THE DEATH OF

KARE,N SILK'§rOOD

The difference between a true story and a fictional one'

is this: a fictional story has an ending, but a true story
does not. When we have read the last page of a fictional
story, we know everything: there is nothing glore to
discover. In a true story, there is always more to find
out, because vre can never know it all.

People often say that real Iife is stranger than fiction. It

can certainly be just as frightening - and sometime§
much more worrying.

This is a true story about the death of Karen Sillcwood.

'Was
Her death is a mystery. it an accident? It's the old,
old question: 'Did she fall, or was she pushed?''§7e don't
know" But somebody does. Somebody out therer in the
real world, knows if her death was an accident, or if it
was not. Somebody knows - somebody who is alive and
well and living an ordinary life, somewhere in America,
and who remembers what really happened ' . .
 The accident

It was dark. Nobody saw the accident. The srnall white

car was found on its side by the,@ A river ran
and th. .ll -r. lying next to
€@h. @Qh.re,
ilr. Urla*-"*all, btlw the road. Inside the car was a dead
lr. woman. Her nanie was Karen Silkwood and she was

'tlow did the car (oríe offihe road?'Why was it on the

(rr@$siae of the rorF\rhy was it so far from the road?
.:.
Ttr¿iá was nothing wrong with the cár. Karen Silkwood
,1"; was a good driver. Everybody knew that-

Hou did the car come off tbe road?

 I
The Death of Karen SiLkwood
The police thought that there lvas an easy answer to
,)_*s+uqrions. Karen rvas tired after a long day, so she
@tt urt..p)whiie she was clriving. It cóuld happen to
\--___-/
ani6ne very easily. They took the car to a garage and they
took Karen's body to a hospiial"
But some people '¡/ere not hnppy about the accident.
First of all, h"t boyfriend, Drew Stephens. AIso a
newspaper journalist {to¡n the New York- Times and a
Union official from Washington. These three men we¡e
waiting for Karen on the night of the acciclent. She was
bringing them some papers and some photographs in a big
brc,wn envelope, The papers were very impo-rtant. The
merr were waiting fo¡ I(aren in a hotel room'á few miles
from the acciCent. Br¡t she never arrived. §7hen they heard
about]. the accident, the men lookecl for the brown
envllope at oncel, They looked fc,r it insrcle rhe white car"
They looked for it at the hospital ánd at "rhe police station.
.,- morning they looked alJ around the wail and in
The next
the river, but they never fgund it. Nobody@DfoLu',d that
brown envelope. . v
i morning. Just give me a photograph of you and I'il give
i,--.- --.- =*--.-,---.:-_-,---
: ' The new job
The story of Karen and her brown envelope began in1972
when she took a new job at a
nuclear factory in
C)klahoma. Before that, she worked as a secretary, but in
1972 she was really tired of a secretary's life- She looked
in the newspaper and saw that there was a job at the
nuclear facrory. The pay was much beffer than a secretary's
pay, andthe work was more interesting. She went to see
Mr Bailey, the rnanager of the factory, and she was
. r li
sllrprrseü ana nappy whur he gave her the job imrrediately.
He asked Karen to start work the next day"
Orr her firsr day at the factory Karen learnt a ]ot. Mr
Bailey tolcl her that she had to wear a special white coat,
sorne special shoes and a whire hat'
'Th*. clothes protect you from radioactive dust,' he
said. 'There isn't really any danger, of course- Everything
is safe here. '§7e check everything all the time.'
'I see,' said Karen.
'You need an identity card to get into the factor,v every
- . ., - '*
-.-- . -
Íóü a-cáid. I;piéEy-piétuie óf á piétty siil.:
He smiled. I(aren didn't like that smile.
 i

Tbe Deatb of Karen Silkwood The new job

'He thinks I'm stupid,' she thought. '§7hy do men
always think that pretty girls are stupid?'
He was stili speaking.
'Now I'll call Mrs Phillips. She'll take you round the
factory and show you your laboratory. The manager there
will explain the job to you. Don't worry - ii'Svály easy.'
He smiled his thin smile again
The door opened and Mrs Philiips came in. She was
about forty years old and a little fat. She looked afraid.
'You wanted me, Mr Bailey?
'Yes, Susan. This is Karen Silkwood. She's going to
work with you in your laboratory" Could you take her
round the factory and tell her about the work?',
'Oh, I see. Of course) Mr Bailey. Please'follcw me, Miss
glass box. There were holes in the side of the box * just
big enough for hands. Everyone looked at Karen.
'What's in the box?' Karen asked Susan.
:,];.ff."Jilit;,. one worke¡
,lOr beer,' said another.
:,,
: 'Don'[ listen to themr' said Susan. 'It's fuel ¡ods and
uranium" §7e put uranium into the fuel rods. That's why
you must always wear your gloves. A¡d when you leave
the laboratory, always remember to take off your gloves
and check your hands in f¡ont of the scanner.'

