--- title: 'Oppenheimer' Misses Uranium’s Deadly Grip on the Navajo description: We must all recognize the continued suffering and sacrifice of the Navajo that built the atomic era, writes Buu V. Nygren. canonical: https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/ author: TIME article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2023-07-21T14:33:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:51:03.501Z article:section: Ideas og:title: The Navajo Suffered From Nuclear Testing. 'Oppenheimer' Doesn't Tell Our Story og:description: We must recognize the continued suffering and sacrifice of the Navajo that built the atomic era, writes Buu V. Nygren. og:url: https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc4a3bd19279402ec/698a3ed90116826cdb983430/No-Mines-Graffiti-Navajo-2022.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: No-Mines-Graffiti-Navajo-2022 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Navajo Suffered From Nuclear Testing. 'Oppenheimer' Doesn't Tell Our Story twitter:description: We must recognize the continued suffering and sacrifice of the Navajo that built the atomic era, writes Buu V. Nygren. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc4a3bd19279402ec/698a3ed90116826cdb983430/No-Mines-Graffiti-Navajo-2022.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- # The Navajo Suffered From Nuclear Testing. _Oppenheimer_ Doesn't Tell Our Story > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=80bc8eee-dd35-45a3-a2c8-47c2d14d7547&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 430,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 50.7% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=80bc8eee-dd35-45a3-a2c8-47c2d14d7547&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=80bc8eee-dd35-45a3-a2c8-47c2d14d7547&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. It reaches 430,000 subscribers with a 50.7% open rate as of August 2026. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. ## Video: The Real Oppenheimer - A Nuclear Historian's Perspective [Watch (HLS stream): The Real Oppenheimer - A Nuclear Historian's Perspective](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/I2oPNLYU.m3u8) (4:43)  _Published 2023-07-21. As the movie "Oppenheimer" opens across America, Alex Wellerstein - Historian of Nuclear Weapons at Stevens Institute of Technology - gives his perspective on a man he has studied his entire career._ Jul 21, 2023 2:33 PM UTC  Graffiti opposing mines on the reservation is seen in an abandoned building on Sept. 12, 2022 on the Navajo Nation west of Tuba City, Arizona. Graffiti opposing mines on the reservation is seen in an abandoned building on Sept. 12, 2022 on the Navajo Nation west of Tuba City, Arizona.David McNew—Getty Images by [Buu V. Nygren](https://time.com/author/dr-buu-v-nygren/) ## Buu V. Nygren Jul 21, 2023 2:33 PM UTC Christopher Nolan’s highly-anticipated [_Oppenheimer_](https://time.com/6295742/oppenheimer-review/) comes to the big screen five days after the 44th anniversary of the Church Rock uranium mill spill, when [94 million gallons](https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/1211503-gao-report-on-navajo-uranium-mines.html) of radioactive waste poured into the Puerco River, spanning northwestern New Mexico and northern Arizona, and across the Navajo Nation. Children played in the contaminated water, while livestock drank from radioactive aquifers. What [came next](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222290/)—cancers, miscarriages, and mysterious illnesses—is a direct consequence of America’s race for nuclear hegemony. It’s an accomplishment built on top of the bodies of Navajo men, women, and children—the lived experience of nuclear weapons development in the United States. But, as usual, Hollywood chose to gloss over them. The Navajo people cannot afford to be, yet again, erased from history. Hollywood has a lot of work to do, and they can start by standing with the Navajo people and urging Congress to provide just compensation for victims of radiation exposure. As part of this effort, we must all recognize the continued suffering and sacrifice that built the atomic era. From the [1940s to the 1990s](https://swuraniumimpacts.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/17.01.17-Gallup-Independent.pdf), the U.S. used the Navajo Nation to supply them with uranium for the manufacture of nuclear weapons and energy. While ownership of the mines was transferred from the federal government to private companies in 1971, the U.S. failed to enforce proper safety standards, leaving the sites unregulated until 1990 when the last mine closed. More than 500 [now abandoned](https://www.epa.gov/navajo-nation-uranium-cleanup/abandoned-mines-cleanup) mines cover our land as a result. Miners and their families were kept in the dark about the heinous dangers of radiation exposure, so they went about their daily activities like any other community. Workers drank the mine’s cool spring water, while their wives washed their yellowed work clothes. Families [built homes](https://www.epa.gov/navajo-nation-uranium-cleanup/addressing-uranium-contaminated-structures) with local rocks and sediment and let their children play for hours [on uranium byproducts](https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/mill-tailings.html), including [mine debris piles](https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2016/04/10/473547227/for-the-navajo-nation-uranium-minings-deadly-legacy-lingers). Despite