Support arms control. Join our campaign at Change.org/ArmsControlNow

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Today marks the 75th anniversary of the United States detonating a nuclear bomb over Hiroshima. We’ve long debated over whether it saved lives—by bringing WWII to a conclusion without a massive invasion. But there’s no dispute that, in an instant, we killed 75,000 people, most of them civilians, and that 125,000 more died over the next five years due to bomb-related illnesses. And three days after we laid waste to Hiroshima, we did the same to Nagasaki.

In the 75 years since, not only have we not come to terms with the suffering we wrought upon innocents, we’ve failed to bring nuclear weapons under control. In fact, quite the reverse. There’s a global nuclear arms race underway. The United States has pulled out of one key arms control treaty and is poised to do the same with another. Our President is discussing conducting the first nuclear weapons test in 18 years. There’s a global nuclear arms race underway. Eight countries have stockpiles of nuclear weapons, two are on the cusp of building nuclear weapons, and several others are contemplating how they can become nuclear powers. The threat of nuclear war is real and growing.

You can do something. Join our campaign on Change.org to encourage President Trump and Congress to renew the New START arms control treaty, which is set to expire in just a few months. Here’s the link: https://www.change.org/ArmsControlNow

Please talk about the nuclear threat with your family and friends and share the link. Politicians need to hear our demands.

If you want to go further, call your representatives. Common Cause has a great online tool for finding who represents you. Once you’ve gotten that information, reach out to your representatives and make your demands clear:

  • The U.S. must renew the New START arms control treaty;

  • We must cut funding for nuclear weapons research and development;

  • We must ban nuclear testing;

  • We must open (or reopen) comprehensive nuclear negotiations with Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran to decrease the threat of nuclear war.

This is the time to act. You can make a difference. Please share this with everyone you know. Let’s bring an end to the madness of nuclear weapons and the very real threat of nuclear war—for once and for all.

Jeff Henigson