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I think it’s very uncommon in the First World. This is not a sight that one normally sees.

Philip Alston, the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, as he toured a county in Alabama where hookworm, a tropical disease that's largely been eradicated in most developed countries, has been detected. The county suffers from poor sewage systems that leave many residents with open pits of human waste in their yards or raw sewage backing up into their homes after heavy rains.

Philip Alston, the United Nation’s Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, as he toured a county in Alabama where hookworm, a tropical disease that's largely been eradicated in most developed countries, has been detected. The county suffers from poor sewage systems that leave many residents with open pits of human waste in their yards or raw sewage backing up into their homes after heavy rains. 

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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