Category: In Memoriam
-
In Memoriam: Joe Maizlish – War Resister, Gentle Soul, Dear Friend
Joe Maizlish—war resister, gentle soul, and dear friend of Bridge the Gap—died March 16, 2022. While a graduate student in history at UCLA in 1968, to protest the Vietnam War, Joe gave up his draft deferment and publicly refused induction. He served 2 ½ years in various federal prisons, a substantial amount of the time in solitary confinement. In the decades since, he worked diligently against war and injustice. He helped found the Southern California Nonviolence Community. He advocated for a peaceful and just resolution of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. He worked for an end to the underlying and systemic causes of violence. In his person, he also embodied the values of gentleness, humility, and caring that he worked for in the world at large. The photo of Joe refusing induction [click photo for larger version] exemplifies who he was at heart: someone who did the right thing, at great personal cost, and who gently asked us all, what are we going to do to help transform a world filled with war?
-
In Memoriam: Michael Rose––the Gifted Investigator Who Revealed the Partial Meltdown at Santa Susana
On September 7, 2020, Michael Rose, a dear friend and key Bridge the Gap figure for 45 years, died of complications from a bone marrow transplant for leukemia. He uncovered some of the most important nuclear hazards in the country, which contributed to their elimination. Michael was the best researcher and investigative journalist we have ever met, and a gentle and caring soul, and he will be missed more than words can express.
-
In Memoriam: Sheldon C. Plotkin, Ph.D., P.E. Served on Bridge the Gap Board for 46 Years
Dr. Sheldon Plotkin, a mainstay of CBG and an unflagging force for science in the public interest, died April 11, 2020, at age 93. He played key roles in the shutdown of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory and the fight to clean it up. He served as an expert witness in the UCLA, Diablo Canyon, and San Onofre nuclear reactor cases. He was central to the establishment and operation of CBG’s longtime partner organization, the Southern California Federation of Scientists.
-
George Rembaum, 94, co-founder of Rocketdyne Cleanup Coalition, Dies; Long Time Fighter for Cleanup of Santa Susana Field Laboratory
George Rembaum, who helped found the Rocketdyne Cleanup Coalition in 1989 and fought ever after for the cleanup of the site, died March 22. “He was a gentle, thoughtful, compassionate...
-
CBG Mourns Death of Long-time Board Member Mildred Plotkin
Millie Plotkin, who served on Bridge the Gap’s Board and was one of our mainstays for more than three decades, died peacefully in her sleep on October 16. She was...
-
In Memoriam: Three Giants in the Fight to Reduce Nuclear Risks John Gofman, Paul Leventhal, Ted Taylor
December 31, 2007 One of the greatest “sins” is to be prematurely correct. We have recently lost several great and noble voices of caution about nuclear dangers who had repeatedly...