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Nukewatch Quarterly Spring 2022
By Kelly Lundeen
For people struggling to achieve peace, the war in Ukraine reinforces feelings of grief and despair, yet the anti-nuclear global majority continues to move slowly toward nuclear abolition. The year 2021 saw eight more nations ratify the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), bringing the total to 60 ratifications and 86 signatories. Even though the nuclear weapons states have not caught onto the nuclear weapons ban trend, the U.S. government was reminded on January 22 when, despite ongoing Covid restrictions, nearly 60 events took place to celebrate the first anniversary of the entry into force of the TPNW, all with the same message — join the Treaty!
The Nuclear Ban Treaty Collaborative (NBTC), of which Nukewatch is a founding member, coordinated a day of action, creating resources and hosting zoom calls to bring the nationwide movement together again this year. Around the country, groups marked the occasion by dancing, bannering, singing, bell ringing, moments of silence, flower delivery, letter delivery, Treaty delivery, and sharing cupcakes. Ralph Hutchison of Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance created an inspiring video compilation of many of these actions.
Nukewatch participated in this year’s day of action through our webinar production with the Affected Communities & Allies Working Group, one of four working groups in the NBTC. Two hundred ninety people registered for the zoom webinar we called “Nuclear Colonialism in the Age of the Ban Treaty.” Both videos can be found at: nukewatchinfo.org/videos.
The seminar highlighted the lived experience of speakers and artists from affected communities to activate our collective work toward disarmament. They wove together the history of nuclear colonialism from uranium mining, nuclear testing, production, and use. One of the speakers and a member of the Affected Communities & Allies Working Group, Benetick Kabua Maddison of the Marshallese Educational Initiative, quoted his uncle David Kabua, president of the Marshall Islands: “Before the nuclear testing program the Marshallese people had no allies. But 76 years later we have allies all over the world, simply because of us using our voices to raise awareness about these issues that are impacting us.”
Please join the Nuclear Ban Treaty Collaborative to promote the TPNW and open more spaces where impacted voices can be elevated. Sign the statement on the nuclear weapons threat and find out how to get involved in a working group at:
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