St. Louis Public Radio’s Jeremy Goodwin (Jeremy Goodwin) spoke with Smith about the government’s experiments and its views on how federal officials treat black people in St. Louis.

Jeremy D. Goodwin: There seems to be a lot of intention behind the name of this movie. Why is it called "Target: St. Louis"?

Damien D. Smith: In my opinion, they targeted us. They targeted St. Louis because they could do something to the crowd and then leave without follow-up. They target my people, they target my community. Their target is my parents, grandparents, and everyone affected by this. This is our community. When I learned about this, I was really shocked.

Goodwin: The federal government has admitted that it sprayed this cadmium zinc sulfide on Pruitt-Egg and mainly black communities. Does the government admit that doing so will make people sick?

Smith: The problem is that they didn't follow up during that time period to see what happened to the person they tested. Then let people deal with the consequences.

Goodwin: So there is no research that says the incidence of cancer in this area is higher? We just have a lot of people talking about their experiences.

Smith: These people are talking about their experiences. They are talking about memories of what happened in their community. These are first-hand information.

Goodwin: Do we know why the government is doing this?

Smith: Yes. The government said that this aerosol spray study was designed to assemble a defensive weapon to protect American cities when they came to Moscow and tried to drop bombs on American cities. This city can release this cloud of smoke, which will confuse bombers. But in fact, it was discovered through evidence that they might actually be assembling an offensive weapon to attack Moscow.

Goodwin: How do they describe Pruitt-Igoe in these documents?

Sneed: slum area. These are the facts I am talking about. Then the people present can tell you what they saw and what happened. This is what we focus on in "Target St. Louis Volume 1." The story of the people there. How does this make them feel. The psychological burden it brings to mankind. Everyone is there to tell their stories because they hope this will not happen to the next generation.

Back to us, we must prove, show and let you see and remind you of the humanity in it. We must prove our humanity again and again and show our humanity so that you—meaning, the power of existence—will recognize it.

Goodwin: When you meet people who have experienced this situation, do they want to talk?

Smith: Yes, very much. They want to keep talking about this topic. It’s never a problem that I have to sit down and withdraw the conversation from people, no. These people are really ready to start a dialogue on this matter, because they have persisted for so long.

One of the main consequences of a test like this is that you lose inner peace. These people have never felt relieved. They have been questioning. Their biggest goal is to ensure that it does not happen to the next generation of St. Louis.

Follow Jeremy on Twitter: @jeremydgoodwin

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