This week marks 80 years since the U.S. atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
To commemorate these solemn anniversaries, we compiled reflections from a wide range of voices on the enduring legacy of those terrible days, and the road ahead toward a brighter future free from the shadow of nuclear weapons.
Hibakusha (Survivors)
Japanese survivors — known as hibakusha — have spent their lives advocating for peace and bearing witness to the horrors of nuclear war.
Though very few hibakusha remain with us today, their voices endure. As our friends at Win Without War put it: “As a new nuclear arms race looms, their stories are our warning — and our call to act.”
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Kazuo Maruta: “The world today is not moving toward disarmament, but toward further nuclear armament…I believe it is not only the duty of survivors to share our experiences, but a responsibility we owe to all humanity.” “We, the atomic bomb survivors of Nagasaki must once again raise our voices and call out to the world: Let Nagasaki be the last place to suffer an atomic bombing!” |
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Yoshimi Shimada: “I have been thinking about what we can do to help our children and grandchildren live in a peaceful world without war and nuclear weapons, but at our age, it is difficult to take action alone.” “I hope that we can all work together…to send our thoughts for peace to the world.” |
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Hamasumi Jiro: “Nuclear armed nations don’t think about it at all, or they ignore it. We hibakusha are the ones who know what happens, and that’s why we think they must never be used again.” “I want to say to the world, please listen to hibakusha so that we can achieve a world without war and free of nuclear weapons.” |
Let’s honor the wishes of survivors with action.
Tell Congress: Reject a new nuclear arms race and restore nuclear diplomacy!
Other Reflections
Nuclear Experts and Advocates:
FCNL joined the Ploughshares Fund and partners in a community statement calling for urgent action: “As arms control agreements near collapse and new nuclear dangers emerge, we face a historic choice. We must demand disarmament, prevent further proliferation, and ensure today’s conflicts do not become tomorrow’s nuclear catastrophe.”
“A future free from nuclear weapons is not only necessary—it is within our power.”
FCNL’s Allen Hester: “[Today], we face a new urgent moment…Together, we can steer the world back from the brink of a new nuclear arms race and toward a future rooted in peace, security, and shared humanity.”
Members of Congress:
Rep. Jim McGovern (MA-03): “Nuclear war is a threat that challenges our conscience. For Americans, for all humanity, and for all species of life on our planet, we have a moral responsibility to speak out and to do more. On these anniversaries, let us raise our voices and demand a saner course.”
See other reflections from Reps. Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Delia Ramirez (IL-03), and Chuy Garcia (IL-04).
Faith Voices:
FCNL’s Bridget Moix in Religion News Service: “For years, faith groups have condemned these weapons as immoral and called for their abolition. Quakers…have long advocated for a world free of nuclear weapons, though you do not have to be a pacifist to see the danger these weapons pose to us all.”
“As the world reflects on the devastation wreaked by nuclear weapons…we must continue to imagine and work for a world free of nuclear weapons and the threat they pose to humanity. That world may seem far away right now, but we can keep advocating for it.”
Pope Leo XIV: “Despite the passing of the years, these tragic events constitute a universal warning against the devastation caused by wars, particularly by nuclear weapons.
“I hope that in the contemporary world…the illusion of security based on the threat of mutual destruction will give way to the instruments of justice, the practice of dialogue, and trust in fraternity.”
Elsewhere
Thank senator(s) for voting to block arms to Israel: Amid the catastrophic suffering in Gaza, 27 senators took a historic stand on July 30 by voting to block offensive weapons to Israel. If your senator(s) supported these resolutions, take a few minutes to thank them!
Through a faithful lens: The moral costs of Trump’s budget bill: FCNL’s Amelia Kegan joined the National Council of Churches for a conversation about the wide-ranging harms of the recently passed budget reconciliation bill – and how faith communities can respond.
