75th Anniversary Remembrance of the Bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
#stillhere: 75 Years of Shared Nuclear Legacy
We are a coalition of anti-nuclear activists representing a variety of organizations nationwide. We share the common goals of ridding the world of the risk of nuclear weapons, and bringing justice to the communities affected by nuclear weapons testing, production and use. We came together specifically to honor nuclear survivors as we acknowledge that in the 75th year of the nuclear age, survivors and the weapons are still here.
To participate in the national virtual event, go to https://www.hiroshimanagasaki75.org/events
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75th Anniversary Hiroshima Day
One-Hour Online Commemoration
CALLING FOR THE ABOLITION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
AUGUST 6, 2020, 8 P.M. EASTERN / 5 P.M. PACIFIC
Hosted by the New Mexico 75th Anniversary of Hiroshima/Nagasaki Committee and Pace e Bene
https://paceebene.org/hiroshimaday2020
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On August 6 through 9 of this 75th year of the A-bomb tragedies there will be an international “Peace Wave” with the common aim of the elimination of nuclear weapons and with the signature campaign for the “Appeal of the Hibakusha for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons.”
Starting from Hiroshima at 8:15 am on Aug. 6, the time the bomb was dropped, waves of many creative forms of actions will encircle the globe westward along with its rotation until 11:02 am on Aug. 9, the time the A-bomb was dropped over Nagasaki. Petition and more info at http://www.ipb.org/yesterdays-news/the-ipb-supports-the-peace-wave-august-6-9-2020/
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1.) Films Available August 1-31st. Free, on-demand streaming of David Rothauser’s two films (each under 60 min.) Hibakusha: Our Life to Live and Article 9 Comes to America. Go to https://www.youtube.com/ppjcvideo to view them beginning Aug. 1.
SPECIAL SCREENING OF THE HIBAKUSHA FILM WITH Q&A WITH THE DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: AUG. 3, NOON-2PM, PST. We highly recommend that you attend this zoom session to view the film and meet the film’s Director/Producer ! RSVP is recommended (but not required) at https://forms.gle/pi5BrPR4NJS5UmLq6. To attend the zoom screening and Q&A use this link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82253502260
**See the end note about the documentaries
2) Available August 6, 4-5:30 pm PST. A free virtual performance by Japanese-American storyteller Megumi of the origin of the tradition of 1000 peace cranes, Sadako Sasaki. After the performance, Megumi will instruct viewers how to make paper cranes for the 75th anniversary. Register at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qT3VWbdnTRSk-9jw-lAiPQ You will receive an email confirmation with details to join the performance on the 6th.
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** END NOTE: Brief description of the Rothauser documentaries:
The Hibakusha film (narrated by Phil Donahue) was world premiered at the UN Non-Proliferation conference in May 2010 and recommended by then UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, who requested copies for UN members, but remains timely and moving. Framed by dramatized stories of an American boy hearing the news of the bombing in 1945, and a young Japanese girl hoping to attend a peace festival after the war, we meet and hear the life stories of Japanese, Korean, and American survivors (hibakusha) of the 1945 atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and its impact on their lives and their dedication to abolishing nuclear weapons. It is clear that the Hibakusha hate war, but not the Americans. We see scenes of a traditional peace festival consisting of memorial ceremonies and choral performances, and peace delegates from other nations. Although the film contains graphic scenes of the aftermath of the bombing, it has a message of hope in the dedication of those who work to abolish nuclear weapons, a task still before us.
The Article 9 film focuses that hope on the article adopted in the Japanese constitution that renounces war as a means to settle international disputes involving the state, conceived by Gen. MacArthur and Japanese Prime Minister Shidehara, and adopted in 1946 in Japan’s constitution. The film presents interviews with leading proponents of the concept of Article 9, including Noam Chomsky, Helen Caldicott, Robert J. Lifton, John Dower and Freeman Dyson” and others, who have led the movement to have the U.S. adopt a similar amendment. In the film, their views on peace are challenged by a dramatized right-wing intellectual who eventually embraces the concept of the amendment as Article 9 is nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
WILPF was the primary sponsor of the film’s development, joined by the Jane Addams Peace Association and Veterans for Peace as sponsors, and campaigned for adoption of a similar constitutional amendment in the U.S.
Alternative Migrant Trail 2020 Report Back
For the 17th year, organizers and participants came together for the Migrant Trail, a journey to raise awareness about the deaths of migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border. This year, due to COVID-19 and in care for our communities, the event was held virtually. Participants spent a week of reflection, podcasts, suggested readings and live webinars to learn more about our border community. This year, 100% of registration fees went to four border organizations whose work was uplifted during the week: BorderLinks, the O’odham Anti-Border Collective, Keep Tucson Together and the No More Deaths Emergency COVID-19 Bond Fund. With the generosity of our participants, sponsors and donors, we raised $13,300, with $3325 going to each organization.
All of the web content has been made available on our website: https://azmigranttrail.com/alternative-migrant-trail-2020-all-web-content/
We invite you to watch the videos and webinars, listen to the podcasts and do the readings to learn more about the Arizona-Sonora border, and the struggle for justice.
Educational Resources: What Is Meant by Defunding the Police
Watch Kailee Scales, Managing Director of Black Lives Matter, explain what defunding the police means in a video which also contains interspersed fact sheets about police violence, incarceration, and ways to invest in our communities: https://blacklivesmatter.com/what-defunding-the-police-really-means/
Read “What Are We Talking About When We Talk About a Police-Free Future” at MPD 150 at https://www.mpd150.com/what-are-we-talking-about-when-we-talk-about-a-police-free-future/
Read “‘Starve the Beast’: A Q&A With Alex S. Vitale on Defunding the Police” at The Nation at https://www.thenation.com/article/society/alex-vitale-defund-police-interview/