Event Details
JOIN US at the Westgate entrance to Livermore Lab on this historic 81st anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to support global nuclear abolition at the location where new nuclear warheads are being designed today. The rally will include amazing speakers including John Burroughs ( Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy and Western States Legal Foundation), Annoushka Raj (Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment), Grace Morizawa (Asian Americans for Peace and Justice), Fr. Thomas Bonacci (The Interfaith Peace Project), and Patricia Ellsberg (peace activist and wife of the late Daniel Ellsberg). At 10:30, we will transition to a symbolic, group "die-in" in the road (which will be closed), led in traditional Japanese Bon Dance (inviting our ancestors to join us), and nonviolent witness and direct action those who so choose.
Why at Livermore Lab? Founded in 1952 to speed the development of new "generations" of nuclear weapons, the Livermore Lab is one of two locations where all U.S. nuclear weapons are designed. Livermore Lab is currently spending billions to develop a new warhead for U.S. Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, another new warhead for a surprise nuclear attack to be launched by airplanes, and a third new warhead for small submarines that do not presently carry any nuclear weapons. This is the place to be to stop nuclear weapons and demand their total elimination!
Why now? Survivors of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are called "hibakusha." We gather to join the hibakusha's cry of "Never Again!" as we celebrate Nihon Hidankyo, the association of Japanese hibakusha and recipient of the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize. And, we recommit ourselves to nuclear abolition on the occasion of this 81st anniversary, carrying forward the work - and ensuring its visibility - as the last survivors pass on.
Free
Presented by Tri-Valley Communities Against a Radioactive Environment (CAREs)