'§7hen
:i
the office door closed, Mrs Phillips smiled at
Karen, and said, '

.'nl
'That was \lucky! Usually if he calis me, he wants to
shout at me about something. Please call me Susan. Can
I call you Karen?'

They walked down a long corridor with heavy doo¡s

on both sides. Susan opened one of the doors.
'This is our labbratory.'
K;;;;;;i" ;;;;';Éü;i;ffih";"*o*: tl;ey *.ié - ?
all wearing white gloves and their hands were inside a big There tuere boles in tbe side - just big enough for hands.
 /
The Death of Karen Silkwood

She showed Karen the scanner, which was near the Karen and Drew
door.
'Ifthere's any radioactive dust on your hands, the .'.;.r.
- -.

scanner knows at once. An alarm rings all over the At fust Karen liked her new job. She was an o¡dinary, small-
factory.' town girl who liked ordinary'things: a comfbrtable home,
. , a glass of beer, an evening with good friends. Soon she had
'And when the alarm rings, the party begins,' said one
man. : ,'lsóme new f¡iends from the factory.
' 'Party?' Karen asked. : :' " : ...i :i. She also liked Drew. He worked in another part of the
lYou can take off all your clothes and have', ,rrrirr, . . . , factory, but everyone used the same coffee bar. She met him
with lots of.water.' , days after she started the iob. ln the coffee bar she and
, a few
'Heiurneans they wash you in a shower,l said Susan' 'It .,,'Sor^r, were laughing together at a story in the newspaper.
.\.
doegn't háppen very often'' , , Then Karen suddenly heard a voice behind her.
,,, ,.. .!Here's a new face.',
l Kareh went home háPpy.,! the end'of thg'day, She
' " ' 51r. turned round quickly. A tall man wa§ standing iust
didr,;t think that the work wai difficult. And the money
l', behiqd her chair with a cr:ffee in his hand.
,: Be careful with that coffee, will you?' said Karen. 'Yoü're
, going to drop some on me in.a ttroment.l ' ' , ..
' Í . .- .!.-,---,-.: ._ -.r . . , .; i,,i,.
-'.,:llr's
;-:.ilq'l toó,E-bod to be true. Nobody as belutiful á! you ever
-.:
*orks in this factory.'What about having á pizzá with me
ionighq after work?' -' ,' ",
Karen'wasnlt sure what to say. F{e looked nice, but she
. :,
,,':
didn't knów ánything about him. r,

Susan understood what Karen was thinking.

'Don't wgriy, dear, It's only Drew. He:: big and he
tt ttlk much;6ut-lx;'s ñóT?an§éious.'-''- ---
Drew laughed.
 T'he Death of Karen Silkwood

'Thanks, Susan. I'11 buy you a.coffee every day this

week for that"' The shower
He turned to Karen.
'Can I buy you a pizza or not? \7hat do you say?'
Karen smiled. But in the summer of everything b'egan to change.
1.974

'l never mrss a free meal"' One evening Karen and Susan were leaving the laboratory.
§7hen Karen arrived at the .restaurant that evening, First Karen checked her hands in front of the scanner, and
Drew was already there" He¡stood up wtLen she came in then a minute later Susan checked her hands. Suddenly
and gave her a. big friendly smilei- l(aren thought of Mr rhere was a terrible inoise. It was like a high sóiéa-ñr.
BaiJey's smiie. How could two smiles be so different? Everybody could hear it all over the factory" Susañ didn't
Karen found rhat it was very easy lo talk to Drew" He move" She just looked at her hands. Then the door of the
listened to what she said and rhey laughed at the same iaboratory flew open. Two men in white coai§''ran in and
things. It was like talking to her favourite brother. In the took Susan by the arms. Before Karen could do anything,
--,,"
tl!^L
f-.', ,,,^^l,"
rulv \r!!r\r rL-., "-o., o l^t
^f
¡ime tnoeth..
b..-.,..
llrrerwnne they pulled Susan throrrgh the door" The terrihle noise of
ar the factory saw how huppy they were. Life was going the alarm was still going, Karen shouted:
well for Karen" 'Where are you taking her?'
Nobody could hear.iNobody answered. Suddenly tl-ie
noise stopped. Karen turned to the other workers"
''§7here will she be?'
'In the shower room.'
Karen ran out of the laboratory and along the co¡ridor
to rhe shower room.
Inside the room Susan was screaming Karenlpushed
open the door. "-*---/
Suian hád no cloahéa -on, ánd the two méñ were
ln the next few weeLs Kaien and Drew spent a lot of time together. showering her from head to foot - in her eyes, inside her

