In collaboration with the Japan Committee for UNICEF, Japan’s award-winning singer-songwriter, Ai, and the Lasting Peace Project, are set to launch the “Lasting Peace for Every Child” peace education project to coincide with the G7 Summit in Hiroshima, Japan. A special live performance will take place May 21.
George E. Griener, Pierre Thompson & Elizabeth Weinberg explore the dual role of hibakusha, with some advocating for the total elimination of nuclear arms, while others dedicated their lives to the much less visible effort of transforming the hearts and minds. Thus, the legacy of the hibakusha can be fully appreciated by examining both manifestations of their leadership in the nuclear age.
On the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, Democracy Now! spoke with Hideko Tamura Snider, who was 10 years old when she survived the attack. Hideko is the founder of One Sunny Day Initiatives, a peace education organization that educates about the consequences of the use of nuclear weapons.
Hiroshima Institute for Peace Education arranged for about 90 people to travel around the city with Park Namju, an 86-year-old atomic bomb survivor, who was on one of two streetcars that survived the blast and are still in service.
Japan’s two atomic-bombed cities are enthusiastic about peace education. The city of Hiroshima has a 12-year-long peace education program covering elementary to high school students. The city of Nagasaki launched classes this year that focus on dialogue between hibakusha and students, not just on listening to the tales of survivors.
As the only country that has ever suffered nuclear attacks in war, Japan has a responsibility to ensure that memories of what Hiroshima and Nagasaki went through will be passed on to future generations as part of its efforts to promote the movement toward a world without nuclear weapons. The challenge facing Japan is how to accomplish this mission in the face of a growing indifference and a lack of understanding among the public as well as the withering effects of pressure against their efforts.
As a 13-year-old schoolgirl, Setsuko Thurlow survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. This is the remarkable speech she delivered at the United Nations on July 7, 2017 – the day when the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted at the United Nations.
Sumiteru Taniguchi, a well-known atomic bomb survivor, was selected by Hummel International to represent its peace-oriented line of shoes under a project titled “Pray with Hibakusha.” Proceeds from the sales of the peace shoes will be donated to promote peace education outside of Nagasaki.