A still from the documentary film “Into the Weeds,” which will be shown Tuesday at the Triplex Cinema in Great Barrington. The film tells the story of Dewayne “Lee” Johnson (pictured right), who sued Monsanto Co., alleging that his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma was caused by the company’s glyphosate-based weed killer Roundup. State Rep. Carmen Gentile will introduce the film and speak on a panel at the screening. Gentile co-sponsored legislation to restrict the use of glyphosate in Massachusetts.
GREAT BARRINGTON – State Rep. Carmine Gentile says he wishes he could ban all products containing glyphosate, a widely used herbicide.
But it’s not that simple, says Gentile, a Sudbury Democrat who represents Middlesex’s 13th district.
Gentile believes his plan will at least help curb the use of glyphosate, the health effects of which have led the manufacturer Monsanto to settle $11 billion.
Last year, the congressman, along with seven other congressmen, introduced a bill (H.813) that would limit the use of glyphosate – better known as an ingredient in the weed killer Roundup – to trained and state-licensed users.
State Rep. Carmine Gentile, a Democrat from Sudbury who represents Middlesex’s 13th District. Gentile co-sponsored legislation to restrict glyphosate use in the state.
The bill is currently being reviewed in the House Budget Committee before moving on to the Statehouse floor.
Gentile will introduce a screening of the documentary “Into the Weeds” on Tuesday at the Triplex Cinema. The documentary, directed and written by Jennifer Baichwal, is about glyphosate and asks whether “the most widely used weedkiller in the world” causes cancer.
The film tells the story of Dewayne “Lee” Johnson, a school yardmaster from California who sued the Monsanto corporation (now Bayer) after he developed non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He claimed that this was due to his long-term and frequent use of the company’s product Roundup.
“Mixing interviews, testimony, court footage, reporting and truth,” the footage says, “the film follows the course of this groundbreaking court case, but also steps back to look at the systemic impacts of glyphosate-based herbicides on human health, our food systems and our planet’s biodiversity.”
This is a free screening sponsored by a donation from the Dr. Robert C. and Tina Sohn Foundation based in Sheffield.
Following the screening, Gentile will participate in a panel discussion with research pathologist and activist Dr. Stephen C. Frantz, Berkshire Environmental Action Team Deputy Director Brittany Ebeling, and Oscar-winning filmmaker Bobby Houston, who wrote a screenplay about the effects of glyphosate.
Gentile was successful in pushing through a bill to restrict the use of neonicotinoids, insecticides that are harmful to honey bees and other pollinators.
He noted that at least 21 jurisdictions have either banned or restricted the use of glyphosate in some way. Cities and towns in the state have enacted their own restrictions. Great Barrington banned the use of glyphosate products on municipal property by anyone other than licensed contractors in 2023.
The regulation states that “the World Health Organization and the International Agency for Research on Cancer have published a report stating that glyphosate is ‘probably carcinogenic to humans.'”
Gentile compared glyphosate to PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals), pointing out the government’s strict stance on these substances, which are used in numerous products such as cookware and makeup. Scientists have found a link between PFAS and cancer, thyroid problems and a number of other health issues.
“The public and politicians did not have the political will,” Gentile said, “to act against glyphosate in the same way they act against PFAS.”