lrl

l{..
l
The Death of Karen Silkwood
l
ears, everywhere. The water hit her body like stones.
'Stop thatl' shouted Karen. 'You're hurting her.'
'Not as rnuch as radioactive dust can hurt her. One very
smali piece could kill her,' shouted back one of the men.
Ten minutes iater rhey sropped the shower: Susan's face
was as white as snow and she was shakjng with cold" The
men checked her body again with a hand scanne!:.
'OK. You're clean no'w. Put your clothes on. ln five
minutes we'll come back ancl take you to the rnedical
centre for more tests.'
T'hey left. Susan looked at Karen.
'They say I'm clean. Outside perhaps. Bur rvhat about
inside? l{ow much radioactive dust is in my body? Am I
('L,.t" )'
Her voice was quiet ancl dred. Sudd,enly she looked oid.
Slowly, she began to put her clothes on.
"'FIc¡t"? §7hat do you mean?' asked Karen.
"'Hot" means radioactive.'
'J see.'
Karen looked at her own hand.s" Were they clean? How
carefuliy cljd rhe scanner check them? Shc ivorked next to
Susan in the laboratory. Perhaps the dust was on her
hands, too.
'I'm sure you're 6ne, Susan. The men said you were
'Nobody knows" IJranium is very new. Nobociy really
10
Tbe sbotuer
knows wl-rat it can Co to us.'
One of the men came back with a woman.
'Come along, dear. Time for your medical tests.'
Then they saw l(aren near the door.
'§7hat are you doing here? If you've finished work for
today, you can go home.'
Karen did not listen to them.
'Are you OI(, Susan? Do you want me to come with
you?'
Susan shook her head.
'No, it's OI(" You go home, I(aren. I'ii phone you later.
Úon't worry about me. And thank you.'
, The man and the r,vornan took Susan's arms ai:d i,valked
down the corridor, u'ith Susan betiveen rhern. She !.rokcd
very small and very afraid.
They took Susan's arms and walked down the caii'i'dor, uith
Susan betwee.n tbem.
1_L
 Tbe new union official

'Of course,' answered Karen" 'I understand. Drew and

I have talked about this. He's thinking about leaving, too,'
The new union official 'It's OI( for a young man, strong like Drew. He can get
'§ühy
many other jobs. You could leave too, Karen. don't
l

1l youl
tl,l After the shower Susan was a different person. She was ,,, '§scause I've decided to change things here. I like the
li.
quiet and didn't laugh very often. One evening, a few job and I like the people who work here. The money is
i
m'ónths after the shower, Karen met Susan in a bar for a 'We just
good. need to improve safety - that's all. Surely
'We
iilii,ll drink after work. rhat's not difficult? have to talk to the managers and
lril,il
,tl 'You know, Karen, we really must leave the factory. It's reli them it's important. Do you know Bob in Laboratory
i6¡ 'vf.ll, don't laugh, bur he's asked me to be on the
il
:,r ''
rii
very dangerous. How many times do we hear the alarm
now? More and more often. And every time we hear it, Ünion Committee, and I'm going to try it.'
Il
we know that someone is in danger"' i,. 'But, Karen . . .you can't. You're a woman. There are
(IJ^,., l^-" itIL Lo^^o- ) I án-'t rrnrlcrcf aná it ' id
lii
'ti
I fVYV UVUÜ
ce
no women on thc Committcc. The men 'won't votc lor
Karen" you,' said Susan.
;lii
;l;i 'It's working twenty-four hours
because the factory is 'Perhaps not,' replied Karen. 'But what about you? \7i11
i:iii
a day. The safery people can't do their job well. They have you vote for me? Do-you know how many women work
L,

to check everything carefully every day, but when can they for this factory? Hundreds. And why won't the men vote
do it? Vhen we finish, there are the people who come in for me? Perhaps t;-ln.-ártt woman who has asked for
lii to woik at night. The managers don't care about the ' their vote.'
rii
ii
¡l danger. They only care about the money. And you know, Susan smiled. '\7ell .'. .'
Karen, I'm just the same, I also have to think only of But she couldn't 6nd a good answer to Karen's
it;
l'i
money. I have three children and my husband is dead. i question.
need the'money from the factory. It's more than I can get A week later, when the workers had to vote for the new
*--ó;ñrirt*ñóir
'1, ffim ;ñi- ot6üF5 ín*Otñhórriá-:- Tffiée'óhiidfeñ á?é óI-thé *o-"., ,óréd 6l{;rri. Ánd a
expensive, very expensive " , .' lot of the men voted for her, too. They saw that she really
I

13
,]

il
t:
I

!r. "-,-. ---_-=

: '::---'.-_-_:--
 The Deoth oI Kuren Silkwood

l,

wantecl to change things at the .factory, and everyone 6

agreedwith her that safery \,vas very important. So Karen
was now an official on the factory's Union Committee. The rneeting in Washington

