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Life Onboard |
LAST UPDATE
August 4, 2006
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| June 18, 2006 |
Setsuko Thurlow |
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| Setsuko Thurlow shares her story of the loss |
“The tragedy of Hiroshima cannot be forgotten,” said Atomic bomb
survivor Setsuko Thurlow. On August 6th, 1945, when the atomic bomb was
dropped on Hiroshima, Setsuko was a thirteen year old girl. Today, 61
years later, Setsuko courageously speaks of her experience as a
Hibakusha when many others have remained silent. A large yellow banner
hung behind her in the Broadway lecture hall of the Topaz ship while she
recalled the day. The names of her classmates lost in the Hiroshima
bombing were written across the banner. Setsuko reminded the audience to
think about the individuals lost and not just the numbers. “When you see
their names written in kanji, you know that these people existed, that
they were loved,” said Setsuko. |
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| The names of her fellow classmates lost on August 6, 1945. |
On the morning of August 6th, Setsuko and thirty other students had been selected to help out at their local army headquarters. Her and her classmates were just beginning their day of work,1.8 kms from the hypocenter of the blast. At 8:15 a.m., she saw a bluish-white flash and felt her self flying through the air. When she regained consciousness, she was surrounded by total darkness. Her first thoughts were: Can I move? Can I escape? She felt that death was knocking at her door. Then, from somewhere in the darkness, she felt an arm touch her, pulling her out from the heavy planks of wood she was pinned under. She narrowly escaped the building before it burnt to the ground.
The suffering of the atomic bomb did not end on that day. Setsuko not only lost her sister and nephew, her friends and her beloved city but weeks later her uncle and aunt living outside of the city limits became sick and passed away. In the months and years to come, the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki continued to suffer form the effects of radiation. The survivors were discriminated against because others feared of contracting unknown infectious diseases from them. In the war's aftermath, the US imposed Press Code denied the press from reporting any criticism of the US's use of the Atomic bomb. The Atomic Casualty Commission studied the affects of radiation but offered no treatment to the survivors. In this denial and suppression of information, the grieving process of the Hibakusha elongated. |
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| Reading from “For Those Who Pray for Peace “ a collection of memoirs which include Setsuko's personal story of the day the bomb was dropped. |
On March 1st, 1954, the United States began their hydrogen bomb testing on Bikini Atoll. A Japanese fishing boat happened to be fishing in nearby unauthorized waters. One of the fishermen was severely burned and the others were affected by the radioactive particles that fell outside the safety testing zone. When the fishermen returned to Japan and exhibited similar symptoms to the surviving victims of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan finally became aware of the effects of radiation. Setsuko, who had received a scholarship to study at an American university had just arrived to the US when this incident was on the forefront of every Japanese mind. |
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| Setsuko answering questions from participants in a chat session. |
Her arrival was big news in the small town of Lynchburg, Virginia. In a press conference, naive Setsuko freely spoke her mind about her experience in Hiroshima and her opposition the US hydrogen bomb testing. Her words were not met with encouragement. Within the first week of her arrival, she received so many unsigned hate letters that her university president asked the postmistress to stop delivering them to her. To help her cope, a professor invited her to stay in his log cabin out in the woods, allowing her some time to collect her thoughts. Setsuko began to ask herself:Should I put a zipper on my mouth? Or should I talk about it no matter the consequences? She came out with a strong commitment to warn the world of nuclear danger—a commitment that she has stuck to for the past fifty years.
As the Hibakusha get older and pass away, Setsuko believes that it is imperative for her to tell her story to the next generation. Yet telling her story is not enough, she doesn't want to have a “tearjerker approach” to the the Hibakusha experience. Instead, she addresses the current situation of nuclear weapons and relates it to the individual citizen's civic responsibility. Speaking at universities across Canada and America, she asks students to look in their own backyard and take action to stop the proliferation of nuclear weapons. “ I don't want to be a hostage of the nuclear weapons makers, “ said Setsuko.
The 53rd Voyage is the third time Setsuko has joined Peace Boat to share her experiences but each time she is inspired by the spirit of the young adults onboard. “I have hope for Japan. I have hope for the US. I have hope for the world,” she said. Setsuko will be speaking at the upcoming World Peace Forum in Vancouver, Canada. |
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