We shouldn’t have to fight this hard to be heard, especially when the stakes are so high for women and children, particularly with the impact of radiation on reproductive health. This TV ad campaign highlights a serious communication failure. Every governor, including Governor Walz, who positions himself as down-to-earth, accessible, and a champion of reproductive rights must be held accountable for ensuring open and responsive channels for the public. Actions speak louder than words. The system should uplift the voices of those most at risk and directly affected, not force them to resort to public campaigns just to be heard or make them feel dismissed and gaslit in the process.
“That’s why we made Radioactive. The public needs to know and understand how they are being lied to, how key aspects of nuclear disasters and radiation impacts have been swept under the rug. And at what cost. This is life and death. An so we focus on buried women stories, and in subsequent film projects we hope to make as part of a series, we will bring in the silenced voices of black, brown, and women’s indigenous groups impacted unequally by nuclear disasters.” - Award-winning filmmaker Heidi Hutner
They're planning to TRIPLE nuclear power across the US. Think that won't affect YOU? Think again!
This film reveals the devastating truth about nuclear disasters and their cover-ups.
#Radioactive #CancerCoverup #NuclearLies #OurRiversAtRisk #SavetheMississippi
Believe it or not, we’re not here for the politics. If you
asked us what party we belong to, we’d probably say
”well, the Dance Party” . This isn’t your typical ad campaign. #BOOM2024 is a wake-up call! It’s about taking a stand against the systemic issues affecting our families. Scroll down to read the backstory of the Miller Family and their journey through this ordeal.
We're using this commercial to cut through the noise and demand action on:
The gaslighting around corporations, our military, and government poisoning our families and communities, and then trying to cover it up,
Indifference, negligence, or corruption within the EPA, NRC, FEMA, and other federal agencies,
The tech industry's unchecked growth and disregard for safety threating to destroy the nuclear power industry, our environment, and our children's future.
We're calling on Governor Walz, now Vice Presidential candidate, ALL elected officials, and even corporations like Kellogg's and other food companies to prioritize the well-being of families over corporate interests! ✔️FoodBabe.com
While "cancel culture" can sometimes be wielded inappropriately, it's crucial to hold powerful entities responsible for their actions. When corporations, politicians, or government agencies demonstrate a pattern of unethical behavior and refuse to change, boycotts and public pressure become vital for protecting our communities. This is about addressing systemic issues and demanding better from those in power by using the power of Aloha and solidarity. It's about saying NO with our votes, our money, and our voices across social media. This is about holding the most egregious offenders accountable.
#BOOM2024
The Miller Family Story:
This isn't some fictional story; it's our lives, and the problems we face are very real. Countless communities across the nation share our struggles, documentaries are piling up with evidence and horror stories, yet those in power outright dismiss any evidence contrary to their narrative, manipulate the truth, and try to make us doubt ourselves. This gaslighting is a dangerous form of manipulation, and we can't let it stand. This outrageous situation is real and we are fed up with the lies.
So, what’s all the fuss, you ask? Well... it’s quite the story. Our family—Atom (3), Riley(8), Kailani(10), Big Sis(24), Mom, Dad, and our dog Neo has been displaced in MN due to the ongoing housing crisis following the entirely preventable Maui wildfires. While we were stuck in Monticello, MN, trying to figure out our next steps, we learned that the Monticello Xcel Energy nuclear power plant, located less than 2 miles from our home, had leaked 400,000 gallons of radioactive water into the ground near our property and the Mississippi River.
Beyond the reports of a cover-up culture at the plant, with employees afraid to speak out and residents alleging that Xcel fosters an aggressive, toxic environment where questioning or criticizing the nuclear plant is strongly discouraged, let’s dive into just a few key facts. Maybe we’re being unreasonable, but try putting yourself in our shoes and imagine how you’d feel.
A major red flag is the report that millions of gallons of radioactive water were released as vapor plumes over the city of Monticello, exposing residents, pets, and crops without any public notice! They were even conducting dose calculations, likely relying on outdated and flawed assumptions rooted in models from the 1970s nuclear weapons era, which prioritized young male physiology over broader population cancer impacts like elders, women, and especially children. Yet, they still refuse to provide clear confirmation or transparency of any of these questions.