A month or two later the alarm souttcle.l again. This timc

''.li Karen was in front of the scanner. She went quietly witl'i
rl
the men in u,,hite coats. But after her shower she aske.]
i.,
them a lot of qr-iestions about safety in the factory.
'fhey
.,il,i
,it
li: l
didn't answe.r any questions. They just got a.ngry.
ijl'r,i
¡;,ll They l<new she was on rhe Union Commj¡tee and thcy
lril,ii
'rli were afraid of her. AII the managers knew that Karen was
..',,],
;i: on the Committee because she always haC a notel-,ook in
r r r r I I I :l l---,-- -^.---.^.-
-Il-'l-.lllc sL?Lllllcl
ner lIaIlo. ln ner lIOLeu()uK Sllg-----^-^
w.iu¡.c uuwll Jll
alarms, every shower and e\¡ery other cianger irt the
Most of the women uoteci for Karen"
factory. .She asked a lot oI people a lot o[ questions an,l
always wrote the ansu'ers in her notebook.
'l'he notebook
was gerting fuil.
In Septernber 1974 the Union Committee had a meeting.
Everybody could see that safety at the tactory r,r,as getting
worse. 'Ihe Committee decided to write ro the Union
leaders in Washingtori and ask for help. 'l wo days iater
there was a phone cail from Washington. f'he ,ieaderi-;
wanted to see the Union Committee immediately* iá'
§Tashington. a'
'§lashir-rgton
F'or Karen this jour:ney to was a big

14 L5
 ¡

"W
Tbe Death of Karen Silkwood The meeting in ash ington

. adventure. She wanted to see The §7hite House and ail the
other famous places in the first city of the USA, but she
had very little. free time. She spent nearly ail the time at
a long meeting"
At first the leaders just listened to what Karen and the
others said about the factory. Their faces got more and
more unhappy. Karen explarned what was happening.
'The managers take photographs of the fuel rods to
check that they are safe" But I know that they are secrerly
changing the negatives of the photographs. And why are
they doing that? Because the photographs show that the
rods are not safe.'
. Suddenly one of the leaders said to Karen,
tDn.¡nrr lnáerct¡ná r¡¡h,¡r rr¡r¡¡'re c"¡'ino N,,[i". q;lL.rr^^rl)
r¡ ¡t;) 1f (¡JJ

The lives of many people could be in danger if you're

right. Uranium is very, very dangerous.'
' ,'I'm just telling you what the people in the photographic
laboratory have told me,' Karen said.
'If this is true, the government will close your factory"
Do you understand what that means? A lot of people will
lose their jobs. The story will be on the front page of every
newspaper.'
Karen iooked unhappy. ''§7ill it? '§7e only want the
! managers to change a few tl-rings and to be more careful
.1 - -ábbür safety,'
Karen asked a lot of people a lot of questions. 'l think it's already too late for that.'

L6 17
 l.l
Tbe Deatb of Karen Silkwood The rneeting in Washington
I

ti
After the meeting one of the leaders stopped Karen
l;
I, outside in the corridor.
' ';rr, come with me for a minute, please,' he saicl.
lr He took Karen into a small room and closed the door.
lt' He didn't want anybody to hear them.
. ,, 'Karen, we need proof about these negatives. tüTithout
1,,',

lr:
proof nobodl, will believe our story. Can you get some for
li, US ?,
l
t,.,
JlX/har proof do you need??
[,,,,,',
1j.,,, 'someone will have to go into the photographic
ii,,,'.i laboratory and steal some negatives. \ile need the negatives
lrl.'.1l,
bo,th before they change them and after they change them.
Do you know, where they keep the negatives?'
l,.., (v^^ r l--,-,., , ^^:) t/ ^-^- -,.;-r],. .D,,,
lL .,-:ll
l.',,i' L C5, I 5dl(l l\dl Lrl 9uJULl). DUL ir \Vrit Lutr vcl y
^rtrJVi,
l;:;r difficult. I don't work in the photographtc labor:arory. If
l,., ' óne of the managers sees me there, how can I explain i.vhat
li,''"
I'm doing?'
i.:iiri; , 'I don't know, but you'li have to think of something.
W. can'r help you if you haven't any ploof.' .
l¡.,,'i
1,,,i ' They were both silent for a minute. I(aren looked out
li';l of the window. It was a lovely evening. She thought of Mr
Bailey's cold smile and Susan's screams in the shower.
]1,,. 'I'11 do it,' she said.
Iilri
, 'Good girl. It u,ill be very ,Cangerous. Nobocly must
lill,.,,il
--linow what you'rc doing. ñót yóur frieñás on rhe
li,i'iii Karen spent neaily all the time at a long meeting. Committee - nobody. I'li be the oniy person who knows"

