Christopher Nolan's movie Oppenheimer captured the imagination of the nation as it dramatized the super-secret Manhattan Project that was responsible for creating the first atomic bomb. But what about the legacy of radioactive waste that the US weapons Development Program left across the United States? According to victims whose diseases were caused by exposure to US weapons development programs, the movie's oversight of the project's toxic legacy was an insult. Now a bill in Congress may help address some illnesses caused by nuclear weapons development. It may also recognize victims exposed to radiation who have long been overlooked, but it is, according to many, not enough and only a start when it comes to addressing devastating illnesses. On this episode of Breaking Green, we will talk with Justin Ahasteen, the Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office, about the history of radiation contamination on the Navajo Nation from uranium mining, the US government's lack of transparency, its failure to remediate radiation hotspots, as well as hopes for some relief when it comes to the reauthorization of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.
Justin Ahasteen is executive director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office. He has been awarded the Presidential Volunteer Service Award with Silver Distinction. Justin was appointed as Executive Director by President Boo Nygren in 2023. Ahasteen has significantly impacted federal Indian policy and indigenous advocacy, focusing on infrastructure, veteran affairs, social services, health and public safety for the Navajo Nation. His academic credentials include an associate's in applied science and public administration, a bachelor's of arts in justice studies with a public administration minor, and he is nearing completion of a master of legal studies in indigenous law.
This podcast is produced by Global Justice Ecology Project.
Breaking Green is made possible by tax deductible donations from people like you. Please help us lift up the voices of those working to protect forests, defend human rights and expose false solutions.
Donate securely online here
Or simply text GIVE to 716-257-4187
Christopher Nolan's movie Oppenheimer captured the imagination of the nation as it dramatized the super-secret Manhattan Project that was responsible for creating the first atomic bomb. But what about the legacy of radioactive waste that the US weapons Development Program left across the United States? According to victims whose diseases were caused by exposure to US weapons development programs, the movie's oversight of the project's toxic legacy was an insult. Now a bill in Congress may help address some illnesses caused by nuclear weapons development. It may also recognize victims exposed to radiation who have long been overlooked, but it is, according to many, not enough and only a start when it comes to addressing devastating illnesses. On this episode of Breaking Green, we will talk with Justin Ahasteen, the Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office, about the history of radiation contamination on the Navajo Nation from uranium mining, the US government's lack of transparency, its failure to remediate radiation hotspots, as well as hopes for some relief when it comes to the reauthorization of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.
Justin Ahasteen is executive director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office. He has been awarded the Presidential Volunteer Service Award with Silver Distinction. Justin was appointed as Executive Director by President Boo Nygren in 2023. Ahasteen has significantly impacted federal Indian policy and indigenous advocacy, focusing on infrastructure, veteran affairs, social services, health and public safety for the Navajo Nation. His academic credentials include an associate's in applied science and public administration, a bachelor's of arts in justice studies with a public administration minor, and he is nearing completion of a master of legal studies in indigenous law.
This podcast is produced by Global Justice Ecology Project.
Breaking Green is made possible by tax deductible donations from people like you. Please help us lift up the voices of those working to protect forests, defend human rights and expose false solutions.
Donate securely online here
Or simply text GIVE to 716-257-4187
Welcome to Breaking Green, a podcast by Global Justice Ecology Project. On Breaking Green. We will talk with activists and experts to examine the intertwined issues of social, ecological and economic injustice. We will also explore some of the more outrageous proposals to address climate and environmental crises that are falsely being sold as green. I am your host, steve Taylor.
Steve Taylor:Christopher Nolan's movie Oppenheimer captured the imagination of the nation as it dramatized the super-secret Manhattan Project that was responsible for creating the first atomic bomb. But what about the legacy of radioactive waste that the US weapons Development Program left across the United States? According to victims whose diseases were caused by exposure to US weapons development programs, the movie's oversight of the project's toxic legacy was an insult. Now a bill in Congress may help address some illnesses caused by nuclear weapons development. It may also recognize victims exposed to radiation who have long been overlooked, but it is, according to many, not enough and only a start when it comes to addressing devastating illnesses. On this episode of Breaking Green, we will talk with Justin Ahasteen, the Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office, about the history of radiation contamination on the Navajo Nation from uranium mining, the US government's lack of transparency, its failure to remediate radiation hotspots, as well as hopes for some relief when it comes to the reauthorization of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.
