Actress Tea Leoni, star of Deep Impact, and Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF, has launched a new initiative to raise awareness of the illness caused by Agent Orange in Vietnam.
The chemical was used from 1961 till 1971 by the US Army during the Vietnam War to destroy crops and vegetation, its carcinogenic properties have resulted in a range of serious illnesses being incurred by the Vietnamese.
The US Military sprayed some 77 million litres of chemical defoliants on South Vietnam during the war and to this day there are Vietnamese children being born with birth defects as a consequence.
Tea Leoni spoke about some of the effects of Agent Orange that she witnessed in Vietnam, “As a mother it is a very intense experience to visit with another mother and see her caring for children who are so in need of support and care.”