Make this Moment Matter: Take Action for a Nuclear Weapons Free World

“Not since the height of the Cold War has the threat of nuclear weapons been so ominous. How did we get here — and how can we step back from the brink of catastrophe?”1

“We must wake up to the reality of today’s nuclear threats, raise our voices and seize the opportunity to build a more peaceful world.” 2

“We’ve condemned another generation to live on a planet that is one grave act of hubris or human error away from destruction without demanding any action from our leaders. That must change.” 3

“With speed and deliberation, we should take steps toward a world without nuclear weapons.” 4

“To protect our families, our communities, and our world, we must demand that global leaders work to make nuclear weapons history—and build a brighter future.” 5

—

If these warnings and pleas for action sound familiar that’s because they are. Nuclear disarmament advocates have been saying these things for years — often feeling like few were listening, certainly not our elected officials in Washington. Often being accused of hyperbole, fear mongering or of being hopeless naive.

But no, these breathless admonishments did not come from Back from the Brink (BftB) or the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) or any of the thousands of dedicated nuclear disarmament advocates worldwide but rather from venerable, mainstream voices: a former governor and U.S. Secretary of Energy, the opinion editor of the New York Times and well-known Hollywood actors, musicians and other public figures.

Perhaps credit the blockbuster film, Oppenheimer, which this past Sunday won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Or maybe the frightening nuclear rhetoric of Vladimir Putin. Or the growing prospect of an unhinged former president once again having sole authority over U.S. nuclear weapons.

Or maybe our collective efforts and voices have finally gotten through to certain establishment voices who have ignored the problem or stubbornly believed that our luck will never run out and the folly that is nuclear deterrence will forever keep us safe.

Whatever the reason, public awareness of this existential threat posed to humanity by nuclear weapons and the harm they have caused — has greatly increased of late.

We should be grateful and seize the moment.

But here’s the rub. These public figures talk a great deal about what “we” need to do. They admonish us to “seize the opportunity,” “raise our voices” and “demand that global leaders make nuclear weapons history.”

Public education and awareness without giving folks the means and opportunity to act in impactful ways won’t change much. That’s where Back from the Brink shines.

It’s going to take organizing—lots of it—sustained efforts to educate, mobilize and engage the public and build a politically powerful, diverse nuclear disarmament constituency that Washington can’t ignore. That’s exactly what Back from the Brink, ICAN, and scores of other civil society organizations who value and recognize the importance of organizing are doing.

It’s not easy work. Building relationships and common cause with other movements takes time, as does finding and cultivating activists. Rarely are there immediate measurable outcomes and metrics. Plus, there’s no shortage of pressing, real life issues that people, organizations and communities are confronting. 

Those of us who do the hard and necessary work of grassroots, community-based organizing need much more support, funding and validation. We need more public figures and political leaders with big soap boxes to get into this fight to save humanity and support, get involved in and amplify what we are doing. In the 1980’s at the height of the Nuclear Freeze movement, there were genuine public leaders on the issue—members of Congress, celebrities, musicians, scientists,  and others. Now, once again, there is growing awareness, some of which has been triggered by Oppenheimer.

Importantly there is a solid foundation of nuclear disarmament activism which our campaign and others have been building for many years — contrary to the claims of the opinion editor of the New York Times who said such [anti-nuclear] activism was mostly “inconceivable now.” Indeed, such activism is alive and well in communities throughout the United States with a host of impressive “measurable outcomes” in the form of resolutions passed, local and state officials who have endorsed BftB’s policy platform, and organizations small and large who have joined the fight. But we sure could use more support, funding and respect to leverage these successes and build upon them.

Here are some meaningful actions you can take right now.

• Urge your House member to cosponsor H. Res.77. Even if you’ve already done so, if your representative hasn’t cosponsored, try again, use the NYT coverage to underscore that it’s time to get serious about nuclear disarmament.
• If your House member already cosponsored, thank them and ask if they can help get their colleagues on board — now, while attention is high.
• Organize locally by getting involved with or starting a BftB Hub, launch a resolution effort in your town, ask your local and state elected officials to endorse BftB — contact us if you need help.
• Follow us on Facebook, IInstagram and X and amplify our posts to bring more visibility to BftB and the hundreds of communities and cities speaking out.
• Contact us if you’d like a BftB speaker to present to your organization, school, church, or profession association—or if you’d like help making a presentation yourself.
• Donate to BftB — BftB relies on individual donations from supporters like you to grow our campaign and get more people to take action.

For organizations:

• Become a BftB Partner Organization, display our Proud Partner logo on your website, and urge your supporters to ask their House Reps to cosponsor H. Res. 77.

Best,

Back from the Brink Organizers

1 Oppenheimer’s’ best performance — reminding us that we live in dangerous times, Los Angeles Times opinion, Jerry Brown and Ernest Moniz, March 6, 2024

2 Oppenheimer’s’ best performance — reminding us that we live in dangerous times, Los Angeles Times opinion, Jerry Brown and Ernest Moniz, March 6, 2024

3 An Introduction, It’s Time to Protest Nuclear War Again, Kathleen Kingsbury, Opinion Editor, New York Times, At the Brink series

4 Oppenheimer’s’ best performance — reminding us that we live in dangerous times, Los Angeles Times opinion, Jerry Brown and Ernest Moniz, March 6, 2024

5 An Open Letter from Hollywood On Oppenheimer and Nuclear Weapons from the MakesNukesHistory website, Nuclear Threat Initiative