This is a slumlord - not a landlord! Notify the department of buildings and the department of health. You should have this condition documented on film and sue the landlord for the disgusting environment that caused you medical problems.
Just because you have no lease doesn't mean that you do not have rights. You are the legal tenant of record. There must be a branch of landlord-tenant court near you.
Take pictures of everything you are talking about and make sure to have the front page of that day's newspaper clearly visible in the photos and keep the newspaper cover itself with the pictures to show proof of the condition of the place..
I'd say it is not likely that you will get your money back. If you don't have a signed lease you could probably move out without penalty, but you are probably out the money you've already paid. It would be very hard to prove in court that your condition was caused by mold.
The landlord will claim (and rightfully so) that your symptoms were caused by spending a week straight working with cleaning products and paint. Consider it an expensive lesson. Why did you rent something that wasn't in the condition you expected?
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.