Indian New Deal, Tribal Termination, and Urban Relocation 1934-1967
1951
Uranium is discovered on the Dine’ reservation
Once uranium is found in Dine’ territory, many Dine’ men are put to work in the mines without proper clothing and protection from radiation. They are also not warned about the effects of exposure in unventilated mines and on their drinking water. Many workers and families become ill. Those who question the mining conditions are deemed unpatriotic. The sole purchaser of the uranium from these mines is the U.S. government (Nies, 1996).