li;t
Il:i,. 18 19

llii
lir,,i
lr't'li
ti[iill-
*
 Tbe Death of Karen Silkwood

I'll phone you once a week and you can tell me how you're
getting on"'
The brown enYelope
'Nobody? Can't I tell my boyfriend Drew?' asked
Karen.
'No. It could be dangerous for anybody who knows.' "§7hen she arrived back 'W'ashington,
from Drew was
'I see. OK. I'll do what I can,' said Karen slowly. wartlng at the alfport.
'Be very, very careful. You're a brave girl. l'd like to
r :Did you have a good time?'
thank you for agreeing to do this.' .,, iNot really. Things ár'e worse at the factory than we
Karen stood up. Outside the window the sun was still iho,rght. The Union leaders are going to send some
shining, but she felt cold and lonely. doctors to the factory to talk to everyone about the
'Can I phone you if I need to speak to someone?' árrrg.r, of uranium.'
'Of course. Any time, day or night. This is my card with , 'Poor Karen. You lqok very tired. Let's go home, have
my name and phone number.' a beer and listen to some music. Forget the factory for one
Karen took his card. She saw that his name lvas Pete. L Y !1¡r1r¿;.

She looked at him once more and then she left the room.
: :Kaien looked at Drew's kind, strong face. She wanted
f ' so much to tell him . . . but no, she mustn't tell anybody.
.f Sf,. ried to smile.
.ii' I 'oK. what about a przza at our favourite restaurant?'
f she said.
{ O,r.ing the month of October 1974 Karen told nobody
about her secret, but she felt very lonely. She began to
'}
{ #ork at nights because there were fewer people working
i{' i" the factory then, and so it was easier to get into the
,f -¡.IqJ:"g:3pU:, llb:'",y1-v:ll -*y''lv
and carerullv, she
I began stealing negatives. She put the negatives in a brown
i and put the envelope in a secret hole in tt . *ríi
'.rru.lope
z0 27

Tbe Death of Karen Silhtuood
Yery slowly and carefully, Karen began stealing negatiues.
of her ho'rse. NJcbody knerv ir was there" In the dal'rime,
when she was not at work, it was difficult to sleep. She
was afraid all the time. She often {elt that people ',veie
watching her"
Soon some doctors came from'§Tashington ar:d spoke
to the workers. Afrer that everyone tried to help Karen.
They were really afraid when they heard about the
dangers of uranium. Soon Karen had to begin a new
notebook. Everywhere she went in the factory, the
notebook went with her.
The managers watched Karen and rhey watched her
.roteboók. óne day shá.l"ft-it on a table in;iiilolf;é bá;
for rwo minutes while she went to get some sugar. A
I
The brown enuelope
manager tried to take it, but the other workers stopped him"
'§7hat are you doing? That's l(aren's book.'
, The manager's, face turned red,and he put the boolr
down. But the managers wéfe nów watching her all the
time. It was more and more difficult to get into the
photographic labora¡ory. But in rhe iast weck of OcLober
I(aren told the Union leader in Washington that she had
nearly all the proof necessary.
'That's wonderful,' said Pete's soft voice in lrX/ashington.
"rVhen you're ready, I'11 take )/ou to meet an important man
from the New York Times. §7e'11 give the story to the
newspapers, and they'li tell the world about it. Then thc
government and the factory managers will have ro do
something about the dangers of your vt,ork.'
'Give me just a little more time,' said Karen. And she put
down the teiephone.
i
I
I
l
.,
I
x
_. __l. .:
'We'll giue tbe story to the newspapers," said Pete's soft uoice
inWashington.
Z3
 A'hot'bome

\|
A'hot'home

At the beginning of November Karen was ready for the

meeting with the NetaYorkTimesjournalist. The brown
envelope was full.
Then Drew decided ro leave his job at the factory. He
told Karen that the work was too dangerous" He wanted
Karen to leaYe, too.
'Not yet,' Karen said. She wanted to stáy until the
meeting with the Neru YorkTimes. She knew she would
'I On her taay into the laboratory Karen passed tbe scanner.'
have to leave the factory after that" But how could she t,'i
explzrin to Drew? . ,' , .,:i,
i, sandwich out of the fridge. On the way into her laboratory
:

Karen was now working during the daytime again, and I

she passed the scanner. Immediately the alarm sounded.
* th9 evening of'November 6th ¡|rt,pqs¡ed,the scanner ,1
i Everyone stopped what they were doing. The alarm never
o., h.¡ way oot of the l4boratory. i§udden_fyr the alarm ri
,l
went off when people arrived - only when they left . . .
sounded,,she had to have añóther'shower, 'Afrer the
i
I Everyone looked at Kar_en,- -
.t-.
shower she went home, very tired and unhappy. I
'Perhaps the scanner's, wrong' said Susan.
i

