WASHINGTON - In recognition of the anniversary of the first atomic bomb explosion at the Trinity test site in the Tularosa Basin, U.S. Senator Tom Udall delivered a speech on the Senate floor honoring "downwinders" affected by the July 16, 1945, test and urging his colleagues to amend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) to provide justice for those who were made sick from radiation exposure. Many Americans were unknowingly exposed to dangerous levels of radiation as the U.S. government built its Cold War nuclear arsenal during the mid-20th century. Amendments to RECA would expand compensation to include a larger group of New Mexicans and others not covered by earlier versions of the law.
In his speech
, Udall recognized the tenacious work of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium, a group dedicated to compiling the data and stories of Tularosa community members diagnosed with cancer and to pushing the U.S. government to recognize and compensate community members for their sacrifices and suffering. Udall noted the Consortium's upcoming candlelight vigil to remember those lost, those who have suffered and those who continue to fight cancer and radiation-related diseases linked to the test. The vigil will take place on Saturday, July 26, at 8 p.m. on the baseball field behind Tularosa High School, at 1305 8th St. in Tularosa. The public is invited to attend.
"The Trinity explosion paid little attention to surrounding communities," Udall said in his speech. "Radioactive debris fell from the sky, killing cattle, poisoning water, food, the air we breathe. The damage was done, and would remain long after the test was finished - for generations. The suffering it caused is very real, and so is the sadness, disappointment and anger.
"Attention was not paid then, but it must be paid now. That's why I have introduced legislation in this Congress to amend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to recognize the Trinity site to include New Mexicans who have suffered for decades - who still wait for justice, for compensation from the federal government for their injuries - almost seventy years later, still waiting."
Earlier this Congress, Udall led a bipartisan coalition that
reintroduced amendments to RECA
, to expand restitution for Americans sickened from working in uranium mines or living downwind of atomic weapons tests. The amendments would build upon previous RECA legislation by allowing post-1971 uranium workers to qualify for compensation; equalizing compensation for all claimants to $150,000; expanding the downwind exposure area to include seven states downwind of the Nevada and Trinity test sites; and funding an epidemiological study of the health impacts on families of uranium workers and residents of uranium development communities.
Udall first introduced legislation to update RECA as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and his efforts built on those of his father, Stewart Udall, who served as Secretary of the Interior in the 1960s. Working as an attorney and advocate for downwinders and uranium miners across the West, Stewart Udall was instrumental in convincing Congress to pass RECA in 1990.
Below are Udall's remarks as prepared for delivery:
On July 16, 1945, the first atomic bomb was exploded at the Trinity test site in New Mexico. For residents of the Tularosa Basin, it marked the beginning of decades of cancer, of chronic illness, of suffering that continues to this day.
Next month there will be a candlelight vigil organized by the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium. Folks will once again gather as they have done now each year for the past five years. They will stand shoulder to shoulder. They will light candles, and they will remember. They will remember that an injustice was done and has yet to be righted.
The Trinity explosion paid little attention to surrounding communities. Radioactive debris fell from the sky, killing cattle, poisoning water, food, the air we breathe. The damage was done, and would remain long after the test was finished - for generations. The suffering it caused is very real, and so is the sadness, disappointment and anger.
Attention was not paid then, but it must be paid now. That's why I have introduced legislation in this Congress to amend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act to recognize the Trinity site to include New Mexicans who have suffered for decades - who still wait for justice, for compensation from the federal government for their injuries - almost 70 years later, still waiting.
We can't change the past. We can't restore the lives of those who have passed away, or erase the years of health problems, the years of suffering endured by too many and for too long. But fair compensation will make a difference and provide badly needed help.
The original RECA bill required years of work on the ground. My father helped lay the groundwork for RECA a quarter century ago through his work with radiation exposure survivors and their families, compiling stories, records and histories of victims. The Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium continues this critical work, and I encourage them to keep up the fight.
This is a bipartisan effort and driven by simple fairness for American citizens who should have been helped, but were ignored instead. Our bill would expand the downwind exposure area to include seven states from the Trinity and Nevada test sites, and would include Guam for the Pacific site.
It would also help post-1971 uranium workers to be eligible for compensation, and would fund a critical public health study of those who live and work in uranium development communities.
I will continue to push for this legislation. It is the right thing to do, and we should get it done.
When folks gather in Tularosa and stand together as candles flicker in the New Mexico sky, we will take a moment and remember - remember those who have been affected by cancer, who have been brought down by radiation related diseases. We will remember those who have passed away and those who continue to suffer, and offer our prayers and support to those who are still fighting.
We stand with you. We know what you have suffered. We know justice has not been done, and we will not rest until it is.
I want to commend the Tularosa Downwinders Consortium - folks like Tina Cordova and the late Fred Tyler, who will be greatly missed - great advocates, dedicated, committed, refusing to give up.
Thank you for making your voices heard, for making your stories known and for not giving up the fight. Together, we will keep working for fairness until the day comes when we can stand together in Tularosa and light candles of celebration that justice has been done.