As we sought answers, more red flags were discovered through the limited information shared by Xcel and the NRC that the leak was far worse, potentially as much as 900,000 gallons and likely well over 14 curies of radioactivity! Even more alarming, they failed to notify us for months after the incident and still haven’t released most of the data and facts surrounding the entire incident. Just one of many huge red flags is that it is clear the saturated soils, part of the Mississippi River basin onsite that regularly exchanges water with the river, was contaminated with at least 14 trillion picoCuries (14,000,000,000,000 pCi) of radiation, based on assumptions Xcel and the NRC have refused to disclose or have proven completely false or intentionally misleading. This translates to an average concentration of at least 195,000+ pCi/L of tritium in the groundwater just feet from the river, well over EPA drinking water standards of 20,000 pCi/L and ODCM reporting limit of 30,000 pCi/L. Many wells have reported samples as high as 4,220,000 pCi/L - 2,700,000 pCi/L over time, in water wells in the vicinity of soil that hydraulically flows into and out of the river as they are only feet from the river. Xcel’s limited data even shows a swift shift in the contamination plume during the spring. This raises serious concerns about the Xcel and NRC levels and established limits of other, more dangerous radioactive or toxic contamination onsite. Are there additional radionuclides we should be testing for downriver and concerned about? Do we need to be concerned about upriver, knowing that during this same time of thawing and peaked samples as the radioactive plume moved, the river begins to flow upstream? We’ve even sent an Open Letter to Xcel Energy shareholders and leadership in hopes of obtaining a reasonable response.
Reports and documentaries across the United States reveal alarming hidden cancer rates among communities affected by radioactive contamination near nuclear power plants. The U.S. faces a significant gap in available health studies examining the effects of cancer in these areas, with previous attempts in the US to conduct such research “somehow” always failing to get approved. There’s decades of missing research. However, international studies provide a grim perspective, indicating that the rates of cancer in these communities are multiple times higher, and for kids can be akin to being born with cancer. A recent independent cancer study done around the Monticello mirrors these concerning findings, underscoring the urgency to address the public health crisis.
Itasca State Park, Mississippi Headwaters, taken Friday, October 11th, during the Aurora. All rights released by John Miller.
For coalition member John Miller (Turtle), this fight is personal. A husband and father of four children, a Monticello native (Class of 2000), a former Navy nuclear specialist, a 2022-2024 Mária Telkes Fellow with the Clean Energy Business Network (CEBN) & Cleantech Leaders Roundtable (CTLR), and Mississippi River coalition member, John has returned home to protect the community he loves. Although he had to make the difficult choice to relocate his young children and granddaughter (ages 3, 8, and 10) out of state to shield them from further radioactive contamination (click for short video by the kids), he remains committed to staying to ensure Monticello’s safety. This struggle hits close to home for John, especially after losing his father, LeRoy Miller, a beloved figure in Monticello and longtime president of the Monticello Lions and Riverfest treasurer, earlier this year. Adding a poignant twist, it was on LeRoy’s birthday, November 22nd, that the leak at Xcel was first revealed. Now, with a second leak occurring on John’s own birthday, March 24th, he faces a heavy heart as this crisis threatens his home as millions of gallons of radioactive tritium begin to pile up in large pools with undisclosed radioactive limits.
Let’s not overlook that the EPA’s limit of 20,000 pCi/L for drinking water is a relic from the 1970s—a time when we mistakenly believed leaded gasoline was safe, seatbelts were optional, and bloodletting was still considered a valid treatment. This reflects an error that has persisted over time. If your calculations are based on flawed assumptions, such as the fact that women are seven times more susceptible to cancer than men and that children—especially girls—are even more vulnerable, then any conclusions drawn from those calculations will be fundamentally flawed. Our children's health is at stake. The lack of honesty about the science and the refusal to reveal the truth about the facts and the data is deeply disturbing. Whether this is negligence, malice, or corruption, the consequences for our communities are devastatingly similar. We need answers now.
As our understanding of health and safety evolves, so too must our standards for drinking water and radiation exposure. Organizations like the Environmental Working Group (EWG) recommend limits between 0-400 pCi/L, and most research indicates that NO level of tritium is safe for pregnant or nursing mothers to ingest.
Now ask yourself: Did the Twin Cities receive any warning about the leak near or into the river? Were residents informed so they could decide to switch to bottled water or another source? Did Saint Paul’s water supply have time to change sources? The answer to all these questions and many more is NO!
We found out about the leaks far too late, stripping us of any opportunity for informed consent regarding our drinking water. We have the right to know what’s in our water supply and to access data about on-site contamination directly connected to the Mississippi River. Additionally, we deserve to know the cancer rates around the power plant and within our community.
Moreover, many critical questions remain unanswered: gaps in information, questionable assumptions in their calculations, and troubling rumors that Xcel may have been evaporating radioactive water over our town without notifying anyone. We’re relying on Xcel to self-report, but the potential perpetrator controls what information they share. They’ve misled us from the very beginning, and the media and news is filled with incorrect and outdated information, making it even more challenging to make the public aware of the truth. Our boundaries are being violated! Our communities deserve to know the truth!
