Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights

June 29, 2015

Dine' Walkers: American Imperialism, Abandoned Uranium Mines on Navajoland


By Nihigaal bee lina
Censored News
In the first week of our journey to Dibé Ntsáá, we traveled through the western region of Nihikéyah that is heavily contaminated by decades of uranium mining, with over 100 abandoned uranium mines centered around the Cameron area. In some places, the radiation is so high that it can't be measured and is at least 4 times more radioactive than what was emitted by the Fukashima disaster. Very little has been done about these mines - this warning sign at an abandoned mine behind the Cameron chapter house is the only one that is up in the entire region. Just east of Tuba City is a old uranium mill that received all the uranium from mines in the region and is a contamination threat to the aquifer.
What is even more alarming is the realization that this uranium was mined for the purpose of building bombs and America's nuclear arsenal. This is a legacy that our people live with everyday with the cancers and sickness caused by exposure. As we approach the 4th of July we ask that our people reflect beyond blind patriotism and see the reality that our people and our land are sacrificed to this day to further American imperialism.

1 comment:

Mardi VanEgdom said...

This is horrible! We cannot leave the area in that condition. We have to clean it up if possible. The fact that this debacle was perpetrated in the first place shows a lack of regard for the environment and the people of that area, just to have materials to use in a potential war! That's what the problem is: war. It is evil and causes mankind to do evil things.