Posted on August 16, 2016
On behalf of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO), we join asbestos victims around the world as we mourn the loss of Mesothelioma Warrior Giuseppe Manfredi, President of the Association of Asbestos Victims Families (AFeVA).
Giuseppe—called Beppe by his friends—was sharp, debonair, and an absolute bulldog when it came to standing up for public health and environmental justice. I was honored to meet Giuseppe in June during the June 28 press conference where ADAO and AFeVA jointly discussed the global significance of President Barak Obama’s public acknowledgement of the carcinogenic dangers of asbestos.
The tiny town of Casale Monferrato loses nearly one person every week dies to mesothelioma and asbestos-caused diseases, thanks to decades of playing host to an Eternit asbestos cement plant. AFeVA has been fighting to bring the executives of Eternit to justice for years, and are currently pursuing multiple murder charges against the company’s last living patron on behalf of those workers who died as a result of on-the-job asbestos exposure.
Giuseppe’s death is a devastating loss, especially for the Casale Monferrato community. A beautiful memorial tribute written by Giuseppe’s longtime colleague and good friend David De Luca illustrated just how much he meant to his city:
“Beppe has helped a city, working every day as if it were the first, when he could enjoy his retirement somewhere else, carefree and worry. But he chose to do the opposite, making
Giuseppe was a true Mesothelioma Warrior, fighting for a better, safer future for others up until his final days. ADAO mourns the loss of this lovely man alongside our AFeVA family, and we vow to keep fighting for a world where asbestos can take no more victims.
In unity,
Linda
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