Sunday, August 6, 2023, marks the 78th anniversary of the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima, an event more in the news this year because of the release of Oppenheimer. While the history of the dawn of the nuclear age is dramatized for moviegoers, the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum is hosting a “Happy Birthday, Intrepid” series of parties for children on the warship.
A coalition of peace and antinuclear groups wrote to the Intrepid asking that the party be canceled in recognition of this solemn anniversary, but no reply was received. On Sunday, August 6 at 11:00 a.m., the groups will march from the military recruiting station in Times Square to the Intrepid to remind passers-by and those visiting the warship of the tens of thousands killed by the first use of an atomic bomb on a city. The groups call for August 6 to be a day dedicated to calling for a world free of nuclear weapons and that the United States sign the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons and bring us back from the brink of nuclear war.
March will begin in Times Square at 11:00 a.m., then across 42nd Street to theIntrepid, 12th Ave. and 46th St.
Leaflet, vigil, and peace activities for kids will be held from 11:45 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. outside the Intrepid
“August 6th isn’t even the anniversary of the Intrepid, so why desecrate this real, devastating anniversary with something so inappropriate, disrespectful, and frivolous on this date? It’s long past time for this country to stop glorifying war and start disarming heads and hearts,” commented Rosemarie Pace, Pax Christi New York State.
Along with the march and vigil, children and families will be offered a free book telling the story of Sadako Sasaki, a young girl who survived the Hiroshima bombing but later died of radiation poisoning. Sadako set a goal to fold 1,000 origami cranes during her illness, a goal she could not complete before she died. The Children’s Peace Statue in Hiroshima commemorates Sadako. Children and others will be invited to fold cranes, as well as complete the sentence “Peace is …” on a poster, along with other activities.
Among the 28 sponsoring organizations are the NYC War Resisters League, Pax Christi New York State, Peace Action New York State, Granny Peace Brigade, NY Metro Raging Grannies, Pax Christi Metro New York, Veterans for Peace/Chapter 34, Catholic Worker, and World Can’t-Wait.
Some of these groups have marked this anniversary — and August 9 when Nagasaki was bombed — every year since 1946.