Steve Taylor:Justin Ahasteen is executive director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office. He has been awarded the Presidential Volunteer Service Award with Silver Distinction. Justin was appointed as Executive Director by President Buu Nygren in 2023. Ahasteen has significantly impacted federal Indian policy and indigenous advocacy, focusing on infrastructure, veteran affairs, social services, health and public safety for the Navajo Nation. His academic credentials include an Associate's in applied science and public administration, a Bachelor's of Arts in justice studies with a public administration minor, and he is nearing completion of a Master of legal studies in indigenous law. Thank you for having me. People's sovereignty and rights, justin Hosting. Welcome to Breaking Green. Thank you for having me. You were appointed by the current president of the Navajo Nation, Buu Nygren, to be the executive director of the Navajo Nation Washington office. Could you tell us what is the NNWO, as it is sometimes called?
Justin Ahasteen:Sure. Well, first and foremost I'd like to say hello to all of the Navajo who are listening. (Introduction in Justin's native language). So my name is Justin Ahasteen. I'm the Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office. The Navajo Nation Washington Office exists as an extension of the executive branch of the Navajo Nation government within Washington DC, serving almost as an embassy-type role for the Navajo Nation. We facilitate the communication between the United States government and the Navajo Nation government. We're established in Title II of the Navajo Nation Code and our office has been around since the late 70s, early 80s and since then has been the primary office that handles all federal affairs between the nation and the United States, maintaining that unique government-to-government relationship.
Steve Taylor:And I believe the current and 10th president, Buu Nygren, appointed you to that position, correct?
Justin Ahasteen:Yes, president Nygren appointed me in January of 2023, after he secured his victory against former Nez.
Steve Taylor:And I think, wasn't that a 54% victory? Not to get into politics too much, but I mean it was a significant win for him.
Justin Ahasteen:It was. It was a win for the administration. I also work under the Nez administration, so there's certainly a shift, but overall, you know, I think we all have a common goal of trying to better the lives of them.
Steve Taylor:Your office is dealing with, and other people in other parts of the country are as well, but while I was preparing for the interview, I learned that the Navajo Nation is the largest Native American tribe in the United States. Could you help us understand what that looks like when it comes to geography and population? Absolutely.
Justin Ahasteen:So the Navajo Nation is the largest land-based tribe in North America. We have over 400,000 enrolled members, half of whom still live on the Navajo Nation. And the Navajo Nation encompasses about 27,000 square miles. It extends into the states of Arizona, new Mexico and Utah and if you kind of want a size comparison, it's about the size of West Virginia. So our reservation, you know, is the largest of all tribes. We make up about a third of the entire on-reservation population for Native Americans.
Steve Taylor:Wow. And then there's. You know, obviously, a lot of history there, but one of the things that you read about often is what's been called the Long March of 1864. I mean, could you give us a little bit of a history of the Long March?
Justin Ahasteen:I know that's not what we're here to talk about, but I think it's just a very important thing for people to know about. Problem in the southwest was starting to round up different tribes. So the Navajo were rounded up and they were marched several hundreds of miles from Fort Defiance to Fort Sumner, new Mexico. Along the way there was some significant hardship that our people experienced. You know, a good sizable portion of our population had declined on the march and then when we kept in captivity at Fort Sumner and then being placed onto the Bosque Redondo Reservation, there was also a period of hardship as the land itself wasn't being able to cultivate any crops. People were starting to starve and it just created a lot of issues.
Justin Ahasteen:So a delegation of Navajo leaders that includes Barbensito and Chiquanulito petitioned to the United States to allow them to return to our original homelands. So General Shonien, who signed the Treaty of 1868, agreed with the Navajo that they have the ability to return back to their homeland, and we did that. So there was a small section of our original aboriginal territory that was carved out in the Treaty of 1868. And since then we have been able to recoup a large portion of our Aboriginal territory through various executive orders. Now there are some issues with fractionation due to allotments from the general allotment and whatnot, but for the most part we have retained most of our Aboriginal territory we have retained most of our original territory.
