by Elizabeth V. Hallett

“Ninety Seconds to Midnight” is the measurement used by Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists to dramatize the inherent global dangers we face with lessening time to avoid a nuclear war. The hands on the clock advance incrementally with the geopolitical events that are increasingly troublesome and suggest a spiraling toward nuclear war.  

As we know, nuclear war is increasingly in the news, due in particular to the sensitivities and dangers inherent in the war in Ukraine. The heightened risk of a nuclear disaster coincides with the recent release of The End of All War: Oppenheimer and the Atomic Bomb, a documentary aired on MSNBC and available to stream on Peacock. And this week, a related dramatization of Oppenheimer’s life and the US deployment of the atomic bomb on Japan is the subject of Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan. The film runs at the Varsity Theater in Ashland from July 20-27.

The world is acutely aware of the increased vulnerability of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant that has been shelled by Russia and considerably disabled. There are threats being used in international politics regarding the use of a “nuclear option.” The hands on the “nuclear clock” are  indeed dangerously close to signifying a nuclear explosion or attack somewhere in the warfare picture. 

What can we do? 

Peace House will host two events this August on the heels of the release of the Oppenheimer films to catapult a greater understanding of both the realities we face and the urgent need for us to come together and strategically reduce the risk of a nuclear disaster.

August 6: A Vigil of Remembrance

Peace House and our partners will hold a Vigil of Remembrance from 8-9 a.m. on August 6 at the entrance to Lithia Park to mark the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August of 1945. 

The commemoration will include speakers and traditions to remember those lost and impacted by the nuclear bombings, including:

• The Lighting of the Memorial Flame 
• Elizabeth V. Hallett, Director of Peace House 
• Rev. Elizabeth (Liz) Olson: Reflection
• Dr. Michael Niemann, Retired Professor of International Studies, SOU: Speaker
• Readings from the Mayoral Declarations of Hiroshima and Ashland Mayors
• Water Ceremony of Remembrance to honor those who died and were injured in the bombings. 
• There will be music and lawn chairs for guests.

August 9: Ninety Seconds to Midnight: What Can We Do?

On Wednesday, August 9, Peace House, One Sunny Day Initiatives and the Peace and Witness Team of the Ashland Congregational Church will host an opportunity for learning and discussion on our geopolitical situation.

What can we do?  What initiatives may be possible to scale back the dangers of nuclear war?

Speakers include:

• Dr. Michael Niemann, Retired Professor of International Studies: Luck Is Not a Strategy
• Dr. Hideko Tamura Snider, Hiroshima survivor: The Urgency of Peace

Hideko Tamura Snider holds an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters. She was recently interviewed for the MSNBC documentary program “Oppenheimer,” after being flown to Los Angeles by the producers, in order to provide her witness of the bombing of her home town in 1945, seventy-eight years ago.Then ten years old, she lost many family members and suffered from terrible radiation burns. As an adult and social worker, Hideko has worked tirelessly to alert people to the horrors of nuclear war and the steps we need to take to prevent it from happening again. Hideko is the founder of One Sunny Day Initiatives, which began in 2007, to promote peace, hope and reconciliation while working towards a nuclear weapons-free world. 

Dr. Michael Niemann is a retired professor of International Studies from Southern Oregon University. He grew up in a small town in western Germany before moving to the United States and studied at the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms Universität in Bonn, Germany, and at the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver where he received a PhD in International Studies.

Event sponsors include:

• Peace House 
• One Sunny Day Initiatives
• Ashland Congregational Church, Peace and Witness Team
• South Mountain Friends Meeting