It is common for the public — and elected officials and the media — to think about nuclear weapons as a national or international issue FAR REMOVED from YOUR local community. But actually, if a nuclear war occurs (whether intentionally or by accident, miscalculation or computer error), YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY will be destroyed and LOCAL PEOPLE will be killed. Therefore, NUCLEAR WEAPONS REALLY ARE A LOCAL ISSUE, so ordinary people and local governments must oppose nuclear weapons!
To see what a nuclear weapon would do to YOUR local community, enter your zip code into this link: And yes, it could happen again, even here in the United States. Here’s what it could look like if there was a nuclear attack near you.
The federal government has done a terrible job regarding nuclear weapons. They keep escalating the arms race, funding new weapons, and failing to take smart actions to reduce the likelihood of nuclear war. The federal government should, for example, adopt the smart 5-point plan in the “Back from the Brink” campaign. See www.preventnuclearwar.org
When the federal government is so negligent, state and local governments must fill in the gap. I helped introduce in recent Washington State Legislature sessions (and testified in legislative committees) bills that would have the State call upon the feds to take smart actions to reduce the danger of nuclear war.
Local governments have been taking smart actions:
- The “Back from the Brink” campaign (www.preventnuclearwar.org) has resources to help local governments pass resolutions.
- Mayors for Peace (www.mayorsforpeace.org) is an organization through which mayors have taken actions.
- The worldwide non-profit org promoting the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNS) is the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (www.icanw.org) has been encouraging state/provincial and local governments around the world to endorse the TPNW. A growing number have been passing resolutions endorsing the TPNW. Some are in nations that have their own nuclear weapons (e.g., the U.S. and France) and some are in nations that host the U.S.’s weapons through NATO. See helpful information at https://cities.icanw.org/
This peace organization has samples of local resolutions: https://worldbeyondwar.org/resolution/
Mayors for Peace hosted a webinar with young people in August 2020 asserting their desire for no more Hiroshimas or Nagasakis. See the webinar here: http://www.mayorsforpeace.org/english/whatsnew/news/200701_news.html
Even if your nation has not ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, your local government can: https://beyondnuclearinternational.org/2020/11/01/ican-save-my-city/
ICAN provides helpful information about cities endorsing the Treaty at https://cities.icanw.org/ and at https://www.icanw.org/how_to_join_the_ican_cities_appeal
Here is a recent list of cities that have ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons: TPNW Supporting Cities 1_4_21
