Jenna Mack signs for justice to support victims of Agent Orange in Vietnam - Photo: Tuoi Tre

Jenna Mack, an 18 year-old American beauty pageant winner, uses pageants and her titles as a platform from which to speak about Agent Orange and the fight for the rights of second-generation victims.

She has said, “I am trying to take advantage of being Miss Teen to speak about Agent Orange and to appeal to everyone to help the victims, not only those directly affected but also the second generation, who are still facing problems around the world.”

This past September, Mack visited Vietnam in a very “silent way” – without bodyguards, journalists or cameras. She crawled into the Cu Chi tunnels, an immense network of connecting underground tunnels located in Cu Chi district of Ho Chi Minh City, and the location of several military campaigns during the Vietnam War. She also visited unfortunate children with defects from Agent Orange in Tu Du hospital in Hoa Binh.

Vietnam is only one of the destinations on her long journey to tell the truth about Agent Orange/dioxin around the world.

Three generations of Agent Orange victims

Mack is the granddaughter of a veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange while serving in the Vietnam War. Her mother, Tanya Mack, who is a second-generation victim of the ill effects, was born with severe hip dysplasia and has had nearly 30 surgeries to correct it, in addition to suffering from lupus. Her health battles took a turn for the worse when she was diagnosed with an extremely rare form of cancer five years ago.

Genetic testing revealed a mutation in Mack’s mother’s genes that can only be inherited or caused by damage to the DNA from environmental agents such as nuclear radiation, herbicides and pesticides. Due to the fact that her family has no history of these diseases, the oncologists concluded that the mutation came from Mack’s grandfather's exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War from 1968 to 1970.

Mack’s twin sister died shortly after being born, while “lucky” Jenna was raised with all her family’s love. She shared, “I was so scared when I knew the truth about what Agent Orange has done to my family. When I was 16, my mother was unable to move by herself any more. Over time I have had to help her in daily activities, change bandages for her three times every day, and witness the diseases ruining her life.”

In the hope of taking care of the unfortunate, Jenna became a certified nursing assistant at 17 and is enrolled in a registered nursing program. Her mother shared, “Jenna has to do what the seniors do and think what the seniors think.”

On behalf of the Agent Orange victims

After years of seeing her mother’s pain, Mack decided to overcome fate and do something meaningful for her family. At 18 years old, she won first prize of The Royal International Miss Teen California in 2012 and The National Miss Heart of the USA Supreme Beauty award.
Instead of enjoying life as the winner, since her victories she has traveled around the world to tell her story and appeal for help for Agent Orange victims who are struggling with pain and death.

Mack is traveling with Heather Bowser, a second-generation victim and an Agent Orange awareness activist as well as a co-founder and director of the Children of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance. Their non-stop trip has included many countries where the Agent Orange victims are desperately waiting for help.

They came to Vietnam in September and traveled from Ho Chi Minh to Ha Noi to gather information about the cases of second and third-generation Agent Orange victims.

“I was so shocked when I saw the fetal malformations stored in Vietnamese hospitals and I could not stop thinking about my twin sister, my mother as well as my future children,” Mack shared.

Bowser said, “Your country (Vietnam) has many programs to take care of all-generation victims of Agent Orange. That is lucky for them. We do not have those in the U.S. The American victims have to prove their mutations were caused by Agent Orange via many complex and expensive experiments that some cannot afford”.

Mack and Bowser revealed that they will return in the very near future to carry out practical activities to help Vietnamese victims.

Source: Tuoi Tre