After she arrived home, she went io the bathqoom for

¡

I
I
I
But the men in white ariiled and began to pull. Karen
a quick wash and then she went to thg kitchen, to'make our of the room.
I
I

l
a sandwich for the next mórning at the,rfactory. Thgn she 'No, please . . . not again. All my body hu¡ts from the
,' ', ,-", ' "'"t, .'.
I

wenttobed. ,,' i
I shower last night . . .'
--
'-.'.-,.-*--**.-,:--*-- --,.",-. r'ri -"' ---:_" I

Tñ next ñiñiñir, ññ,:m6&7ih]sñe sót uilah?"weni I

Bür nob-tdi lisltnü. Théy lh-o-weréá her again. But
still tired, and she forgot to take her after the shower she didn't pass the usual scanner test.
,

to work. She was

 ..:iilf:"-
i-;, .

.;l
,i A'bot'home
The Deatb of Karen Silkwood t
ii
iii'r
t ,f i
,, .::i!
. '::l

There was still something radioactive in her body. 'Stay in the car,'." one of the men in white shouted at
'§fhat does it mean?' asked l(aren. ''.::1 Karen.
Nobody answq¡ed., A doctor- arriyed and checked the ::l '
But Karen didn't/islqn to him. She followed them to the
;:,j:
test again. He shook his head. r..l: house and lookedlthrough the windows' The men went
''§7here were you last night?' he asked. '
all round the house with the scanners and everywhere was
':iá':

radi"oactive - the kitchen, the bedroom, the bathroom.

l,1j;li: -'

didyoú gb after work?' . ' . '

ji -iii:,:
.. rWhe¡e
_

The kitchen was very'hot', and when the men o|.ned the
.

:,,;:l.l

'Home, of course. I was tired so I went to bed.: '

fridge, the noise from the scanners was Yery loud. The
ti
Ar:e you suref
aL
,. ,..;:. , ,_.,,. . .:
i -ii: ,. l men followed the noise to the sandwich.
'Sure? Of course I'm sure.' 1,. :
'I suppose she made this last nighr,' said one of the men.
.',,,;Did'yoose_eanyone?' I' ;"'' ....,:.].
'stupid girl. She's lucky that nobody has eaten it.r
"' lonly ih. other girl in my hoüs.f Parla;'Iljust said goo<1 ':
:r. .'
-i' They put the sandwich carefuily into a bag. That was
night to her. She was alreacly in bed.' only the beginning, Soon all Karen's things were in bags
'§?hen
'OK " . . Let's go,' said one of the men in white. - her clothes, her books, her photos. they took her
''§7here?'
'§7hat's your e ddress?' ,

'26Third Avenue West . . . §7hy?'

'Get in the car. Don't ask stupid qüestions. ,\)7e don't

lThieves? What have I stolen?'

'Get into the car.'
Someone pushed I(aren into a big white car. It was fuli
of more men in white. They were all wearing;rhe special
white clothes and hats to protect their f.aáland bodies,
and they were all holding scanners. They drove to Karen's
home and opened the door with Karen's key. Soon all Karen's things were in bags.

26 27

Tbe Deatb of Kareru. Silkwood
photo of Drew, Karen couldn't stay quiet any longer.
''What are you doing? It's just a photol'
'Be quietl' they told her. 'Don't you understand
anything? Your house is very radioactive. The walis are
"hotl' too. §(/e can't ieave anything in the house; it's not
safe. Think of the people next door" Now we're going to
lock the house and nobody must go in again. ?hone your
friend Paula and tell her to 6nd somewhere to sleep
tonight. Don't tell her too much. Nobody musr know
what's happened here. People won't understand and
they'll begin to worry and get afraid. Thatts not good for
'The factory . . . ? 'Who cares about the factory? \i{/hat
about me? If my house is raCioactive, I'm radioactive ioo,'
said Karen
'lWhy didn't you think of that before you stole the
uranium? Go to your boyfriend's house. Don't go out"
Don't speak to anyone" We'll phone you tomorrow and
tell you what to do"'
They pur all the bags in the car and drove awaLy.l(aren
stood alone in the middle of the street",They thought she
was a thief. But why? Who could want to take r.rrrnir'rrn
out of the factory? Everyone knew how:stupid and
-dyq::g:¡ tha¡_ y-a¡, she Iooked-
" lil:"ll:t "lr._'_ :lfg
house. Now there was nothing in her home - only a brown
envelope in a hole in the wall.
28
:.
,'.
t,r
Where to go?
Karén. tried to think. She was 'hot'. Perhaps she was
dying. rshe was dangerous to other people, dangerous to
Drew" She couldn't phone him. She was alone. She forgot
about Pete in':Vashington. She sat down on the ground
and cried. She wanted to die quickly.
Three hours later Drew found her there. She was still
sitting on the ground. Her face was white and empty. She
didn't look up when he walked across to her.
'Karen, m.y Karen, come with me at once" Someone
from the factory phoned me" I know everything. Karen
. . . look at me.'
'Don't come near me. I'm dangerous to you.'
'Don't be stupid. I talked to the doctor at the factory.
He says you're not dangerous to anyone. You've had a
shower, so your body's not radioactive now.'
Karen looked up into his face. 'And you believe him?
Do you still believe anybody in that place? Do you also
believe I stole uranium from the factory?'
'Of course not. Did they say that to you? That's terrible!
§faiiuniil ¿ómóiiów. \üh¿ñ I ¿ét in theie, ihey'llbe sorry
they ever said that to you.'
29
 The Deatb of Karen Silk-uood

