Dear HCN,
Congratulations to Jon
Christensen for his April 3 comprehensive Great Basin special
edition and thank you for devoting the resources and energy to this
project. It will surely encourage more thoughtful communication
among all parties about the myths and challenges we face here.
While I was flattered by Jon’s article on me, the references to
Citizen Alert perpetuated another myth I’d like to dispel here and
now.
The mission of Citizen Alert, particularly
where nuclear waste is concerned, is as compelling today as it was
25 years ago when our founding mothers created the organization. As
Jon points out, the state of Nevada has taken on the nuclear power
industry and its allies in Congress over the proposed high-level
radioactive waste dump at Yucca Mountain. Such institutional zeal
would surely flounder without a strong grassroots movement which is
immune to political changes in the administrative or legislative
branches. Citizen Alert is the only statewide grassroots groups
which is conducting grassroots education and organizing against the
dump. Through these efforts, it is building necessary political
support to outspoken state leaders who oppose the
dump.
Regarding the difficult staff transition
alluded to in the article, remember that pain and conflict are
endemic to organizations which experience a change of leadership.
While I like to think I’m unique and irreplaceable, Citizen Alert
has found an extremely capable and energetic leader in executive
director Rick Nielsen. Rick and the others at Citizen Alert are
diligently carrying on the tradition of grassroots-movement
building in Nevada which the organization began a quarter-century
ago.
Bob
Fulkerson
Carson City,
Nevada
The writer is state
director of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of
Nevada.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Nevada’s grassroots are healthy.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
