Environmental Racism

Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia Awareness (ODGA)
Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia is Goshute for "Timbersetting
Community"

From: Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia Awareness-

Dear Friends and supporters of Environmental Justice,
September 9th 2004

Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia Awareness (OGDA) would like to
extend an invitation to you and your tribe or organization to support and join with us in our upcoming Nuclear Free Great Basin Gathering, October 8-10th, 2004, on my land at the Skull Valley Reservation about 45 miles west of Salt Lake City, Utah. We are gathering to show our strong opposition to nuclear waste dumping on our traditional Native American lands. We would like to ask your endorsement and participation in this important event.

As you might know, a company called Private Fuel Storage (PFS), a consortium of nuclear industries, has targeted our Skull Valley Goshute Reservation for a nuclear waste dump. They want to build this dump early next year and begin shipping nuclear waste here from around the country in 2007. OGDA's belief is that we must uphold our
traditional values as the Skull Valley Band of Goshute - Shoshone, which is to consider our land, animals, birds, water, and air as being sacred. We know that the nuclear waste dump will jeopardize not only our lives but also the lives of all the living things out here. Especially our precious water. We believe that the water is sacred in our ceremonial purification and other ceremonial ways.  The desert here is so beautiful and is full of life, peace and tranquility.

The PFS dump would threaten our tribe's health, culture, traditions
and reservation community life. They believe that if they give us enough money, we will just move off the reservation and let them have it for their nuclear waste. They fail to recognize that our
traditional values are closely linked to the land that our ancestors and
we have inhabited. Is it not just hazardous waste, we are talking about high-level nuclear waste that will be dangerous for thousands years. It will affect our little reservation. This is all that we have left to
us after the U.S. government has taken all of our traditional land. Now
we might have to be relocated again. If this nuclear dump opens, this
fear might become a reality.

This planned nuclear waste dump is a clear example of environmental
racism. They are promising us economic development with this nuclear
dump. We can make money off of this nuclear waste and become rich,
they tell us. The real issue is not the money. The real issue is who we are as Native Americans and what we believe in. If we accept this waste, we will lose our tradition, our way of life. That is where our real sovereignty lies. In being able to live and pray as our ancestors
wanted us to. This dump will go against the stories that were
told to us about why we became a people and how we should consider our animal life, our air, things that are sacred to us.

I would like to see you come to the gathering to share in the beauty,
tranquility, peacefulness and sacredness of our reservation and the
land surrounding it. It would be an honor to have you come to the gathering to share and listen to the information about why we
oppose the nuclear waste, not only on our lands, but all Native American lands. We are inviting you to join us in ceremony to pray for the lands and our people. To participate in traditional dances and
entertainment. We will feed you and take care of you as best as we can while you are here. Even though this is a very serious issue, we can still have fun together and enjoy the unity of a strong people from many different races and parts of the country.

Please come and join us, mark it on your calendar right now. And
please endorse our gathering so that we can include your tribal or
organization name on our information so that we can show the
nuclear industry that we are united as a people and we wont let them dump their nuclear garbage on Native American lands.

Thank you.

Margene Bullcreek,
Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia Awareness



Nuclear Free Great Basin Gathering
October 8-10th Skull Valley Goshute Reservation
Hosted by Ohngo Gaudadeh Devia Awareness
A project of the Shundahai Network Nuclear Free Great
Basin Campaign

PO Box 1115, Salt Lake City, UT 84110
Phone: 801-533-0128
Email: shundahai@shundahai.org
www.shundahai.org