Steve Taylor:I did not realize that a lot of the original territory was able to be reclaimed. That's an exciting thing to learn there. But what we wanted to talk to you about today, mr Ahasteen, as Executive Director of the Navajo Nation Washington Office, we wanted to talk about the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, reauthorization and how the Navajo Nation has been in large part given short shrift when it comes to the federal government recognizing and compensating tribal members who have been sickened by exposure to radiation from US military weapons development, to radiation from US military weapons development. Could you give us a brief description of what the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act is and how the Navajo Nation has a stake in the reauthorization process?
Justin Ahasteen:Sure. So in order to understand why the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act was first enacted in 1990, we have to look at the legacy of uranium mining as a whole. Uranium mining became very popular in the 1940s to help support the Manhattan Project developing the atomic bomb during World War II. So a lot of the uranium that was extracted from different parts of the globe and within the United States was used to develop the atomic bomb. That includes uranium that was mined from the Navajo Nation. Between 1940 and through the end of the Cold War there was about 30 million tons of uranium that was extracted from the Navajo Nation and within that same time period there's an estimated total of about 60 million tons that was mined domestically within the US. If you take that number, over half of the domestic supply of uranium came specifically from the Navajo Nation.
Justin Ahasteen:Now, in order for the federal government and essentially the private companies after 1971, in order for them to meet, the demands on the labor force primarily consisted of Navajo people, and we're talking about a population that didn't read or write or speak English very well. So they were told you know, pick up a hard hat, shovel and go to work and you'll get paid and you'll have a great life. Well, that didn't work out so well for us. As we had identified in the 70s, there was a huge rate in respiratory illnesses and lung cancer, as well as birth defects and birth deformities for a lot of children. So the hospitals at the time were like what is going on here? And all of these Native Americans are coming into our office and they have all the same illnesses. They've never smoked a day in their life before and they've attributed all of that to work in the uranium mining.
Justin Ahasteen:So we look at the legacy of uranium mining. It is a very dark legacy. The federal government deliberately withheld the dangers of radiation exposure for the workers that were mining this and keep in mind, as we progress through the 40s, into the Vietnam War and the Cold War, people who served in previous wars. After they returned home they continued to demonstrate their patriotic duty and they wanted to advance the United States' nuclear narrative. So they started working in the uranium mines. After their military was focused, essentially poisoned a lot of people, not just Navajo, but through atmospheric testing, downwind sites and uranium mining they passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, which was then subsequently amended in the year 2000 because of some shortcomings. So this really is today's effort in updating that to make sure those who were initially excluded from the bill were able to receive benefits, and this includes a different classification of workers who worked at the uranium mines. It also extends the period because there was a cutoff at 1971. It also extends the period because there was a cutoff at 1971. So anyone from 1971 to the last mine closure on the Navajo Nation, which was around 1990, is not covered under the current program. So that's really the stake that the Navajo people have in this Because, again, a lot of the uranium that was mined domestically came from our lands, but it was also our people mining it. There is a large portion of our people who have been excluded from the initial program. There have also been areas that have been affected by nuclear testing, such as the Trinity Test Site, wam and some processing facilities in Missouri and Kentucky and other states as well, who were initially left out of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act program.
Justin Ahasteen:And what the program really does is it provides a one-time cash payout compensation to those that have been affected by radiation exposure and it also provides, for some participants, medical benefits in order to receive cancer treatment. And for the Navajo people that's really needed because the Indian Health Service is not equipped to provide oncology services. It's really more so set up as a primary care or preventative care service or a disease management service rather than specialty care. So not having any cancer treatment centers on or around the reservation, most people had to seek their care driving two hours one direction at minimum two hours one direction to receive health care services. Healthcare services Tuba City Regional Health is the first Native American tribally owned cancer center and they do do some screenings but it doesn't help the folks that are living on the opposite end and they still have to drive two, three, maybe even four hours just to make cancer treatment appointments and it's very expensive.
