Show Notes
"I hope they are a little bit more than intrigued"
The fourth in our series on the environmental and humanitarian legacy of US uranium mines in The Navajo Nation. In this episode, we cover the 1950’s and 60’s. The Atomic Age promises endless energy and domestic convenience for middle-class white America, but is sustained Navajo miners and millers working long days in uranium mines at great expense to their long-term health and that of their families. Mining companies and government agencies fail to inform the Navajo community of the hazards for decades- until it is far too late to deny.
*Content warning* for upsetting content, discussions of illness, and reference to SA.
Learn more, donate, help out:
The Multicultural Alliance for a Safe Environment
“MASE is rooted in the experiences of uranium-impacted communities of the southwestern U.S. We are communities working to restore and protect the natural and cultural environment through respectfully promoting intercultural engagement among communities and institutions for the benefit of all life and future generations.”
Southwest Research and Information Center (SRIC, @SRICorg on twitter)
“In the late 1970s, Navajo uranium miners and their families asked for help to show that their lung diseases had been caused by their work in underground uranium mines in the 1940s-1960s. SRIC staff responded with medical and scientific data, in-community education strategies, and legislative support. As a result, Congress adopted legislation in 1990 to compensate former miners and their survivors. Ten years later, with SRIC's on going technical support to advocacy groups, the law was amended to cover virtually all uranium miners who worked before 1971. Currently, the Uranium Impact Assessment Program provides information on mining and community health, the legacy of uranium development, regulatory and policy issues related to remediation of contaminated sites, and current and proposed uranium development.”
Noel Lyn Smith at Inside Climate News (@nsmithdt and @insideclimate on twitter)
Noel Smith has written a ton of really informative pieces on the modern state of uranium mine cleanup in The Navajo Nation- highly recommend giving them a read.
Red Nation Podcast. Uranium Stories: the largest nuclear disaster in US history, 43 years later. Episode link on patreon here.
“The Red Nation Podcast features discussions on Indigenous history, politics, and culture from a left perspective. Hosted by Nick Estes and Jen Marley with help from our friend and comrade Sina. The Red Nation Podcast is also the home of Red Power Hour, hosted by Melanie Yazzie and Elena Ortiz. Our show is entirely supported by our patrons on Patreon, support the show and get access to bonus content and other patron-exclusive benefits here: Patreon.com/redmediapr”
Sources: Brugge, Doug, Timothy Benally, and Esther Yazzie-Lewis, eds. The Navajo people and uranium mining. UNM Press, 2007.
Denetdale, Jennifer Nez. Reclaiming Diné History: The Legacies of Navajo Chief Manuelito and Juanita. University of Arizona Press, 2015.
Pasternak, Judy. Yellow dirt: A poisoned land and the betrayal of the Navajos. New York: Free Press, 2011.
Voyles, Traci Brynne. Wastelanding: Legacies of uranium mining in Navajo country. U of Minnesota Press, 2015.
Art and Music Country music by Alex Black (science_party on instagram)
Ambient music by CALIFORNIA DEATH WORM (@grouchyjerk on twitter)
Cover art by Emily, check out her Etsy page at cicadaxxseason!
If you want to support the show and help pay for books and coffee, you can toss us a couple bucks at patreon.com/sludgefest. If not, no worries- all the eps are free :)
We’ll see you next time. Remember that despair is useless and I love you!
More from Sludgefest
Everything is aggressively stupid and evil right now, so Lucy and I just talked about whatever we felt like for about an hour. With as few references to Elon Musk as we could manage. Need to tune your brain to TV static for an hour? This is the episode for you. Energy drinks, television shows, AI slop, manosphere ghouls, edible books, biased steaks, and a sequel to the groundbreaking 2015 documentary Chappie. CW: we do discuss briefly Criminal Minds, which is a pretty offensively shitty show about serial killers and sex criminals. Please feel free to skip ~8-14 minutes in if you (understandably) don't want to hear about the television program Criminal Minds. Working on the next proper Sludge episode too I promise <3
The first in our series on the environmental and humanitarian legacy of US uranium mines in The Navajo Nation and abroad. Before we get there, we will need to bring along some history. In this episode, we outline the broader historical context, in which the Navajo find themselves beset by a succession of ruthless settler-colonial empires: first Spain, then Mexico, and finally the United States.
Join Jesse and Lucy Valentine of the Boonta Vista podcast as they wade through the sewage of yore. Waste pits below an ancient cathedral. The River Thames, swollen with turds. Favorite soups. Urine therapy. It’s all here.