Hiroshima Day is observed in many parts of the world with special vigils and peace marches. It is held to commemorate the dropping of the first atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and the subsequent bombing of Nagasaki on August 9th. On Tuesday, August 7th from 9 am to 10 am EST, WSLR-LP 96.5 will air a special edition of the Peace and Justice Report with guest host Billy Wetherington. (For those outside the Sarasota, Florida listening area, the program is streamed live on the internet. Go to www.wslr.org [2], click on "live broadcasting" and follow the instructions.) Mr. Wetherington will present a program in memory of those who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaki 62 years ago and for those of us who still survive in the nuclear age. The program will feature the “Atomic Platters: Cold War Music from the Golden Age of Homeland Security.” (If you’re both old enough to remember and forget how to “duck and cover” you won’t want to miss these tunes and public service announcements from the 40s, 50s and 60s.) Also featured will be readings from The Making of the Atomic Bomb, The Bhagavad-Gita and other writings about nuclear warfare. Readings and commentary about recent and current nuclear crises will also be included.
Wetherington says, “It seems natural that, as a culture, we prefer to look away from the events where the U.S. played an ambiguous, unpleasant or criminal role. It seems natural that we prefer to emphasize events that reflect how we like to think of ourselves, that show a face we like to show to the world. However, as we try to build a culture of peace it is important that we ask the hard questions, peel back the propaganda and look for alternatives to violence.”
This show will cause listeners to reflect on the true impact of these bombings. Sixty thousand (60,000) Japanese, most of them civilians, were killed almost instantly in Hiroshima, and, three days later, 40,000 more in Nagasaki (figures from the Avalon Project at Yale law School). The United States remains the only nation ever to have used atomic weapons against civilian populations. The anniversary of this event does not receive much attention, and if it is mentioned, it is likely to be quickly, along with the information that the bombings prevented an invasion and saved millions of American and Japanese lives.
WSLR-LP 96.5FM is a non-commercial, non-profit, listener-supported community radio station run by the Sarasota community, for the Sarasota community. Be sure to tune in to the Peace and Justice Report on Tuesday, August 7th and start your day in a nuclear way. After all, the nation state is on orange alert now that the Cold War red alert has ended.
A more complete program schedule is available on our website at www.wslr.org [3].