Justin Ahasteen:On the Navajo Nation, economic development is lacking. We still have areas without running water or electricity. So expecting people to pay out of pocket and not have insurance or not qualify because the Native American Health Plan doesn't have oncology services or whatever the case may be, they are essentially giving the message that they just have to sit home and wait to die, and that's something that is really unjust and it's something that we have continued to push and just the sheer treatment of just our people specifically, who have contributed so much in the interest of national defense. We served in World War II. We utilized our language to secure a victory in World War II. Even after that, we contributed to the Vietnam War, the Cold War, both in a military capacity and a non-military capacity, advancing the United States' nuclear agenda, and the only things that we received is disease and death. And that's why this is so important to us is to try to ensure that we provide a little bit of comfort and justice to those who have been adversely affected.
Justin Ahasteen:And this bill isn't going to cover everyone, you know. We're going to be honest here. It only covers the workers and those who are affected by the atmospheric testing, those who were inadvertently affected because the miners came home with yellow dust or yellow cake all over them and their children or their wives or their family members were washing their clothes in the local water supply and have subsequently become contaminated from that. They're not covered under any program and they're going to continue to suffer from that. But in the meantime we're working on addressing the uranium miners and there'll probably be a need for an update in the future to address those who were inadvertently affected.
Justin Ahasteen:It's so interesting too, because with all of the information that was being kept from the Navajo people. There were also piles of radioactive waste that were kept and people were making their homes out of this radioactive waste. So people were literally living in a house made out of deuteronium tailings, and that's really affected a lot of the people. It's contaminated vegetation, livestock, again water supply, so it's become a very big issue. When the government first started uranium mining operations, there were about 100 mines on the Navajo Nation, and when the uranium mining industry really took off, we went from 100 mines to over 500 mines, and to this day all of them have been abandoned. Not a single one has been remediated or cleaned up and we're essentially just left with the problems, and so that's really the state we're talking about here. We're really trying to push to receive some measure of social justice, especially to a class of people who have demonstrated time and time again their patriotism for the country.
Steve Taylor:To actually be building a home out of radioactive material because people are being kept in the dark. That is horrendous, that's insidious, that is horrendous.
Justin Ahasteen:That's insidious, and will anybody who built a home like that be compensated, or is it just the minors? As of right now, it is just the minors. There isn't a program out there that will compensate those who are inadvertently affected. I mean, even those who are suffering from burst effects as a result of radiation exposure are not compensated, and that's a big problem.
Steve Taylor:But if a minor can prove or demonstrate that they have an illness that is recognized as one caused by radiation exposure, then they can receive compensation and help for their health exposure. Then they can receive compensation and help for their health. I think I was reading $75,000 for workers participating in nuclear weapons tests, $100,000 for uranium miners, millers and ore transporters. That sounds like a lot of money, but for someone who is dealing with some of these illnesses, health costs are just exorbitant.
Justin Ahasteen:Oh, absolutely. It's a dropping in the bucket compared to what people actually spend on medical care just to stay alive. I know some folks that are within our coalition who have spent north of $3 million so far just in cancer treatment alone million dollars so far just in cancer treatment alone and for our people that's unheard of. On the Navajo Nation Most people just succumb to their illnesses because they can't afford medical care or they don't have the insurance to cover that type of stuff. There's a story of a man named Leslie Bidet who served in the Vietnam War and returned home and worked in the uranium mine and he was a disabled modern and when he was diagnosed with respiratory illnesses he went to every hospital he could think of to receive treatment and was turned away every time. It was a miracle that one doctor really saw something in him and did everything he could to assist him, and he was at the last month of his life. He wasn't expected to live past a month and under the miracle he was able to receive a double lung transplant and I'm so thankful that he's with us today.
Justin Ahasteen:He is sharing his story on the Hill how there are no services available to Native American on the reservation he had to pick up and move his life, to move closer to the Valley and really leave behind his culture, his identity.