10

Karen explains to Drew

l.,
llr 'fhat nrght Karen and Drew couldn't slecp" They had to
I

I
telk.
li,
li 'How did your irouse get so radioactive? That's the
1., question,' said Drew.
l¡
li 'I think,' answered Karen, 'that someorle put something
r¿rdioactive into my bag last night before I left the factory.
li
l;i
lir I remember that I left my bag on the table for a few
minutes at coffee time in the affe;noon.'
t, Karen stoad alone outsicle her em¡ttlt house.
'But, Karea, 'who dici tha¡? And'why?'
ii ii,'..
ti li .nO ^^.-l
-.- gOOC, ñ-^".,
L)iuw, f ,-
i,,;,.^
r ru ulnrE;,
, --,,1
..,,., l(al:C'il qUiefly. 'l ',')...., I'm oninu r.r t"il \-ñr r c¡rrnt.thino. Pel'h¡ ns J'm
lr'
don't know how this happened, but I know one thing. dying nolv, so there mustlt't be any secrets between us an,v
lj. There are people ar that factory who waflt to see me deaci.' more. I agreed to get photos of the fuel rods for the Uuion
li, 'I(aren . . you're tired. You need a holiday. You must in '§flashington. I've stoien photos and negatives frorn the
lii
lir leave the factory iike rne. Come home lvith tne now.' photographic laboratory. Perhaps someone saw me
il I
I 'Hone? I haven't got a home anv lrrore.' I(aren pur her one of tlte managers.'
t,' '§7hy?'
:i:1
heal rn her hanCs. 'You've stolen photos?'§7hat photos?
ji,l

!:, l)rew looked at the empty house. His face was white Karen explained everything to Drew. He was very quiet
tj,l and angry. when she finished. In the end, he took her hand.
t1l
ir 'Did they do that, too? Karen . . . my home is your hr.,me 'Karen, this is very dangerous. I'm afraid for you.
I
,i1
irom now on.' Perhaps someone does want to kill you. Didn't you think
r¡i
Hc took both I(aren's hands and pulled her to her teet. of ihái'dángéiwhén théUnioii áikéd roü to do this? \trhy
I-{e heiped her to his car, and took her home" did you agree to do it?'

30 31
 Tbe Death of Karen Silkwood Karen explains to Drew

'Because I care, Drew. Somebody has to do something.

'Why not
me? I care about you, about Susan, about
everyone who has ever worked at that factory. If the danger
from radioactive dust doésn't stop, perhaps we'll a1l die"

'Yes, I
understand,' said Drew quietly. "But I also
understand that you're doing a difficult and dangerous
job alone. You mustn't work alone any more. I'll be with
you all the time. Nobody is going to hurt you again.'
Karen smiled.
'I was right to tell you. I need a friend, and you,are the
best friend thar I have. But it's not much longer now. AÉter
the meeting with the NewYorkTimes,everything will be
c-:^L^l
ItlilJUCLl. rr Lail
^-- -^ Ur.' t^- d
^- ]Ur r^-.. trrl_rltr Uay§.
^ ICW l^-.^ D.--
rjuL t,l'l LClt --^,-
r lr -^ll yuu
BL, -^-^
everything from now on.'
Next morning Karen telephoned Pete in §Tashington and
the Union Committee at the factory. She told them about
her house dnd'that the managers were calling her a thief"
F.rom Vashingtr:n Pete's voice sounded angry and
worried. '=
,
'The factory;. *rnrg.rs are trying to sack you. Say
nothing, do nothing" \7e'll speak to them and tell them that
we know-what's happened to you. You must have medical

..- . - l-:.j',:4.y.1[::1[!.9:!Ti_ --_

Karen iwaited at Drew's house all day. In the evening the
That night Karen and Dreu couldn't sleep. They had to talk. phone rang.

