A Washington State group of anti-nuclear activists will host a weekend event commemorating the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, culminating in a direct action at the largest operational concentration of nuclear weapons in the U.S. arsenal.
Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action, a grass roots organization based in Poulsbo, Washington will host its annual weekend event remembering the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 8th and 9th. Each year Ground Zero hosts this event to help people understand the threat of nuclear weapons and engage them in resistance to the Trident nuclear weapons system.
This year’s theme is MUSIC NOT M.A.D.NESS.
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Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor, adjacent to Ground Zero, is the West Coast home port for the Trident nuclear weapons system. Bangor is estimated to represent the largest operation concentration of nuclear weapons in the U.S. arsenal. Trident is a Cold War weapons system designed to hold the (then) Soviet Union under the threat of Mutually Assured Destruction (M.A.D.). Since the end of the Cold War the U.S. has continued to deploy Trident on a constant basis with it’s thermonuclear armed missiles ready to launch on command. The Trident II D-5 missiles built by Lockheed Martin have been undergoing a Life Extension program to not only extend the life of the missiles, but also modernize their critical systems and improve their accuracy.
This year’s Hiroshima/Nagasaki remembrance celebrates the power of music to bring people together to work together for social change. The lineup includes Seattle band Chele’s Kitchen, Seattle musician Jim Page, and John Palmes from Juneau, Alaska. Music will feature prominently throughout the weekend, including during a vigil and nonviolent direct action at Bangor on Saturday.
Ground Zero plans a 24-hour vigil at the Bangor main entrance gate beginning Friday afternoon. It will also hold a vigil and nonviolent direct action on Saturday afternoon at one of the Bangor entrance gates. This year the organization is coordinating its action with one in the United Kingdom by anti-nuclear activists there on the same day. Both are working to stop production of new fleets of ballistic missile submarines by their respective governments. The project is known as Wool against Weapons (see www.notnt.org/p/wool-against-weapons).
The U.S. Navy is moving ahead with plans to build 12 new ballistic missile submarines, known as the SSBN(X), to replace the current fleet of OHIO Class (Trident) submarines. Research, development and construction of the new submarines is estimated (by the Congressional Budget Office) at nearly $100 billion. Lifecycle costs are estimated at approximately $347 billion.
Ground Zero believes that construction of the SSBN(X) is in contravention of the U.S. Government’s obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as well as being in direct conflict with international humanitarian law. Continued deployment of Trident and construction and deployment of the SSBN(X) undermines global non-proliferation efforts and sends a clear message to other nations that they, too, must build and deploy their own ballistic missile submarine fleets.
The government continues to justify the continuing expenditures on the SSBN(X) program base on the need to maintain its “strategic nuclear deterrent.” The nuclear deterrence doctrine is one that was developed specifically during the Cold War and its continuing justification in a post Cold War world is has not been questioned.
The weekend of action at Ground Zero will also initiate a letter-writing campaign to convince elected officials in Washington DC to eliminate funding for the SSBN(X) in the next fiscal year funding cycle. Ground Zero wants to eliminated funding for the SSBN(X) and re-direct those funds to critical needs including health care, education and infrastructure. The organization also believes that the jobs lost through the elimination of Trident can be re-directed to sustainable, local-based industries.
The complete schedule for Ground Zero’s weekend of remembrance and action can be found at http://www.gzcenter.org/event/hiroshimanagasaki-weekend/.
Contact for August 8th and 9th: Leonard Eiger, 425-445-2190 or 360-930-8697.
More information on Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action at www.gzcenter.org.
For thirty-seven years Ground Zero has engaged in education, training in nonviolence, community building, resistance against Trident and action toward a world without nuclear weapons.
Contact: Leonard Eiger, 425-445 2190, subversivepeacemaking@gmail.com
Ground Zero Center for Nonviolent Action
16159 Clear Creek Road NW Poulsbo, WA 98370
www.gzcenter.org
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