Justin Ahasteen:In order to just survive, his family had had to make significant contributions. A lot of them had to leave their jobs and move with him to help support him, and Leslie is one of the very few lucky ones. Not everyone is as fortunate. Not everyone is able to overcome something like that, and that's really the story that we're trying to highlight and elevate. People are literally waiting at home for some measure of benefits, and we know the benefits aren't going to cure anything, but at least it'll provide them some comfort for the remainder of their days, and then it's just the humane thing to do. Not being able to enjoy life and just sit there and suffer is very hard, and it's hard on the families who have to witness that. They sit there knowing that they're helpless, and it's starting to create a lot of mental health issues within the family, literally watching someone that they love die right in front of their eyes and they're not able to do anything about it.
Steve Taylor:And because they were mining something that they didn't even know was dangerous and that information was withheld. Am I right in thinking that a member of the Navajo Nation would petition the federal government and present the case to the federal government and then get compensation directly?
Justin Ahasteen:So the Navajo Nation doesn't receive any benefits from the federal government. Everything is administered through the Department of Justice and there's a whole set of requirements that you have to meet. You have to demonstrate that you did work in the mines, and that's really a problem for other people because these mining companies did not keep mining records or when they went into closure or bankruptcy they destroyed a lot of these records. So those are not there anymore. So this bill actually helps address that, because there are a lot of people who have been denied benefits because they can't get a social security earnings statement because their employee never reported that they were working or they were on the payroll but yet they were doing the work. So this bill allows work history affidavits to help supplement some of the required paperwork in order for those to receive benefits. But even then, there's a whole list of requirements that you have to meet. You have to have a medical analysis done. Your medical record has to attribute your executive as work related to uranium mining or being within a downwind vicinity within a specified amount of time. So when Congress started debating this, senator Lujan and Senator Crapo introduced their version of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act amendments and the Congressional Budget Office came out with an astronomical number of $150 billion that it would cost the nation, when the original program with all of its requirements over the last 20 years has only cost the federal government less than $4 billion. So we cannot see how expanding this to those who need it and extending the program for an additional 19 years under the Lujan-Cripo bill would have gone from a $4 billion advance to $150 billion. I honestly think CBO did some lazy math there, but it's certainly not reflective of who is actually going to benefit from this.
Justin Ahasteen:So when the RECA amendments were included as part of the National Defense Authorization Act in December to still the Lujan CREPA bill, it went through budget reconciliation or conferencing, and they decided to discuss this. Obviously, the Republicans were concerned about the FBO score, so we worked with them. So we worked with them, we made some concessions and we were able to trim the hypothetical $150 billion down to a hypothetical $50 billion and that really cut the compensation levels down. It took out some of the medical benefits. So it's not as good as the Lujan-Crayfield bill, but it was still something that we were willing to support because it did provide some benefits for those who really need it, and that was still not enough.
Justin Ahasteen:So the bill, the amendment, was taken out of the National Defense Authorization Act and Congress passed it. So now Senator Hawley was able to get this new reauthorization bill, which was the negotiated version from the NDAA, onto the floor for a vote and that passed with significant bipartisan support on the Senate it was about 69 to 30, I believe, in terms of votes and it went over to the House. Now it's just in there and we have been putting Speaker Johnson in terms of votes and it went over to the House. Now it's just in there and we have been pushing Speaker Johnson to bring this to the floor for a vote and we don't understand why it hasn't. And we have less than four weeks left of actual legislative session left for them to pass any bills and program expires on June 10th. So we have been continuing to push and it's really insulting that our delegation from Utah has made a claim that those who have been affected adversely deserve compensation, when they are the ones not supporting the bill that Holly has introduced, saying that, oh, the price tag is too high or we don't agree that everyone should benefit from this.
Justin Ahasteen:And there was even a comment that was made in some of our meetings with the Utah delegation that, oh, the original would prepare all the Utahns so this doesn't really benefit us anyway. So that was really insulting. It was really disheartening to hear and, as many people have seen, president Nygaard come out publicly disappointed with the Utah delegation and we're hoping that they will have a change of heart and support this expansion. Senator Lee, rep Malloy, rep Burgess, mullins and Senator Romney have all introduced a simple two-year extension bill but that doesn't do anything for anyone. That doesn't do anyone for the people that actually need it have been excluded from the program and again, it's really disheartening and we're hoping Utah will come around and do the right thing.