32 .1.1

17
Ihe night drive
Karen, Paula and f)rew went to Los Alamos and had the tests.
The doctors said that Karen's body was still a little radioactive,
but Drew and Paula were all right" It was very good news.
They rold Karen that she was in no danger now. But rhey
aiso explained thar they didn't know about the future.
'lt will be a few years,' they said, 'before we know that
you're really all right.'
The doctors said that Karen's body was still a little radioactiue.
36
The night driue
High in the mountains around Los Alamos, Paula,
Drew and Karen had a parry in a little restaurant" Karen
felt years younger. She was not going to die. She and Drew
still had a future together. They all danced until midnight.
The next day they took the plane back to Oklahoma
Ciry. Karen had to go back because that evening there was
a Union meeting at the factory and after that, her meeting
with Pete and the journalist from the NewYork.Times.
It was an important day for her. They arrived at the
airport in the morning. Early in the evening Karen drove
to her house. She went alone because Drew was working.
She used her key and went quietiy irto the house" She was
only inside the house for three minutes and then she left
irnmediate]y rnd rvent to the Unicn rneeting at fhe f'actory.
That night at the meeting, Karen had a big brown
envelope in her bag. The envelope was too big for the bag,
so everyone could see it. All the workers were very happy
to hear that Karen was all right. They we¡e afraid that she
was very ill, so when they saw her looking huppy and well,
everyone felt better.
'She looks as happy as she did a year ago,' thought
Susan. 'A pretty, h^ppy girl, who likes a good time and
a good laugh.'
After the meeting a lot of people wanted to talk to
Ká?€n and ásk hér aboui thé last few days"
'I'm sorry,' she said. 'I can't talk to you now.
7.'7
 The Deatb of Karen Silkwood The night driue

I have to go to another meeting.' , Karen never arrived at her meeting with Drew, Pete and
'rü/ith your good-looking Drew?' asked someone with the journalist from the Ne¿v YorkTimes. On the road to
a friendly laugh. the meeting, a few miles from the nuclear factory, she had
'Yes,' said Karen. '§íith Drew. And one or two other an accident by a wall near a river. It was November 13th,
people.' She smiled. 1974. Nobody ever found the brown envelope.
'Can I rake you in my car?' asked her {riend Bob.
'No, thanks,' said I(aren. 'I've got my car here.'
It was dark when Karen left the factory. .She smiled at
ti :, I

a-11 her friends, got into her smal1 white car and drove

away.

Nobody euer found the brown ettuelope.

38
 Glossary

GLOSSARY nuclear a kind of energy made by breaking the centrai part of

alarm a loud sound (often a bell) which tells people thar rhere
is danger
bar a room where people can buy and have drinks
beer an alcoholic drink
believe to think rhat somerhing is true
*ave (adj) not showing rhar you are afraid
care(u) to feei interest in something or someone
check (u) to look ar somerhing carefully to see if it is right,
good, safe, etc.
committee a group of people chosen by others to plan and
organize for them
corridor a long narrow passage with doors into rooms
envelope a paper cover for a Ietter or other papers
fridge (refrigerator) a kind of cupboard which keeps food cold
fuel rods metai tubes which contain uranium
gloves covers for the hands
government rhe group o[ people who control a country
identity card a card with your photograph on it, which shows
who you are
journalist a person who writes for newspapers
laboratory a building or room where scientists work
leade¡ someone who is the most important person in a group,
a government, a union, e[c"
manager someone who controls a business, a factory, a bank,
etc.
medical connected wirh medicine, docrors, hospital, etc.
ilsátivd'-pié¿éó"óf 61;n fro ñ"wlii¿li we ;ñál¿a p'Iño d,pfis
an atom into two Pieces
offrcial (n) someone who does important work fo¡ a union, a
government, etc.
ordinary not strange or special
pretty nice-looking, lovely
proof anything which shows, or helps ro show, that something
is rrue
protect to keep someone or something safe
radioactive dust very, very small pieces of broken atoms which
come from nuciear materials or explosions
sack (u)to make someone leave his/her iob
safe (adj) not in danger
safety being safe
scanner a machine which can see very smali things on or inside
the body, which the human eye cannot see
shos,er a place $,here you can v/ash under water that falls from
above
suppose to think that something is true when you are not sure
(n)
test looking at something carefuily to find out more about it
union a group of workers who ioin together to talk to
managers about their pay, hours of work, etc.
uranium [U] aheavy grey metal that sends out radioactive
waves, and is used to make nuclear energy
vote (u) to choose someone in an election by marking a piece of
paper
woníed (adj) afraid that something is, or wiil be, bad or wrong
worry fu) to feel a.fraid and that something is, or will be, bad or
wrong

il
!i
40
ii 41,
itr]
i