80 Years Later: Honor the Memory, End the Threat

August 6 and 9 respectively mark 80 years since the US dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, killing over 200,000 people and unleashing generations of suffering. An estimated 38,000 children died in the attacks, many from the immediate impact of the bombs, others from the long-term health effects of radiation. In a moving testament to lives lost and futures stolen, Ploughshares grantee ICAN (the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) has launched a digital Children’s Peace Memorial.

This historic tragedy of course didn’t start in Japan—but on July 16, 1945 in the New Mexico desert when the US detonated the world’s first nuclear bomb. Known as the Trinity Test, this explosion cracked open the nuclear age. Eighty years later, the world still lives under the shadow of nuclear weapons. Today, over 12,000 nuclear weapons remain globally. And for the first time since the Cold War, nuclear weapons arsenals are being upgraded and increasing in number. 

Despite it all, survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki attacks—known as hibakusha—and their descendants remain steadfast in their pursuit to ensure nuclear weapons are never used again. In 2024, hibakusha were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, finally receiving recognition for their efforts. And today, in their honor, our community is carrying their legacy forward.

Together, Ploughshares and its partners crafted a global sign-on statement calling on civil society organizations to unite under the shared hashtag #HumanRaceNotArmsRace. This statement honors the legacy of nuclear harms, demands disarmament, and emphasizes that the power to change the future is in our hands. 

In parallel, advocates are endorsing the “New Call to Halt and Reverse the Arms Race,” initiated by Ploughshares grantees the Arms Control Association and Win Without War. This call to action warns of the catastrophic risk posed by growing nuclear threats and calls for urgent arms reduction talks before the New START Treaty—the last remaining arms control agreement between the US and Russia—expires in February 2026. Ploughshares is proud to support these efforts by convening partners and sharing opportunities to collaborate in pursuit of diplomacy advancement.

Partners are also elevating and amplifying the voices of hibakusha like Hideko Tamura, author of One Sunny Day, and other Nobel Laureates and cultural leaders. The Nobel Laureate Assembly for the Prevention of Nuclear War, which convened in Chicago on July 16, released a powerful declaration urging leaders to step back from the nuclear brink. Meanwhile, cultural events give new dimension to the movement. The Kronos Quartet’s haunting rendition of Bob Dylan’s A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall—featuring Ringo Starr and Willie Nelson—launched on Trinity’s anniversary.

Public demonstrations are unfolding worldwide: from lantern ceremonies in Pacific Grove, CA to protests at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory organized by Ploughshares grantee, TriValley CARES. And from the annual #CranesForOurFuture campaign run by the Nuclear Threat Initiative to vigils organized by Mayors for Peace. Internationally, Hiroshima and Nagasaki will hold solemn peace memorials, inviting global leaders—including diplomatic missionaries from 157 countries—to stand together against nuclear weapons. Across Europe, Canada, Australia, and Asia exhibitions, panel discussions, and live-streamed events will honor the hibakusha and call for urgent disarmament.

Eighty years is enough. As J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, famously stated, nuclear weapons are “the destroyer of worlds.” Let this anniversary be not just a memorial, but a mandate. Sign the statement. Fold a crane. Share the story. Add your event to the global calendar hosted by Physicians for Social Responsibility. Join the call for a world free of nuclear weapons.

Remembrance without action is silence. And silence now would be catastrophic. We must ensure there is never another Hiroshima, never another Nagasaki, never another nuclear weapons test. Thank you for being a part of this movement and supporting Ploughshares in our commitment to those working day in and day out to ensure a nuclear weapons-free future is possible, for the next generation and beyond.