the U.S. government’s [awareness of the risks](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3222290/) inherent in uranium mining, most Navajos did not know what radiation was—let alone the danger presented by every second of exposure. --- ### More from TIME --- **_Read More:_** [**_Without Indigenous History, There Is No U.S. History_**](https://time.com/6274071/us-history-indigenous-americans/) Growing up in a community that has an abandoned uranium mine in Red Mesa, Arizona, I witnessed firsthand the heartbreaking and enduring consequences of uranium mining on my people. Despite the passage of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) in 1990, justice remains elusive for Navajo families who have suffered from the devastating and long-lasting health and environmental effects of the uranium mining industry on Navajo land. While RECA has provided life-saving healthcare coverage for some uranium miners, the legislation’s limited scope has left many Navajo people suffering from radiation exposure without any compensation. The list of diseases covered by the law is, to start, woefully incomplete. Renal cancer, nephritis, and kidney tubal tissue injury are just some of the conditions that were initially excluded because of a lack of available scientific data connecting them to radiation exposure. RECA also [excludes Navajo miners](https://swuraniumimpacts.org/post-71-uranium-workers-committee/) employed after 1971 from eligibility for compensation. Yet, the work they did, and the dangers they faced, remained exactly the same. This is not a problem of the past. As of August 1, 2022, more than 53,804 claims have been filed under RECA. Of those, more than 12% identified as Navajos. Navajo miners and their families suffer a wide variety of cancers and radiation-related illnesses, with new victims [regularly diagnosed](https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/navajo%5Fbirth%5Fcohort%5Fstudy/index.html). Women living near the mines have experienced stillbirths and miscarriages at abhorrent rates and their children [carry the physical legacy](http://www.sric.org/nbcs/index.php#:~:text=The%20Navajo%20Birth%20Cohort%20Study%20is%20a%20collaborative,health%20impacts%20of%20living%20near%20abandoned%20uranium%20mines) of the Cold War through developmental delays, chromosomal aberrations, and other birth defects. The Navajo people have suffered and sacrificed so much, while directly contributing to our country’s post-war pursuit of nuclear superiority. And while our Navajo Code Talkers are esteemed for heroically saving countless lives in the South Pacific during World War II, our uranium miners have largely been overlooked. The only thank-you for their years of patriotic service has been death, disease, and decades of advocacy to recognize their sacrifice. Time is slipping away for Navajo uranium miners and their descendants, their hopes dangling in the balance. With each passing day, their weary bodies bear the weight of diseases inflicted by their labor; the clock ticks, mercilessly. As they wait for existing claims to be processed and for expanded eligibility through the RECA amendments, their precious time on this earth dwindles, a poignant reminder of the urgent need for justice and compassion. The legacy of uranium mining on the Navajo is a perpetual blemish on our nation’s history with its Native people, and the disregard of our stories from media and movies like _Oppenheimer_ can’t mean a continued erasure in U.S. policy. Acknowledging the harm done means living up to the intended purpose of RECA: to compensate all those impacted by the harms of the nuclear age. It is only then that my people can begin to heal and our beautiful and sacred land can be restored. We need the world to hear us and provide the justice that has long been denied to our people. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/"},"headline":"The Navajo Suffered From Nuclear Testing. Oppenheimer Doesn't Tell Our Story","datePublished":"2023-07-21T14:33:07.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:51:03.501Z","description":"We must all recognize the continued suffering and sacrifice of the Navajo that built the atomic era, writes Buu V. Nygren.","url":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/","keywords":["justice","freelance"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Buu V. Nygren","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/dr-buu-v-nygren/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/justice/","name":"justice"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/","name":"The Navajo Suffered From Nuclear Testing. Oppenheimer Doesn't Tell Our Story"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"The Real Oppenheimer - A Nuclear Historian's Perspective","description":"As the movie \"Oppenheimer\" opens across America, Alex Wellerstein - Historian of Nuclear Weapons at Stevens Institute of Technology - gives his perspective on a man he has studied his entire career.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/I2oPNLYU/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2023-07-21T19:32:15.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/I2oPNLYU.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/","duration":"PT4M43S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/6296470/oppenheimer-navajo-uranium-mining-essay/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```