Letter: Maya Miller fought on behalf of Nevada

Tuesday, June 6, 2006 | 7:13 a.m.

Thank you so much for the wonderful editorial on June 2 about Maya Miller, but I would be remiss in not pointing out one small fact. You mention that "most recently she opposed plans to build a nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain." There is nothing recent about Maya's opposition to Yucca Mountain. I believe it is important to know that if not for Maya we might already have nuclear waste in this state. When Maya learned 32 years ago that Nevada was one of the states being considered for a national repository, she took action.

In October of 1974 activists Susan Orr and Katherine Hale set off around the state to rally support against transporting nuclear waste from around the country to Nevada because Maya asked them a simple question: What do you think we should do?

The response of Nevadans to what they thought about nuclear waste coming to the state? We don't want it. Citizen Alert was born and 31 years of activism was born. Because of the "birth" of Citizen Alert and Maya Miller, our governors (well, except for one former unenlightened one, Bob List), Clark County commissioners, Las Vegas councilmen and almost every elected official (well, the enlightened ones) consistently oppose this insane project.

Maya not only funded Susan and Katherine's travel around the state but continued on a regular basis until her death. She also very generously financially supported Citizen Alert.

So, Maya Miller, that remarkable woman, has forever left her footprints all over this state, and I am forever grateful for her presence!

Peggy Maze Johnson, Las Vegas

Editor's note: The writer is executive director of Citizen Alert, a Nevada-based environmental advocacy group.