The health problems date back to work in the 1950s and '60s, said Phil Harrison, Council Delegate for Red Valley/Cove Chapter of the Navajo Nation. During that time, uranium mine workers were exposed to high levels of radon, which has caused inter-generational bouts of illnesses in communities across the Navajo Nation.

"A lot of people don't want to talk about this in the public," Harrison said.

By holding public meetings, organizers hope to garner enough support to lobby government officials in Washington, D.C., to amend the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.

RECA, which was passed by Congress in 1990, authorized funding for people who contracted cancer or other specific diseases from radon exposure from working in the region's uranium mines. It was amended in 2000, and some would like to see it amended further.

With virtually no records from 50 to 60 years ago, many people are not able to receive worker's compensation, medical care or compensation for deaths, illnesses or the on-going birth defects, Harrison said.

"There's no help that's on the way, no remedy in sight," he said.

But momentum in the fair-compensation movement is growing.

Community members, especially those directly affected by the lingering health issues, are ready to travel to Washington to lobby the federal government for compensation, said Gilbert Badoni, president of the Navajo Nation Dependents of Uranium Workers Committee, a co-sponsor of the meeting.

The group plans to hold meetings across the Navajo Nation before making the trek to the nation's capital later this year.

Badoni estimates there are 15,000 dependents of uranium mine workers affected today from various diseases and birth defects.

From 2004 to 2005 only 8 percent of Navajo claims were paid, Harrison said.

This, according to Harrison, is because many Navajo don't have the proper medical records, marital records, birth certificates, proof of residency or work history required under the act.

Organizers want to amend the legislation to cover Navajos who are affected but uncompensated. Sen. Tom Udall agrees.

"The senator is actively engaging with numerous western senators in discussions about proposed amendments to the RECA law," said Marissa Padilla, Udall's spokeswoman. "He hopes that a bipartisan and broadly supported piece of legislation emerges."

Organizers of the meetings want to gain support, locally and nationally.

"We already know how uranium has destroyed people's lives and their health," Badoni said. Badoni hopes the nation's leaders will see the on-going struggles that plague many in the area.

If you go:

Where: Sanostee Chapter Community Center

When: 1 p.m. Sunday

Brendan Giusti: bgiusti@daily-times.com