How to Find Hope in the Midst of Increasing Danger
The Doomsday Clock, published annually by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, has been set at 90 seconds to midnight since 2023. This clock, in which “midnight” symbolizes the end of the world as we know it, has served as a powerful reminder of the twin existential threats of nuclear weapons and climate change.
About eleven months ago, a young peace activist told me that anti-nuclear activism needed a more hopeful vision than this doomsday scenario. To this day, I am trying to respond to the question this activist’s point raised — where can we find hope amidst the intensifying threat of nuclear weapons today?
After traveling extensively to deepen my understanding of the conversations on nuclear weapons taking place in communities across the United States, I now see a glimmer of that hope. There is a discernible shift on the ground in the debate about nuclear weapons, broadening it beyond the doomsday scenario to be more inclusive of the different times in which people live with respect to reaching nuclear catastrophe.
Midnight has already come for many people who have been affected by the development, testing, use, and threat of use of nuclear weapons. This includes uranium mine workers, people who lived downwind of nuclear test sites, and survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
The effects of nuclear weapons have also affected an incalculable number of people. As a recent study shows, fallout from the Trinity test, the first detonation of the atomic bomb, spread across the country, exposing many more people in this country to radiation than initially assumed. The fear of nuclear war has also had lasting psychological effects on a whole generation, as many Americans that lived through the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Civil Defense “Duck and Cover” exercise often mention. These varying harms — death for some, lingering fear of illness and psychological trauma for others — are all undeniable legacies of nuclear weapons development. As I travel, I find that more and more people from communities affected by nuclear weapons development (”nuclear frontline communities”) are becoming more vocal about these harms, challenging the existing framework of conversation about nuclear weapons.
When the clock is actually at or past midnight, what is needed is the will to recognize, remember, and repair the ongoing harms and damaged relationships nuclear weapons have caused. Only then can we reimagine our collective future. Across the country, efforts are underway to do just that. This is where I see a glimmer of hope.
Each week, I will share some of the conversations I am having with city leaders, peace activists, and members of impacted communities across the country.
Hirokazu Miyazaki
Kay Davis Professor and Professor of Anthropology, Northwestern University, and Nagasaki Peace Correspondent