Steve Taylor:You mentioned President Nygren and making public statements. I read an editorial by him in Time magazine and it was talking about the movie Oppenheimer and how it ignored the collateral damage and the harm to the Navajo Nation. You know the building of that device, the arms race, and I know that I've heard from downwinders from some of the testing. You know they feel that they were given short shrift in that film as well and I know some people in St Louis who were like you know what about the story of all the waste and you know from what you've told me. You know the Navajo Nation is suffering the most with 500 abandoned uranium mines. There was actually a spill, the Church Rock spill. Yeah, could you tell us a little bit about that?
Justin Ahasteen:Yeah, the Church Rock spill is the US equivalent to the Chernobyl disaster and not a lot of people actually know about this. And we're the United States, where we like to claim we're the greatest country in the world and everyone should come here because we're so great, but what? We censor a lot of the information that could be public knowledge. We have had one of the worst radioactive spills in history and nobody seems to care because it's on Indian land, it doesn't matter, no one was affected. It's on Indian land, it doesn't matter, no one was affected. And that's really disheartening. And it's something that we have tried to address and really push to show, because that area, the land, it's not going to be inhabitable for the next 80,000 years. It's insane and there are still communities that live in that area and people just don't seem to care and we don't know why.
Steve Taylor:Do the children, do families and children? They must know of it. I mean how do you live with that? Is that my question? I mean how does a community live with that? Is that my question? How, I mean how, how does a community live with that?
Justin Ahasteen:So they've put up fences, they've tried to cap off as much as they can, put up signs. Most people will say well, why don't we just pick up and move? Well, it's a lot easier said than done. Um, where are they going to move to? A lot of these families are elders. They don't have any place to go, they don't have a source of income. What are they supposed to do? The cost of living nowadays, just in the city, is astronomically high. Where are these people going to go? Just for children and young adults, but the elderly? There's nowhere to put them. So we can't just pick up and leave.
Justin Ahasteen:So, unfortunately, people are just stuck where they are and they have to try to live as best as they can. And I think at this point the mentality is I'll probably get cancer at some point, so I should prepare for that, and that's not how people should be living their life. And again, these are disasters that have happened from the negligence of the federal government as well as these private industries. The federal government will try to shift liability away a lot of the time, but at the end of the day, it was the Department of the Interior that was signing off on these uranium leases and urging the Navajo Tribal Council to approve these leases, and that was in the interest of national security. And if it's in the interest of national security, then, as a means of protecting those who have contributed to that, we should be focusing on providing those levels of compensation.
Justin Ahasteen:We see all of this foreign aid going out to Ukraine, to other countries they just passed another $90 billion bill to help support activity but not within our own country, and again it's a really big betrayal to the people who live in this country, who have provided a lot in the interest of national security, and their voices are not being heard and they're given the side eye or they're saying it's too expensive.
Justin Ahasteen:Sorry, we did this to you without even doing any consideration for having a required pay-for, which is a term that a lot of Republicans actually use is we won't support this bill until you find an offset or pay-for. But we're not doing that with a lot of these foreign aid packages. So why don't we go back and reinvest into our own people and address the issues within our own country before we start worrying about what's happening externally? Because if we can't take care of ourselves, we're not going to be able to take care of everyone else, and we're already at a point where our federal budget we've had the highest deficit in history and we're not bringing in enough revenue to address that.
Justin Ahasteen:And now the interest of the government, of the federal debt is more than the GDP as a whole. So we're in this really sticky situation. This is not a handout, and I want to be clear. This is not a handout for people who have been adversely affected. It's providing compensation. It's providing a measure of recognition that, yes, we did wrong by you and we're going to do everything that we can to. We're never going to make you whole, but we can get you a little closer to that. I mean honestly, if the United States were to just waive sovereign immunity, we could settle this in the court and we would probably be done in a week with a large judgment. So the United States recognizes that and I believe that's why they passed the Radiation Disclosure Compensation Act initially.