This entire situation must be addressed. We need a special council appointed, and our leadership must actively oversee the process and restore transparency and integrity to the entire process. Our decisions should be guided by science and history. Truth must prevail, and integrity must be our guiding principle.
From Three Mile Island through Monticello, MN and soon at your doorstep!
Advanced technologies like human cloning, artificial intelligence, nuclear weapons, and nuclear power hold immense power and potential—but with that power comes an even greater responsibility. These innovations must be guided by unwavering integrity, combining strong internal responsibility with rigorous external oversight. Only through this balance can we ensure they are used safely and responsibly to protect society and future generations, our children who are to inherit this island Earth.
With the passage of the ADVANCE Act, signaling the government’s plan to triple nuclear power, and tech companies pouring hundreds of billions into the sector, the dangers once isolated to places like Three Mile Island and Monticello are poised to spread to every major city across the U.S. The same pattern of downplaying radiation risks and silencing whistleblowers seen in previous nuclear disasters is likely to become the new norm. Monticello’s missing spill data, deceptive announcements, ignored health concerns, and cancer rates echo what happened decades ago, but this time, the stakes are even higher.
Tech companies, notorious for prioritizing short-term profits over user safety, now seek control of an energy source with potentially catastrophic consequences. Their track record in mishandling mental health risks, especially for children, on social media raises serious concerns. What’s even more alarming is that the financial instability and boom-and-bust cycles of the tech industry make it risky to entrust them with such long-term, high-stakes contracts and projects. If these companies fail or lose interest, the public could be left vulnerable to disastrous nuclear accidents and to plants going bankrupt.
As nuclear energy expands into urban areas across the country, communities will face the same cover-ups, misinformation, and health crises that we are seeing in countless stories and documentaries piling up. These disasters could get much worse, especially considering the extreme thinning of the experienced workforce. With the combined influence of tech giants and a government eager to increase nuclear power, the story of nuclear disasters is no longer confined to history or documentaries; it's becoming the terrifying reality for cities everywhere. For us in Monticello, we still have a lot of questions still unanswered.
“The nuclear industry has won its plan to silence this history and science. They’ve invested heavily in painting a pretty picture, erasing facts, and denigrating concerned citizens, particularly women, as I have explained. There’s no recognition of the great harm done to fetuses, babies, children—especially girl children. There’s a complete disregard for the poisoning of communities of color. Dr. Robert Bullard, the father of the environmental justice movement, and Winona LaDuke, a leading indigenous ecofeminist activist, call this environmental racism.” - radioactivethefilm.com
The situation in Monticello, Minnesota, eerily mirrors the narrative of nuclear accidents and cover-ups depicted in recent documentaries. Just as seen in the Three Mile Island case, where cover-ups and misinformation hid the full scope of radioactive exposure, Monticello residents now face similar concerns. It is alarming to see the same dangerous tactics playing out in real life, just as depicted in award-winning films, where corporate and government interests prioritize covering up radioactive incidents over protecting public health. This is cancer; this is about our children and our families. This is human suffering. With the reckless expansion of nuclear power, Monticello’s struggles are a stark warning of what’s to come, especially for our children, who are the most vulnerable to radiation. As we push to triple the number of nuclear plants, the health of future generations is at greater risk than ever. The industry's history of accidents and cover-ups is not just a part of the past, but an escalating threat to our children’s safety and well-being as well as the importance of our most sacred resource, our drinking water. #WaterisLife
Radioactive: The Women of Three Mile Island is the title of a newly-released documentary feature film directed, written and produced by award-winning filmmaker Heidi Hutner, a professor of environmental humanities at Stony Brook University, a “flagship” school of the State University of New York.
Resident after resident of the area around Three Mile Island is interviewed and tells of widespread cancer that has ensued in the years that have followed the accident—a cancer rate far beyond what would be normal. Accounts shared in the documentary are heartbreaking.
A whistleblower who had worked at the nuclear plant tells Hutner of the deliberate and comprehensive attempt by General Public Utilities, which owned TMI, to cover up the gravity of the accident and its radioactive releases, especially of cancer-causing Iodine-131 and Xenon 133.
An attorney, Lynne Bernabei, involved in litigation in the wake of the accident, says the Three Mile Island “cover-up was one of the biggest cover-ups in history.” Meanwhile, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission which is “supposed to protect the public” has then and since been just “interested in is promoting the [nuclear] industry. This is corrupt,” says attorney Joanne Doroshow, now a professor at New York Law School and director of the Center for Justice & Democracy. Many examples of this are presented.