Justin Ahasteen:But at the same time, it's why are we shifting our focus away from domestic issues and so focused on international issues? There are people within our own country that are suffering. The Navajo people, specifically, have suffered. We still, a third of our people, don't even have running water and electricity. And this is America, you know. We have a country within a country and it's a third world country. So why don't we do everything that we can to make sure that our citizens are keeping care of them, and that's really just my thought.
Steve Taylor:Yeah, our citizens are keeping score of them, and that's really just my thought. Yeah, and the Church Rock uranium spill was 44 years ago and it was 94 million gallons of radioactive waste spilling into a river that runs across the Navajo Nation. And your president, boo Nygren, wrote in the Time magazine editorial that the movie Oppenheimer came out, I think four or five days after that 44-year anniversary and still nothing's been done. In St Louis, dawn Chapman and Dawn Chapman was she spoke very highly of you and because I was talking to her about the RICA reauthorization and she told me what she had learned about the Navajo Nation and how hard hit it is. But they've been dealing with waste, you know, for decades, 50 years. It's from the Manhattan Project as well.
Steve Taylor:It just seems to be everywhere that the federal government does not want to address these point sources. They're still there. They're still there in St Louis it's in people's homes. Worse, yet on the Navajo Nation people are building homes out of radioactive material. It's just amazing. And the fact that the movie Oppenheimer didn't give a nod to that, I don't know. Some people found it offensive. How about you?
Justin Ahasteen:It is offensive and we were hoping Christopher Nolan would have acknowledged that, especially as this is going up for an academy award and I believe the authors and whatnot, um, they give a small blow. Uh, I think it's the end of the movie where it's like what do we do with the land? I would just give it back to the indians, um, and I'm like that's the extent of your acknowledgement towards Native Americans. So it is really disrespectful.
Justin Ahasteen:But there is a movie that is out there it's from the 70s that I think really highlights a lot of the issues that Navajo has faced with forced relocation in the 70s, as well as the natural resource industry really booming with oil and gas and uranium specifically and that's a film called Broken Rainbow and it has won an Academy Award itself. I think it was a documentary or something like that years ago and I invite people to watch that to really understand the issues and the people. I mean a lot of the people who are in that field are no longer with us, unfortunately, but they do have dissonance and those areas. The problems are very real today. They're the exact same issues and it hasn't changed in the last 40 years and that's what we're really trying to address.
Steve Taylor:And I know you're working hard at it. I mean, I see your office and your president quoted in a lot of stories about RICA, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act. It sounds like it's not enough, even if it were to pass, but you know it's. There has to be a recognition and and obviously more needs to be done. But it it? It sounds like uh uh, the Navajo nation feels that it's a starting point at least.
Justin Ahasteen:It is. It's a starting point and it's if it's passed, we'll be in a better position than when we were the day before.
Steve Taylor:So I guess you live in Washington DC most of the time as the executive director of the NNWO. How is that, and how often do you get to go back to the Navajo Nation?
Justin Ahasteen:So I always joke with my staff that this is a job for single people, because you really don't have time for family or anything like that, because the issues are so grand and there's just a lot of work to be done. And you know, I try to do as much as I can, sometimes working up until 2 am in the morning pushing out different things, because it is a priority. And that's why the president pressed me to be here, because he knows that I will represent the nation here in DC and do the best that I can to advance the interests of the Navajo Nation. I get home when I can. My mother does get after me from time to time when I don't call her, so I do the best that I can to communicate with family. But overall it's a lot of work. It's not really a lot of downtime, but I do my best. I have a great team here that is very well equipped and very versatile and can really help drive a lot of these initiatives, and I'm very thankful for that.
Steve Taylor:Mr Justin Hostin, thank you so much for joining us at Breaking Green.
Justin Ahasteen:Thank you for having me.
Steve Taylor:You have been listening to Breaking Green, a Global Justice Ecology Project podcast. To learn more about Global Justice Ecology Project, visit globaljusticeecologyorg. Breaking Green is made possible by tax-deductible donations by people like you. Please help us lift up the voices of those working to protect forests, defend human rights and expose false solutions. Defend human rights and expose false solutions. Simply text GIVE G-I-V-E to 17162574187. That's 17162574187.